All articles by Blatha
Blatha
Raising the standards
Andrew Tunnicliffe speaks with Kate Harvey, general manager of the G+ Global Offshore Wind Health and Safety Organisation, about the company’s work to improve safety in the offshore wind farm environment, how the challenges have evolved and how they are being met.
Storage wars
Renewables have less inertia than the large turbines used by coal, gas and nuclear, meaning grid frequency changes faster when demand and supply are out of balance. Advancements in battery storage technology and increased competition could be the answer to the UK’s increasingly inflexible and intermittent electricity supply, as James Lawson reports.
Sailing close to the wind
When Siemens began planning for the future of the offshore wind market, it needed options to move its enormous yet delicate turbine components. Richard Thomsen from Deugro Danmark and Bernd Eilitz from Siemens explain that the solution was to build two unusual bespoke wind cargo carrier ships.
Global growth
The global wind-power market is growing rapidly and creating opportunities in related fields such as operations and maintenance. We look at trends in the wind market using research insights from GlobalData.
High standards
For 17 years, Sir David King was the UK’s top climate change negotiator and adviser. In a rare interview, he tells Rumyana Vakarelska about the challenges facing the country in its push to increase clean energy
Setting sights on the future
As the wind industry continues its unprecedented growth, over 8,000 participants will gather on 28–30 November for the WindEurope Conference and Exhibition in the Amsterdam RAI Exhibition and Convention Centre.
Gearing up
Gearbox failures and repairs can strike hard at a wind turbine project, leading to high replacement costs and unscheduled stops. Dr John Coultate from Romax Insight, Paul Baker from AeroTorque and Stefan Bill from REWITEC explain how new technology can help wind turbine operators to address the problem.
Pushing the limits
Test facilities are key to maintaining a strong wind industry, and Denmark has a unique set-up that allows the industry to set new international standards and push the limits for the modern wind turbine. Jan Hylleberg, CEO of the Danish Wind Industry Association, explains how Denmark achieved this wealth of knowledge and how its research is helping drive the industry.
Top priority
Safety at UK wind farms is under the spotlight after two workers were killed on the job. To learn what can be done, Julian Turner talks to Kate Harvey of the Global Offshore Wind Health and Safety Organisation, and David Flynn, an engineer working on a human-robotics hybrid solution for offshore farms.
Reliable and resilient
Renewable energy now makes up an increasing proportion of national electricity grids across the world. But many people might still have questions about how renewables, and wind energy in particular, fit into overall energy and power systems. Michael Goggin, senior director of research at the American Wind Energy Association, explains how wind power plays its part.