Load monitoring systems are ideal for wind turbine construction projects.
Straightpoint (SP), manufacturers of force measurement, load monitoring, and suspended weighing load cell equipment, provide all that you need to ensure successful wind farm construction projects but also for maintenance and repairs.
SP products have been put through rigorous testing regimes and meet the high standards of many globally recognised industry bodies such as ASME, DNV-GL type approval, with a range of intrinsically safe wireless products. They have also developed them to be used with a wide range of industry standard lifting shackles and equipment.
Today, windfarms have now become a great renewable energy option to producing electricity with the benefits of zero carbon emissions and high energy outputs. SP supports the drive to produce energy in an environmentally friendly way with the same passion as it puts into producing innovative and industry leading load monitoring products. Providing the tools to improve safety levels that lead to a successful development completion with no injuries and loss of life occurring.
In turn, when projects are not hindered by disruption, investors can see operational costs tumble down and profitability rising.
Making the wind turbine construction and management industry a safer place
The lifting and rigging industry, as well as the specialists working within it, have been integral to helping the wind power industry to expand and flourish.
To keep up with this rising demand in wind farms the number of people and equipment involved has also jumped up to match the expansion’s pace.
SP products can be best utilised:
- Calculate Centre of Gravity of a monopile or offshore jacket
- Loler Test the hoist tower
- High capacity cranes for lifting the main components such as the nacelle, blades, tower sections, etc.
- Lorry mounted loader cranes transporting the parts to site
- Manual chain hoists for scenarios where heavy lifting equipment cannot be used
We can supply load monitoring solutions for each of them, such is the diversity of our solutions on offer to cover many parts to the construction process.
The range of wireless load cells are ideal for measuring the load for transportation.
Also utilised by LOLER inspection specialist to test the hoist in the tower before any actual payload lifting takes place.
SP compression load cells with wireless centre of gravity (WCOGS) software can be used to weigh and correctly calculate COG of the monopile or offshore jackets that support the turbine.
Using the latest in IEEE 802.15.4 (2.4GHz) technology; monitor the lift in safety from up to 700m/2300ft away, with its high integrity, error free transmission, wireless connectivity capability.
With accessories on offer you will be able to set overload and underload alarms so that you are instantly aware when the lifting equipment is exceeding its safety limits.
Both sea currents and weather play out as major factors that fight against the process to establish the wind turbine’s platform/base. So having accurate load force data to monitor before and during the lift is essential.
Offshore Locations & Marine Construction
Working in marine conditions brings a myriad of extra challenges to complicate and add additional hazards to the entire process. Firstly, a much more work has to go into securing the base of the turbine to a stable foundation. This usually involves 1 of 5 jacket types to fix the tower into place:
- Monopile
- Gravity-based
- Tripod
- Jacket
- Tripile
Straightpoint have a combination of software, instrumentation and wireless load cells (bluetooth option and with DNV Type approval) to suit these applications.
