Mistras Group awarded structural integrity monitoring contract for Gabbard wind turbines
02/10/2015
Mistras Group Limited has successfully completed the design, manufacture, installation and first year’s operation of structural health monitoring systems on 32 offshore wind turbines in the Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Farm. This customised solution was developed by Mistras engineers located in both the UK and the USA to confirm the structural integrity of the subsea monopile on each of the 32 turbines. The contract was awarded following the development and subsequent trial of monitoring systems on an initial five turbines over an 18-month period.The Mistras 24/7 monitoring solution acquires data from sensors, which is correlated together with data from field operations to provide information on monopile integrity in real-time, including system and alarm status. The management and maintenance of the systems is carried out by Mistras technicians from its Cambridge operation.
The Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Farm has been fully operational since September 2012 and is a 50/50 joint venture partnership between Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) and RWE Innogy. The wind farm, located 23 km (~12 miles) off the coast of Suffolk, comprises 140 wind turbines and has an installed capacity of 504 MW. The turbines generate enough clean electricity to power around 530,000 homes each year.
Mistras is a leading ‘one source’ global provider of technology-enabled asset protection solutions. Mission critical services and solutions are delivered globally and provide customers with asset life extension, improved productivity and profitability, compliance with government safety and environmental regulations, and enhanced risk management operational decisions.
www.mistrasgroup.com
