TPI Composites, a global supplier of wind turbine blades, has signed a multi-year supply agreement with Vestas Wind Systems A/S. Vestas will provide blades for the V126 wind turbine from TPI’s recently announced second factory in Izmir, Turkey. The factory will be located on a 10-hectare, 30,000 m2 site with the ability to expand in the…
Sandia Participates in the second annual Composites and Advanced Materials Expo
Sandia Wind Technologies Department materials lead, Brian Naughton, co-chaired a session with Shridhar Nath of GE Global Research on composite material applications in wind energy at the CAMX conference in Dallas.
ACMA and IACMI combine forces to grow the composite industry
The American Composites Manufacturers Association (ACMA) and the Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI) have entered into a unique partnership. The two organizations will work together to support membership development and promote the overall composites industry. ACMA is a provider of composites industry educational resources and is currently the world’s largest trade group, representing…
Saving time and costs with point-of-use resin heating
Mac Larsen | Director of Application Development | Graco Inc. Demand in the U.S. composites market is expected to grow to $10.3 billion by 2019 at a compound annual growth rate of 6.6%. Along with aerospace and automobiles, the industry can thank wind power for driving this upward trend. High-performance composites consist of carbon, Kevlar, or glass…
Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation hold an inaugural members meeting
This article was extracted from the August issue of the Sandia Wind Research Newsletter and published with permission. Sandia Wind Department technical staff members Josh Paquette and Brian Naughton attended the inaugural members meeting for the newly formed Institute for Advanced Composites Manufacturing Innovation (IACMI) in Knoxville, Tenn. in June. A few hundred attendees from…
JEC Americas 2013 Awards to recognizes top composites firms
Ten companies and their partners will receive awards at the second annual JEC Americas Composites Show and Conferences at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center, October 2 to 4, 2013. The latest crop of winners will be recognized at an Awards ceremony on Wednesday, October 2 at 3:00 p.m. on the exhibition floor of the…
Design firm uses simulation software for a best composite structure
Composites are getting more attention as design firms work to remove weight from products. MSC Software Corporation, a developer of multidiscipline simulation software that accelerates product innovation, says that ixent GmbH is using MSC Nastran for the layout and simulation of composite structures. Lightweight design is a primary objective for engineers at ixent GmbH. Aerospace…
A forecast report for composites
Composites are becoming increasingly important in many industries. The need to save energy is fuelling the increase of composites in aerospace, automotive, and the wind industry. The necessity to diversify away from traditional sources of energy is increasing demand for wind energy, another sector important for composites demand. Composites are also sought after in sectors…
A recent investment in composites is an investment in clean energy
The Windquest Group, a West Michigan based private investment group announced today that it has made an investment in Energetx Composites of Holland, Michigan. Details of the transaction were not disclosed. The proceeds of the investment will be used to continue the scale-up of Energetx Composites’ manufacturing equipment for the production of utility-scale wind turbine blades, among other purposes.
Composite structural sizing software improves with new design and manufacturing features
HyperSizer v6 structural sizing and analysis software can help reduce structure weight while maintaining strength and improving manufacturability, especially for complex composite and metallic designs. Developed and proven at NASA, the software—the first commercialized by the agency—has a track record of 20% weight reduction in high-profile government and commercial aerospace projects. Composites have gained wide…
Composite design and manufacturing center opens May 6, 2011
The National Composites Center near Dayton Ohio is taking a lead in composites and advanced materials, their structural design, optimization, and manufacturing simulation by offering all businesses access to this resource. The new Center opens on May 6th. Interested parties can meet the staff and partners on that date, and learn of the capabilities and…
Webcore Tech awarded $1.8 million for advanced blade material
WebCore Technologies LLC has been awarded $1,800,000 as part of the Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Small Business Phase III Xlerator program. WebCore was selected for a next phase development and commercialization of Tycor W, an engineered composite core material. The company material says it is gaining acceptance in utility wind-turbine blades due to its ability…
Wind turbine design: Building a better blade
Article by Craig Collier/President, Collier Research Corp./Hampton Roads, Va./hypersizer.com The first objective of most any large wind turbine blade design project is to get to the lightest weight possible. At NASA Langley Research Center, where I helped develop the code that later became HyperSizer, designs for spacecraft that include composites also have a zero failure-tolerance.…
Free equipment for manufacturing composite blades
The manufacturer of large-scale and mobile fabric impregnators is looking for a turbine blade-manufacturing company interested in using, at no obligation, a fabric impregnator engineered to manufacture the blades. The equipment, from Magnum Venus Plastech, Kent, Wash., has been used to make large composite structures such as boat hulls, many for navies. “We believe with…
Software guides design of composite blades
Observers of the wind-energy industry agree that long term growth will require technical innovation to make wind power more competitive with other forms of energy. There is also a consensus that it is critical to improve performance by designing and manufacturing more efficient, reliable, and lighter blades that can reduce loads on main-turbine components and…