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ENGINEERING


The factors that contribute to mechanical and electrical efficiency of the generator power train and its control need to be considered to maximise power output at best cost to the asset owner. The installation and the field architecture have to be considered to ensure the protection of each facility and the field from internal and external faults


WIND ENERGY Today, moving the concept of harnessing the energy of wind to reality is a task for the engineer and an important consideration is that the final engineered design produces a process that is firstly safe, profitable, operable, and sustainable which is a fine balance in many projects with some of the requirements conflicting. The engineer has to produce a design that meets these requirements in this case electrical power.


For the wind energy industry, the key considerations are namely to...


• Engineer a safe sustainable power system to support the electricity supply industry to meet any demands on the supply system


• To assess and address environmental impact issues


• Ensure the power system can be safely controlled and operated to meet demands


• Engineer the architecture of the power system and field configuration to meet regulations and applicable standards


• Ensure the safety of operators and personnel throughout the facility lifecycle from concept to de- commissioning


• Utilise best working practices and to share learning within and out-with the industry


• Provide process information on the health of the systems and the condition of the output power


These are separate considerations for the engineer but nonetheless, they are inextricably linked in developing an asset to achieve excellence.


COMMERCIAL AND ECONOMIC CONSEQUENCES A major consideration is the commercial or economic consequences that can result in the downtime or unavailability of a power generating facility. Loss of revenue from supplying power and the cost of maintenance is always a major issue with the stakeholder. The engineer has to balance the initial cost of design and installation against further costs of facility ownership such as life time maintenance.


Project managers wish to keep costs within budget and sometimes this means cutting initial capital outlay in favour of increased operability costs and perhaps recognise that future modifications can be made to improve efficiency and operability costs


PROJECT AND ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT During the design and build of a new facility or changes to an existing facility it is essential that Project and Engineering Management is carried out by engineers who fully understand the design issues and the installation requirements for a safe successful project.


Much of this information is always under review in our organisation and we have been encouraged to share some of these within the pages of WindEnergy Network over the coming months


NEWCASTLE CHAMBERS OF ENGINEERING NCOE is a group of qualified professional engineering practitioners providing a service of engineering studies, project management and engineering design. Their project activities cover new assets and modifications providing project management from concept to completion, modification and de-commissioning in the energy industries.


They offer experience of managing the design of multidiscipline engineering projects for hazardous and extreme weather environments. They also bring experience and knowledge of meeting the high standards required by energy companies to provide safe and environmentally responsible field developments and modifications and use Best Available Technology to optimise projects, balancing project costs, increased energy production, reliability and maintainability for their clients.


Forthcoming subject areas will include…


• Offshore conditions and comparison to the offshore oil and gas engineering


• The system design process and project management


• Designing for profit and sustainable output


• Reducing project risks to budget and schedule


• Reliability based design and prediction based maintenance


• Aspects of functional safety • Engineering for operational excellence


NCOE (Newcastle Chambers of Engineering) www.ncoe.co.uk


e = See enhanced entry online


www.windenergynetwork.co.uk


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