£1m saved for global wind farm operator

SKF WindCon features CAN-bus interconnectivity to a number of systems typically found in modern wind turbines, such as centralised lubrication, blade monitoring, and gearbox oil condition systems. These elements can be remotely monitored at any maintenance centre using SKF WebCon software.

Using vibration sensors mounted on a turbine’s main shaft bearings, drive train gearbox and generator, SKF WindCon collects, analyses, and compiles a range of operating data that can be configured to suit a wind farm’s specific requirements. The data collected facilitates root cause failure analysis to eliminate recurring failures and keep costs down.

With this particular installation, an engineering diagnosis rule introduced in SKF @ptitude Observer software detected a hairline crack on a gear tooth. Detecting the defect at an early stage resulted in saving around £57k in repair costs, as well as the added cost of gearbox ancillaries such as oil pump, hose, filter and so on.