Lengthy blades no longer a problem

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Excerpt: An industrial hauling company has developed a flatbed semi-trailer that can transport wind turbine blades up to 62 m. The Goldhofer SPZ-P 3AAA has the capacity to extend from 20 to 62 m, and so can carry wind turbine blades in their shipping frames. A deep extendable spine allows the trailer …

Covers protect tower sections in transit

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Excerpt: Custom fit covers for wind tower sections are available as an alternative to heavy and expensive custom tarps or conventional hand wrapping.  These covers protect the tower sections from dirt and water during shipping.  Various openings are allowed for different trailer configurations. The …

Longest air cargo ever carried makes landing

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Excerpt: A record-breaking journey has ended safely. The largest airplane in the world, a 175-ton Russian cargo carrier (the Antonov 225), transported two prototype wind turbine blades from China to Denmark. The 42-m GloBlades, headed for LM Wind Power’s technology center in Lunderskov, are the longest car …

Air crane lifts turbines to mountain sites

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Excerpt: The European office of Erickson Air-Crane has teamed-up with Vestas Wind Systems A/S of Denmark to construct twelve new V90-3.0 3 MW wind turbine generators on ridge tops near the mountain village of Ricigliano, Italy. The S-64F air crane flew with a 400 ft (125 m) line to deliver 36 blades – …

Transporter simplifies shipping nacelles

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Excerpt: A German truck designer has collaborated with a hauling company and engineers from Vestas Wind Systems to devise a trailer just for transporting the latter company’s wind-turbine nacelles. Trailer manufacturer Goldhofer AG developed the equipment to handle the recent Vestas Mk6 and Mk7, 2-MW n …

Tough crane provides a gentle touch for turbine equipment

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Excerpt: The ISL Model gantry crane is a heavy duty model engineered for higher duty cycles due to increased hoisting drum speeds, as well as increased ground speeds. The cranes, from Shuttlelift, Sturgeon Bay, Wisc, have fully traversing hooks, those that move the entire width of the crane for easy l …

Why Taller Modular Towers Make Sense

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Excerpt: A modular turbine tower is one way to get around the shortcomings of conventional solid section designs. Peder M. Hansen Executive Vice President Northstar Wind Towers Blair, Nebraska Taller towers for wind turbines make sense in so many ways. For instance, an 80 m tower can let mod …

How to protect large parts for shipping

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Excerpt: Shrink wrap protects anything, says Dr. Shrink, a manufacturer of shrink wrapping in Manistree, Mich. It protects equipment against weather damage because the waterproofing can be sealed around an entire unit. The wrapping comes in 12 to 40-ft widths so even large items are covered in one piece. …