Onyx Insight signs wind farm deal
27/05/2021
Data analytics company Onyx InSight has been selected by Eurus to monitor and analyse the health and performance of 33 wind turbines at two wind farms in Japan.Onyx InSight and Eurus have agreed a two-year predictive maintenance contract covering 59 MW of the Japanese developer’s portfolio. Under the contract, Onyx InSight began installing 33 ecoCMS monitoring systems in August 2019.
Onyx InSight’s ecoCMS condition monitoring systems (CMSs) will monitor drivetrain performance in multiple turbine models across the wind farms. The innovative system uses micro-electro mechanical systems (MEMS) technology to increase coverage of sensors on the drivetrain. Coupled with Internet of Things (IoT) technology, Onyx InSight’s ecoCMS monitoring equipment empowers operators to re-evaluate the real-life costs of CMSs and helps them reap the benefits of online monitoring and predictive maintenance.
The ecoCMS hardware will be coupled with fleetMONITOR, Onyx InSight’s monitoring software, to analyse the performance and health data across the turbines. Cloud-based fleetMONITOR will enable Eurus to constantly track the health and performance of all the turbines with ecoCMS installed and provide early failure detection to support strategic predictive maintenance decisions.
By investing in robust and reliable predictive maintenance technology and monitoring services, Eurus strengthens its potential for operations and maintenance (O&M) cost savings. By monitoring and analysing turbine data from the ecoCMS technology over two years, Onyx InSight will help Eurus to make significant O&M cost savings across the monitored wind turbines.
Japan is making strides towards nurturing the growth of wind energy in the region. The consultancy Institute for Energy Economics & Financial Analysis identified in a 2017 report that there is the potential for 10 GW of offshore wind in Japan by 2030. If the Japanese government maintains its commitment to support offshore wind, the country is set to become one of the most promising markets for the sector over the next decade.
This means that asset owners and operators will increasingly be looking to reduce O&M costs, whilst maximising asset availability and profitability, as investors look to optimise their return on investment to reflect the profitability of the European wind industry.
