Indji Systems, an environmental threat-monitoring and alerting provider for the energy sector, has launched an hour-by-hour forecast lightning for its new “Plan of Day” dashboard. The intuitive display provides a continuously updated view of weather threats that could impact project safety and disrupt the maintenance plans at a wind or solar farm. “The release of…
Phoenix Contact offers lightning current monitoring for preventive blade maintenance
Detailed lightning analysis can be an effective input to asset management systems to optimize the inspection intervals for wind-turbine blades, as well as appraise damage requiring immediate attention. This can result in performance improvements by reducing turbine downtime and increasing availability. This has particularly important implications as wind turbines become larger and are located in…
A discussion about lighting effects at wind farms with Vaisala’s Brooke Pearson
In this WindTalk podcast, we discuss lightning and its potential impact and effect on wind turbines with Vaisaila‘s Brooke Pearson. Brooke has more than 30 years of experience working in the field of meteorology and is currently Vaisaila’s Lightning Global Solutions Manager. The company, which provides environmental and industrial measurement (including lightning data), recently developed…
Vasaila offers new way to identify lightning that’s high risk to wind turbines
Vaisala, a global provider in environmental and industrial measurement including comprehensive lightning data, has developed the capability to distinguish cloud-to-ground lightning strokes that contain continuing current, the most damaging of lighting strokes. This first-of-its-kind technology offers precision in identifying these strokes, which can last up to 1,000 times as long as a typical lighting stroke…
DeTect’s HARRIER Aircraft Detection Lighting System meets FAA requirements
In response to the Dark Sky initiative to reduce light pollution and customer demand, DeTect developed the HARRIER Aircraft Detection Lighting Systems (ADLS) for automatic obstruction lighting activation for aviation obstructions such as wind farm turbines, high voltage transmission lines, and communication towers. The HARRIER ADLS provides reliable, continuous 360 degree radar surveillance of the…
The importance of testing wind-turbine lightning protection
By Simon Searle, Applications Engineer Megger One of the most significant hazards wind turbines face is damage from lightning strikes. Damage claims caused by strikes are one of the top payouts from insurance companies. A recent German study found that up to 80% of insurance claims relating to turbine downtime were from lightning-related damage. In…
Multiphysics simulations help NTS engineers understand what happens when lightning strikes a wind turbine.
As the world moves to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels, the global market for wind turbines is growing, projected to reach around $70 billion dollars annually in the next few years. While wind power on such a scale is a great achievement, another powerful force of nature is preventing the industry from reaching its…