April 2012

Lubbock’s highly skilled and educated workforce, proximity and connection to major national and international markets, and affordable utility and living costs make it the ideal place to grow your wind-energy business. As the hub city of West Texas, our economy is diverse, with a healthy mix of business and professional services, wholesale and retail trade, research and manufacturing, and government employment. Lubbock also has the largest medical industry between Dallas and Phoenix.

With a regional population base of more than 287,000 people, Lubbock’s size affords businesses access to dedicated community leaders and personalized service while providing a pipeline of personnel to fill your workforce needs. With a Division I university, two private universities, and a fast-growing community college, Lubbock County boasts over 50,000 college students. If your business has an interest in access to technology and innovation, Lubbock is the place for you to grow and prosper. Figure 1

Strategic Location
Lubbock is located on the south plains of West Texas on the crossroads of Interstate 27 and four major U.S. highways, in the central time zone, and equidistant to both coasts for ease of U.S. distribution. Within the city you will find a well-planned transportation network with an average commute time of 16 minutes, as well as the Lubbock International Airport.

As a new company looking to relocate or expand into Texas, Lubbock is the right place for you. The Lubbock Economic Development Alliance (LEDA) prides itself in being your resource for success and looks forward to serving your business needs. We understand the difficulty in choosing a new location, and we have all the right tools to assist you in your decision making process whether you are a business owner or site selector. Lubbock’s great attributes include its low cost of living, productive workforce, ideal transportation location, local and state incentive packages, sustainable industries, and many educational opportunities. LEDA also utilizes the extensive knowledge of regional resources, industry clusters, and the local business community environment to remain competitive and meet your businesses needs. Figure 2

Wind Energy
“Lubbock is a natural fit for a wind energy company to locate because of its strategic location within the developing wind resource, complemented with access to industry-leading wind research at Texas Tech University that is fueled, in part, by an $8.4-million grant from the State of Texas,” according to John Schroeder, Ph.D., director and associate professor of atmospheric science at the Texas Tech University Wind Science & Engineering Research Center.

Texas is the national leader in overall wind installations and is the first state to reach 10,000 megawatts (MW) of wind energy installations. Texas is also home to three of the 2008 Top Wind Congressional Districts. Lubbock is number one. Within Texas, the Panhandle region possesses the top four proposed Competitive Renewable Energy Zones (CREZs), otherwise known as “hot spots” for renewable resources. By connecting these CREZs to the Electric Reliability of Texas (ERCOT) grid, Lubbock—in conjunction with the entire West Texas region—has the opportunity to transmit more than 18,000MW of wind power to the metropolitan areas connected to the ERCOT grid due to recent legislation. Figure 3

Academic Resources
Texas Tech University is internationally known for its study of the wind. For more than 40 years scientists have looked at how the wind affects buildings and human lives. Now Texas Tech is positioning itself to become a world leader in wind energy. The National Institute for Renewable Energy (NIRE) and Texas Tech University will soon power up the first of several planned renewable energy test production facilities to help resolve key issues. The first wind turbines will be placed at Reese Technology Center in Lubbock.

The Wind Science and Engineering Research Center (WiSE) is a collaborative center that bridges multiple disciplines including atmospheric science, economics, mathematics, and civil, mechanical, and electrical engineering. WiSE has pioneered above-ground storm shelters and developed FEMA adopted regulations on household and community storm shelters, helped to establish stronger building codes for cities in hurricane and tornado prone areas, and led the effort to develop the Enhanced Fujita Scale. Figure 4

“From a research standpoint, Lubbock is the ideal destination to refine your existing technology or build it from scratch,” Schroeder says. “Texas Tech University is using its unique observational facilities to study everything from large-scale atmospheric phenomena to small-scale turbulence in an effort to optimize turbine performance and minimize loads.”

If Texas were a country, it would rank sixth in the world in installed wind power. Texas continues to lead the nation in the number of installed wind turbines, totaling 6,485 wind turbines with a gross capacity of 9,728MW for 2010. This effort has been made possible through the cooperative attitude of land and business owners, in both the public and private sectors, who understand the importance of renewable energy. Figure 5

Manufacturing
The manufacturing industry is highly diverse in Lubbock, from food, machinery, and fabricated metal to computer and electronic product manufacturing. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), manufacturing in the United States will have an average annual rate of change of -1.3 percent from 2008 to 2018. During this same period, the South Plains region will have an annual rate of change of 6.0 percent.

Lubbock’s success rests in leveraging its most valuable community resources and organizing partnerships at the local, state, and federal levels. Over the past decade the LEDA workforce team has been recognized statewide and nationally for its innovative and creative workforce programs. One such partnership—known as the Byron Martin Advanced Technology Center (ATC)—was the first of its kind in the nation, and it has since been a model to other programs looking to implement similar ventures. This unique educational venture located in Lubbock is composed of a partnership between the South Plains College, the Lubbock Independent School District, Lubbock Economic Development Alliance, and a number of industry partners. The ATC delivers cooperative technical education programs to support the development of a skilled technical workforce for Lubbock and the South Plains region. The facility enables South Plains College to collaborate with its educational partners to provide rapid response training to attract new business and industry and customized job training to support and retain existing businesses. The ATC is the first high school in the nation to have this type of pathway to higher education with cultivated partnerships amongst high school, community college, and higher education.

Another great program continuing to strengthen Lubbock’s manufacturing industry is the Manufacturing Certification Program under the national organization, the Manufacturing Skills Standards Council (MSSC). MSSC training and assessment address the need for employability as well as academic and technical skills. Rigorous assessments require mastery of core knowledge and skills that are essential to high performance manufacturing. MSSC certification is designed to validate that certified individuals have both the technical and academic skills needed to work in modern manufacturing.

The manufacturing industry is strong and vibrant in Lubbock. In 2010 it had an overall economic impact on the city of over $1.5 billion. Lubbock’s success is centered on its ability to offer a diverse conglomerate of educational opportunities, abundant skills development resources, and an engaged business community. Plus, West Texans have been instilled with an entrepreneurial spirit, an industrious character, and a proud work ethic found nowhere else.

City Profile
At 250,000 people, Lubbock is the eleventh largest city in Texas, the second largest west of I-35, and is projected to grow 6.13 percent through 2017. With a median age of 29.41, the city’s residents are youthful and hardworking. Lubbock’s cost of living, almost 11 percentage points below the national average, is the lowest among the major cities in Texas and the United States, and are strengthened still further due to the absence of any personal income taxes.

Lubbock enjoys 263 days of sunshine per year, with average monthly high temperatures in the mid fifties and low nineties in the winter and summer, respectively. As a result of Lubbock’s ideal climate, area operations are rarely impacted by weather conditions and experience virtually no weather related downtime.

The Lubbock Economic Development Alliance offers a complete set of services, including arranging a full itinerary of meetings and briefings for you during a visit to Lubbock. We will go to great lengths to provide you with all the right contacts and information to support your decision to relocate or expand to Lubbock. New business is good business, and we strive to help you succeed.

As early as 10 years ago, training for wind technicians was informal at best. Learning in the field was a way of life, and just a handful of individuals were responsible for wind turbines from conception to maintenance. In fact, it was often the same engineers who designed the turbines who would install, commission, and even service them. “On the job training literally started at zero,” according to Walter Christmas, a wind energy technology instructor at the Ecotech Institute. “The best hiring managers could do was find people with a technical aptitude and fill in the gaps of their knowledge and skills with ongoing training.”

Having spent time at both Suzlon and Christmas Windpower Services, he has seen firsthand how the industry has changed over time. “Wind companies were extremely lucky if they could find one person with experience in electronics, mechanics, hydraulics, and programmable logic controllers who could also climb a 200-foot tower and work in extreme conditions of heat and cold,” he says. “Needless to say, not everybody is suited for a job as a wind turbine technician. Of course, this means that the supply/demand curves added up to really good wages for a lucky few who found their way toward a career in wind.”

Responding to the need for trained technicians, some strategically located community colleges started grouping previously existing shop classes into a wind turbine technology concentration of study. In fact, turbine manufacturers were known to donate nacelles to be repeatedly torn apart, examined, and reassembled. But this approach wasn’t a fully functioning training process, and industry-trained instructors were often still missing from the educational experience. Five years ago training became more formalized, but it was still primarily conducted in-house by manufacturers or service companies such as the GE Energy Learning Center and Nordex USA, where I gained my passion for and knowledge of wind energy.

From my time with these businesses I was able to see how people from a variety of backgrounds found a place in the wind industry, but with drastically different experience. It made an incredible impact on both the training approach and the time it took to achieve mastery.

Employers’ Demands
So the quandary businesses were stuck with was this: Do employers go with on the job training, which can be slow and costly, or do they seek employees who have gone through school programs, which may lack the hands-on training and industry insight that students need? It soon became apparent that a third option was necessary.

As the wind industry continued to grow, the demand also increased for proper wind training. It became apparent that specific skill sets, courage, professionalism, and a dogged attention to the details were all necessary to complete the job role and a hybrid of classroom education and practical training was necessary to meet employer demand.

Wind energy employers wanted then and continue to demand three things: hands-on, technical training; a deep understanding of theory that allows the ability to troubleshoot on the worksite; and soft skills such as communication and work ethic. This means that companies require employees to be trained through programs that embrace theoretical knowledge and practical training with a complete turbine system. In addition, prime job candidates understand advanced concepts such as variable frequency drives, IGBT frequency converters, fiber optics, programmable logic controllers, and remote SCADA control. Figure 1

“The ability to apply theoretical knowledge in a real-world setting is what separates a wrench-turning technician from a technician who can use training and deductive reasoning skills to diagnose the real issues plaguing a turbine,” Christmas says. 

Setting the Standard
The wind energy training and safety labs at Ecotech Institute serve as a showpiece for the campus. The school’s parent company, Education Corporation of America, knew that Ecotech’s success would be contingent on state of the art labs that focus on hands-on learning of the latest industry technology, while incorporating the critical component of safety training.

Ecotech began classes in April 2010 at a temporary location while its permanent facility was built. The school was erected where a vacant building resided, transforming it into a LEED Gold-Certified campus with cutting-edge labs throughout. It opened in January 2011, and the wind labs were continuously upgraded through the end of the calendar year.

“Our labs are a critical piece of the student experience and our narrow focus on renewable energy plays a key role in our success,” says Mike Seifert, president of Ecotech Institute, adding that the first class will graduate in June. “Pair top-notch technology with educators from industry, and we believe that we became the first institute to produce students who will be the best, most prepared employees in the renewable energy sector.”

Ecotech’s recently completed wind energy and safety labs use a wide variety of real-life elements for complete training. The Wind Training Lab contains a double-fed induction generator trainer, fiber optic splicing kit, laser generator alignment lab, borescopes, composite blade repair kit, tap and die sets, bolt extractors, micrometers, torque wrenches, thermographic camera, high voltage tools, oil sampling kit, phase rotation meters, megaohm meter, FLUKE multimeters with insulation testers, a Lab-Volt Wind Turbine Nacelle Trainer, Lab-Volt Wind Turbine Hub Trainer, Lab-Volt Hydraulic Trainers, and several wind farm simulation software packages. The Wind Safety Lab includes a 25-foot climb and rescue tower, Miller Evolution harnesses and lanyards, a Rescue Randy dummy, a Miller Safe Escape rescue device, Lab-Volt cranes and a rigging trainer. Ecotech will soon have a HYTORC brand torque and tensioning trainer, as well.

The integrated systems approach offered by Lab-Volt’s Wind Turbine Training Simulators provide a very realistic view of the functionality and programming of a large, commercial wind turbine. The nacelle and hub trainers were designed by Siemens for Lab-Volt and very closely simulate the operation states of the turbine, which is important in training the controllers and troubleshooting input and output faults. Figure 2

The nacelle is a focal part of Ecotech’s training, equipped with all of the systems of a utility-scale nacelle—yaw, pitch, hydraulics, PLCs, and the vibration, thermal, and environmental sensors that the big turbines use to operate efficiently. There are many mechanical and electrical aspects of the turbine that are important, but understanding how the turbine operates as an automated power plant is the most critical. Once a commissioner or service tech understands how the turbine controller “thinks,” they can troubleshoot it more effectively.

I’m also passionate about the importance of being able to read and interpret electrical schematics, for not only connections, but for function and safety. “The fully operational PLC and SCADA system in our lab allows us to remotely troubleshoot, just like in the industry,” says Auston Van Slyke, another wind energy instructor at Ecotech and former Vestas commissioner. “The most important element is having the functional experience, which allows you to safely start climbing towers and fixing machines on your first day of work.”

Ecotech can take someone with little to no electro-mechanical background and teach him or her the fundamentals of science, physics, math, electronics, electromagnetic theory, power generation, programming PLCs, project management, business, Microsoft Office, and the core skills required by the wind industry. It’s a complete package that many companies have waited a long time to find.
However, expensive technology obviously doesn’t do the teaching itself. Proper curriculum building and industry-leading instructors round out the equation. “Instructors can create real faults in the system that students must diagnose and correct,” Christmas says. “This brings together all of the specialized training they’ve received in their earlier classes.”

Ecotech’s prominent board of advisors was instrumental in creating the curriculum, tapping their own knowledge and a variety of other industry leaders to match up coursework with what employers want in regards to training and daily job demands. Ecotech also recently created a local board of advisors, which allows program directors, like myself, to stay current with the latest industry trends and technologies, while staying agile in changing curriculum according to the newest trends. Represented companies include RES Americas, Alstom Power, NextEra, and Clipper Windpower.

Looking Forward
Wind energy companies are no longer in the position where they simply take eager employees and train them on the job. The wind energy workforce is quickly evolving and relies on targeted and thorough training provided by well-equipped and well-funded training programs.

“Ecotech is training a new generation of technicians who are prepared on day one to assess the general health and efficiency of wind turbines,” says Christmas. “Every time a technician climbs a tower, there is an opportunity to recognize a developing problem with a turbine that can be effectively dealt with before it becomes a costly repair. When Ecotech students join the workforce after the school’s first graduation in June, they will set a new standard by incorporating this value-added approach into their daily work habits.”

Ecotech Institute’s Wind Energy Technology track is a two-year associate’s degree program focused on the generation and transmission of energy using wind power. Designed with employer input, graduates will be prepared to enter the workforce as wind energy technicians. “Soon the manufacturing companies will be closing their own training departments and supporting the development of schools like ours,” Van Slyke predicts. 

Electrical generation by wind turbines has grown dramatically over the past decade. Construction of wind turbines has been an attractive option for developers because the turbines generate no onsite pollution and thus receive preferential treatment of various forms from governments at various levels, they require no substantial inputs once installed, and they are constructed in small units of tens of megawatts of generating capacity, requiring much smaller upfront costs than typically sized fossil fuel or nuclear power plants. As a result, in the Electrical Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) service area, electricity from wind turbines now frequently exceeds 20 percent of total electrical demand during the winter, when winds are strong and electrical demand relatively low.

Wind Variability
The challenge to electrical system operators from wind comes from its variability. Wind generation variability now represents a large share of the total variability of the net electrical demand (demand minus renewable generation) that must be met by non-renewable power sources. Neither demand variability nor renewable generation is perfectly predictable, but it is safe to say that wind generation represents a major source of uncertainty in the net demand forecast in either the next hour or the next day. For example, in ERCOT in the winter, wind generation typically fluctuates between 1 to 7 GW over the course of a day or so, while total demand varies between 24 to 36 GW over the same period.

Independent system operators, regional transmission organizations, and utilities all have a critical need for accurate forecasts of electrical generation by wind. Each increment in forecast accuracy allows a reduction in the need for costly last-minute power purchases, or “curtailments,” when generators are asked, and sometimes paid, to cut back generation.

Wind generation forecasts are especially in demand for two discrete lead-time intervals. The day-ahead forecast—issued at least once on the morning of one day, and valid at hourly intervals for the period 12:00 a.m. through 11:59 p.m. of the following day—is used to set conditions for bidding on delivery of electrical generation in the many electrical markets that auction off the right to sell power into the grid for each hour of the following day. The short-term forecast—issued at hourly or greater frequency for intervals of 15 minutes or less out to perhaps six hours in advance—is of particular interest to electrical system operators who must balance electrical supply and demand perfectly, and can save money by giving warning to suppliers of electrical generation in the “spot” market for last minute generation requests. These forecast customers are particularly interested in accurate forecasts of wind “ramps,” when wind generation increases or decreases rapidly over a period of minutes to hours. Forecasts of wind generation are in demand by electrical system operators (utilities, regional transmission organizations, and independent system operators), by participants in electrical markets (electrical generation owners, traders in natural gas, and other fuels), and by wind farm owners and operators, who may be required provide forecasts of their expected generation, or may need forecasts in order to offer bids in the day-ahead market.

At MDA Information Systems, we provide forecasts of wind generation for individual wind farms and for aggregate generation over all wind farms in a Regional Transmission Organization territory (currently for MISO, ERCOT, CAISO, PJM, BPA, AESO, and IESO). Forecasts are based on a continuously tuned ensemble of forecast models, and on statistical prediction based on observed winds from the wind farm and the neighboring observation stations. Figure 1

Forecasting Technology
The ability to forecast the wind speed and direction at all locations in the atmosphere is at the heart of modern weather forecasting. Only because we can accurately model the forces that operate on the atmosphere, and predict the resulting changes in momentum of air at each location, are we able to predict where upward motion will generate cooling, condensation, clouds, and rain; where downward motion will produce warming, drying, and sunny weather; where winds from the tropics will tend to produce a warm day; and winds from the polar regions a cold day. Our ability to predict the track and intensity of winter storms before they even come into existence depends entirely on the existence of computer models of the atmosphere that integrate Newton’s equations of motion at high resolution around the world and throughout the depth of the atmosphere.

Without these Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) methods, forecasting must rely on statistics. For example, in many locations wind speeds at the height of a wind turbine hub (about 80 m above the ground) are stronger at night than in the day, and stronger in the winter than in the summer. In addition, like variations in most geophysical variables, variations in wind have some “memory.” The wind speed 20 minutes from now is much more likely to be about as strong as it is right now than it is to be much weaker or much stronger. Thus, a forecast of the wind generation one hour from now might be made based only on lag-regression methods that detect relationships between the wind generation at a given time with the wind generation at a few time intervals before that given time. The lag regression for individual wind farms is lower than for aggregate generation over a large number of farms (Figure 2), which makes forecasting for individual farms more difficult.

For very long-range forecasts and very short-range forecasts, we must rely at least partially on statistics. Because of the chaotic nature of the atmosphere, the detailed motions are unpredictable beyond about two weeks: the atmosphere does not yet “know” if it will be a calm day or a windy day two weeks from now at any given location. However, computer models can make use of information about the state of the oceans, which have a long “memory,” to predict that the weather a couple of weeks or months from now is likely to be windier or less windy than average. Even without NWP models we can make very long-range forecasts based on persistent climate features like the El Niño/La Niña variation. If the Pacific Ocean is currently in a strong La Niña state, it is likely to still be in a strong La Niña state two months from now. If the winds in a particular location tend to be stronger under La Niña than under average conditions, then we can skillfully predict that winds a few months from now are likely to be stronger than average in that particular location.

For the short-range forecast, NWP methods must compete with the atmosphere’s strong memory. Since a prediction that the wind in the next hour will be the same as the wind right now is likely to be a very good forecast, NWP methods must be very powerful to improve upon statistical methods. As computers increase in speed, it becomes possible to incorporate more and more data (e.g. from Doppler radar) into the NWP models more and more quickly, and to run the models at ever-higher resolution. This allows NWP methods to compete with statistical methods at shorter and shorter lead times, offering the hope that a rapid increase in wind speed at one wind farm—due, for example, to a gust of wind emerging from a single strong thunderstorm, and causing a “ramp” in wind electrical generation—might be predictable a few hours in advance.

At present, short-term wind power forecasts typically use statistical techniques that learn from the data on wind speed and power variations at the location of interest and surrounding nearby observation points, and develop predictive relationships between present and recent winds at and around this location and future winds. This allows more skillful forecasts of the wind than NWP methods for up to three hours. In some specialized situations, where the short range forecast is of particular interest, and where complex terrain makes the atmospheric flow field complex, very high resolution NWP models can be run over a small region (perhaps a square region a few hundred kilometers on a side), and can contribute skill even on these short time scales.

Beyond that time, we use a collection (or ensemble) of NWP models to forecast wind speed from three hours out to 10 days or more. The NWP models predict wind, temperature, water vapor, and precipitation at distinct locations on a grid that covers a large area—either the whole world, or some discrete region on the earth. To predict wind generation from an individual wind farm, each model’s wind speed prediction is first interpolated from the model grid to the location of the wind farm. Figure 3 shows the wind speed and direction prediction for a single NWP model, the U.S. National Weather Service North America Model, with the locations of wind farms shown as orange dots. The type of wind turbine at the farm is then noted, and that turbine’s power curve, the relationship between wind speed at the turbine hub and the wind power generated by the turbine, is used to estimate the power produced by all the turbines in the farm. If the farm extends over more than a single model grid square, this operation may be repeated for each individual turbine, and the production from all turbines summed to predict the wind farm generation.

By comparing each NWP model’s prediction with observations over the past several weeks, we remove biases from each model. Combining these tuned forecasts, and weighting them by their accuracy, so that more skillful models receive more weight than less skillful models, produces a consensus forecast more skillful than any of the individual models. The range of predictions of the full set of tuned models can be used to estimate the uncertainty of that particular forecast. When the full set of models predicts a wide range of wind speeds at a given time in the future, our confidence in the prediction of the model consensus should be somewhat lower than when all the model predictions fall tightly together.

Our forecast processes are summarized in Figure 4, which shows the flow of data from the client (who provides actual wind and wind power generation data at the wind farm, in real time if possible), to our company, and back to the client as a wind and wind energy forecast. The key to skillful wind power forecasting is the care and research that is put into the process of bias removal from each model.

This ensemble forecasting methodology also allows skillful prediction of forecast uncertainty. The magnitude of past forecast errors are examined by lead time, and correlated with the range of forecast from our tuned model ensemble. Once derived, this relationship between model spread and forecast errors in the past allows us to skillfully predict the uncertainty of each forecast at each lead time. Detailed knowledge of forecast uncertainty allows energy managers to minimize their financial risk from electricity markets.

Wind forecasts are presented to users as a Web display, from which numerical data can be generated for incorporation into spreadsheets or other software. An example is shown in Figure 5. The interface allows a user to view the multiple tuned model forecasts that underlie the consensus forecast, and also shows confidence intervals (+/- one standard deviation). The menu allows the user to select the region or wind farm of interest, while buttons allow the user to check past forecast history and skill.

Future Progress
To date, much wind generation forecast skill has derived from the relatively low resolution global models run by the various national and multinational weather services, in particular the U.S. Global Forecast System and the European Center for Medium Range Weather Forecasting global model. Regional models, such as the U.S. RUC and NAM models may have lower biases, but their skill (the correlation of the forecast wind with the observed wind at a given lead time) has not been markedly better. However, as greater and greater computational and observational resources are put into improving the short-term forecast, new generations of computer models such as the High Resolution Rapid Refresh (HRRR) model, are showing good results. The HRRR issues forecasts each hour for each 15-minute interval out to 15 hours in the future. A public-private effort funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, the Wind Forecast Improvement Project (www.esrl.noaa.gov/psd/psd3/wfip) is testing the utility of a significant expansion of the observational network for winds in the lower atmosphere in producing improved forecasts, with lower mean errors and improved prediction of forecast skill. 

Research and development activity at the world’s top wind-power companies has given rise to hundreds of new patents pertaining to all elements of wind turbine design, manufacture, and operation. Since 2001, the number of U.S. patents issued for innovations in wind power technology has continually increased, as seen in Figure 1. The 2011 projections are based on patents issued through September 30, 2011.

The last decade has seen the concentration of wind-power patents in a handful of top companies. Many companies recognize that a strong intellectual property position is important to protect their investments in research and development and to secure their market position. Patent leader General Electric entered the wind-power marketplace in 2002 when it acquired the assets of the Enron Wind Corp. and formed GE Wind Energy. GE has grown its wind patent portfolio rapidly since then, and it has been issued more wind-technology patents each year than any other company. Enercon, another market leader, benefits from a significant U.S. patent portfolio held by its founder and managing director, Aloys Wobben. Vestas Wind Systems began protecting its intellectual property in the U.S. in 2001, when it filed its first patent application. Vestas’ first U.S. patent was issued in 2003.

However, as reflected in Figure 2, a significant portion of wind-technology patents are held by smaller players. They are made up of more than 100 individuals and companies including Acciona, Aerodyne Engineering, Clipper Windpower, DeWind, Gamesa, Northern Power Systems, and Valmont Industries.

Some companies have specific research focal points. For example, the ABB Group, headquartered in Switzerland, holds several patents for wind farm design, wind farm management, and operations methods for flexible and efficient energy delivery. Clipper Windpower, a Canadian turbine manufacturer, has patented several generator designs, as well as extendable/retractable rotor blades for wind and water turbines. Hitachi holds several patents on wind turbine generator designs. Dutch turbine maker NEG Micon, which was acquired by Vestas, focused research efforts on managing and dampening unwanted turbine blade oscillation, including using liquids within blade components to counteract blade stress. Valmont Industries, headquartered in Nebraska, has focused on towers and structures and has several patents relating to methods for erecting a wind turbine rotor on top of a tower.

Patented innovations in the wind-power industry have focused on several key areas, including improved equipment design, especially for wind towers in remote locations; improved construction and assembly methods; and improved control and management techniques. With respect to equipment, inventors have continued to refine the basic components of the wind turbine and blades to improve efficiency, longevity, and safety. To compensate for the material degradation wind turbines face from their reliance on the elements, companies also have patented mechanical improvements and methods for reducing wear and damage from lightning, salt water, and ambient particulates that wear the turbine rotors. Turbine makers also have patented a number of strategies for managing the heat created by wind turbines, using air or water cycles to provide a renewable coolant. Several leading companies also have patented methods of noise dampening to make wind farms better neighbors and to overcome opposition to wind turbine installation.

A second key area, construction and assembly methods, has seen innovations directed to improving the ability to install wind farms in remote locations. Companies have patented a variety of methods for constructing turbine towers or pylons that reduce the use of cranes and heavy weights. They also have patented systems for remote monitoring of wind farms, including farms that take advantage of less accessible locations with favorable wind conditions.

Proper management and control has been a third focus. Because the wind does not always blow steadily, wind turbines must negotiate between variable blade rotation and the need of the commercial power grid for steady, fixed rates of electricity production. Inventors have addressed these problems, and the associated risks from power surges and abrupt cutoffs, with patented energy storage systems and techniques to balance turbine output within a wind farm. Recently issued patents describe improvements to reduce energy wasted in transfer to the electrical grid, and to maintain the economies of scale promoted by large rotor diameters. Monitoring systems also have been widely patented. A number of strategies have been developed to address and alert operators to the risks of wind sheer, imbalance of wind flow across a rotor, and material fatigue. There are several patented systems for alerting aircraft to the presence of wind turbines.

Patent Litigation
As the installed base of wind energy increases and wind power becomes increasingly valuable, and as patent portfolios continue to grow, patent litigation is likely to become more frequent. Enforcing their patents gives companies the opportunity to generate revenues based on their inventions, which can be re-invested to develop new technology, and to protect their exclusivity in the marketplace. A review of the litigation landscape indicates that a handful of wind-technology patents have been litigated thus far, and more could be on the way.

GE filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) in 2008 seeking to bar Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) from importing wind turbines and components alleged to infringe three GE patents. The patents are generally directed to maintaining continuous turbine operation despite changing wind speeds and low voltage events, as well as to decoupling turbines from the grid to avoid damage from power fluctuations. In January 2010 the ITC ruled in favor of MHI. In re Certain Variable Speed Wind Turbines and Components Thereof, Investigation No. 337-TA-641. GE appealed the ITC decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. In a split decision, the Federal Circuit recently (1) affirmed that MHI’s wind turbines did not infringe one GE patent, (2) reversed the ITC’s ruling on a second patent and remanded the case to the ITC for further proceedings on that patent, and (3) found that the appeal was moot with respect to the third patent because it expired in February 2011. General Electric Co. v. ITC, No. 2010-1223 (Fed. Cir. Feb. 29, 2012).

The dispute between GE and MHI has resulted in further litigation in three federal district courts. First, before the ITC issued its decision, GE sued MHI in Texas for infringing the patents involved in the ITC investigation. General Electric Co. v. Mitsubishi Heavy Indus., Ltd., No. 2:09-cv-00229 (S.D. Tex., filed September 3, 2009). Shortly after filing, that case was stayed (and remains stayed) pending the outcome of the ITC investigation.  Next,  GE sued MHI in a different Texas court for infringing a new set of patents related to wind turbines. After a seven-day trial in that case, on March 8, 2012, the jury awarded over $170 million in damages to GE for MHI’s infringement of U.S. Patent No. 7,629,705, titled “Method and Apparatus for Operating Electrical Machines.” A separate trial on MHI’s inequitable conduct defense will be held later. General Electric Co. v. Mitsubishi Heavy Indus., Ltd., No. 3:2010-cv-00276 (N.D. Tex., filed Feb. 11, 2010). MHI countered with an antitrust lawsuit asserting that GE fraudulently obtained patents and pursued “sham “ litigation. Mitsubishi Heavy Indus., Ltd. v. General Electric Co., No. 5:10-cv-05087 (W.D. Ark., filed May 20, 2010). The antitrust case is on hold pending the outcome of the patent cases. GE also sued an inventor—a former GE employee—over rights to certain patented technology, and MHI intervened in that lawsuit. General Electric Co. v. Wilkins, No. 1:10-cv-00674 (E.D. Cal., filed Apr. 15, 2010).

In an earlier lawsuit, Gamesa Eolica, S.A. v. General Electric Co., 359 F. Supp. 2d 790 (W.D. Wisc. 2005), Gamesa sued GE in 2004 for infringement of a patent related to a variable speed wind turbine with a special control strategy based on electrical adjustment of generator torque. The parties disputed the scope and interpretation of the patent claims, and the court sided with defendant GE. Ultimately, GE was cleared of any direct infringement.

GE is not the only litigant in the wind energy space. One of the same patents at issue in the GE-MHI dispute was litigated 10 years earlier, in Enercon GmbH v. ITC, 151 F.3d 1376 (Fed. Cir. 1998). The Federal Circuit upheld an ITC ruling that Enercon had sold infringing variable speed wind turbines for importation into the U.S. The key issue on appeal was claim interpretation. Enercon, the accused infringer, lost the appeal and was barred from shipping some of its turbine designs into the U.S.

In Baseload Energy, Inc. v. Roberts, No. 1:08-cv-01838 (D.D.C., filed Oct. 27, 2008), Baseload sought a declaratory judgment that Robert’s patent, directed to kite-based power generation, was invalid. The case has progressed slowly since the Federal Circuit ruled in September 2010 that Baseload’s claims were not barred by an earlier settlement. Finally, Vestas sued Beaird over three patents relating to wind-turbine support towers, seeking a judgment that it did not infringe. Vestas-American Wind Technology, Inc. v. Beaird Company, Ltd. et al., No. 3:07-cv-01651 (D. Or., filed Nov. 2, 2007). The case settled in March 2009.

Strategic Enforcement
Whether your company is seeking to enforce its patent portfolio or is an accused infringer, it is important to remember that not all patents are created equal. Some are “pioneer patents” entitled to broad scope, while others are “improvement patents” that are more narrow in scope and sometimes can be designed around. Broad patents, in the absence of invalidating prior art, can protect a particular technological innovation and raise a barrier to entry by new competitors who want to practice that innovation. Investors, potential licensees, and accused infringers all should understand that evaluating the strength and value of a patent requires a legal analysis of the patent and its history in the U.S. patent office; the prior art patents, publications, and devices; and the availability of alternatives to the patented technology. Similarly, as a patent owner, a legal analysis of the validity, enforceability, and potential infringement of your own patents is fundamental to strategic management and enforcement of your portfolio.

Patents do not confer an exclusive right to manufacture, sell, or use a product or process. Rather, they grant the patent owner the right to exclude others from making, using, selling, or importing the patented invention. This is a critical distinction. A patent has no intrinsic value; it derives its value from the ability to exclude others from a market opportunity. In other words, the value of a patent comes from the implicit threat that the patent holder will successfully sue for infringement. Thus, a willingness to litigate is often a necessary companion to a licensing program.

A patent holder has two broad options when enforcing its patents: sue its competitors for patent infringement to prevent them from practicing the patented technology, or license rights under the patents to one or more competitors in exchange for royalties or a cross-license to rights under the competitor’s patents. A finding of infringement can lead to an award of monetary damages including treble damages, interest, and reimbursement of attorney fees, as well as an injunction against further sales of the infringing product.

Licensing Considerations
As companies innovate, many develop internal procedures for identifying promising inventions, filing patent applications, and building a patent portfolio. However, fewer companies develop appropriate policies to extract value from the investment in their patent portfolios by strategic patent licensing and enforcement. More than most other assets, patents and other intellectual property must be managed strategically to achieve maximum value. Depending upon the licensing strategy, a company’s intellectual property can be a source of significant revenue or a source of frustration. A successful licensing strategy can substantially enhance the value of a company, making it easier to attract financing and improving the odds of a favorable acquisition or successful public offering.

An important preliminary step in developing a licensing strategy is for a company to determine its business goals and opportunities. It is not enough to count your patents and determine whether they can be asserted against your direct competitors. Instead, a company should analyze how its patent portfolio can best complement its business plan. For example, three different albeit related objectives are to maximize your sales revenue by excluding competitors from using your innovations in the marketplace, to broadly license your patent portfolio to maximize your royalty income, or to selectively license your patents in specific geographies and market segments that you believe will not impact your own sales revenue.

Licensing strategies can be very sophisticated, and should be considered carefully. For example, complications can arise when two or more companies have “blocking patents,” i.e., two or more patents that are both necessary to practice a particular technology and thus block access to the technology. In those circumstances, cross licenses and patent pooling or package licensing arrangements can be beneficial. However, such arrangements should be carefully crafted to avoid violating U.S. antitrust or patent misuse principles, or European Union competition rules. Compulsory licensing rules may provide another complication. Under compulsory licensing, a company is forced to license its technology to anyone seeking a license, often on terms dictated by a government body, not the company. Compulsory licensing is applied differently around the world, but it could become a concern with renewable energy technologies because of the perceived public mandate for rapid deployment of those technologies. 

Summary
The race is on to stake out patent positions in the growing wind-power marketplace. Companies should be diligent in protecting their innovations and enforcing their patents. Likewise, when launching new products and services, companies should carefully evaluate the patent landscape to minimize the risks of having to defend against a costly charge of infringement. 

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said “Build a better mousetrap, and the world will beat a path to your door.” A Wyoming inventor may have done just that with a complete redesign of traditional wind energy towers and turbines. His fledgling company, Airgenesis, is based in the northern Colorado town of Fort Collins. Long known for its green energy initiatives, Fort Collins seems a perfect fit for a wind energy business.

Danny “Skip” Smith developed a vision to improve wind energy during his work-related drives across the windswept plains of Wyoming and northern Colorado. He mulled new concepts and problem-solved for over 13 years. After his retirement three years ago the pieces fell into place, and Smith began developing Airgenesis in earnest.

Innovative Design
Imagine twin rotor blades turning at an efficient three revolutions per minute, and you have a snapshot of Airgenesis. The design is a simple but radical departure from traditional wind towers. The innovation has generated 408 separate claims for patent. Airgenesis engineers narrowed those claims to 25 PCT patents. Those patents are expected by the time of this publication.

While some manufacturers strive for taller towers, seeking to capture a more-constant air stream, Smith is betting that bigger is not better. The Airgenesis system incorporates a 250-foot tower and two sets of rotors at a 60-degree opposition. Rotor blades are 165 feet in length and will be sourced from current manufacturers. The object of the design is to target slower wind speeds. The design is efficient enough to generate 11MW at just 2.4 to 3.3 rpms. Figure 1

Traditional towers turn at 12 to 18 revolutions per minute and require wind speeds between 25 mph and 56 mph to achieve full efficiency. Airgenesis rotors produce 1.5MW, equaling the full output of most traditional wind towers at a much lower wind speed. Eleven MW of power production is an ambitious—if not audacious—claim in a field where most towers are producing 1.5MW, and even the largest of new designs approach only 3MW of production power. “Eventually, as the industry continues trying to solve their problem of building larger, taller, and heavier units,” Smith says, “they will hit a wall and come to the realization the Airgenesis design is the only workable solution to the wind industry’s future.”

Seeking Simplicity
The Airgenesis design results in a lighter and significantly less complicated nacelle. The only major components housed in the nacelle are gears and disc brakes. Once installed, most maintenance on Airgenesis towers can be performed at ground level, including swapping out generators and clutch systems. The drive system features five 50 foot-long drive shafts connected with appropriate couplers and carrier bearings. Figure 2

There are few components in the nacelle, with very few things to break down. Maintenance on the nacelle will be on a yearly basis. Scheduled maintenance on the blades is performed in accordance with industry standards. The Airgenesis wind turbine relocates the substantial weight of the nacelle from the top of the wind tower to the base. Its unique dual-rotor system, sophisticated mechanical clutching system, and integrated ratcheting generator mechanism have nearly tripled the energy production of a single tower. The placement of the nacelle weight to the tower base greatly reduces tower structural requirements and tower stability concerns, while the offsetting dual rotors ensure a maximum harvest of available winds.

“The relocation of the substantial weight of the electrical generators from the nacelle atop the wind tower to the tower base makes tremendous sense and pays a variety of dividends,” according to Terry Wright, chief technology officer at Green Energy Development in Johns Creek, Georgia. “These include reduced tower construction requirements, lowered insurance risks and maintenance costs, and potential ease of generator upgrades as these technologies evolve in efficiency and production capacity. These benefits are especially viable for offshore wind applications where platform stability is critical and sensitivity to maintenance expenses are amplified.” Figure 3

Not all of the news is in the nacelle. With the Airgenesis design, multiple generators are arrayed at the tower base, another style change from current standards. Their placement on the ground allows units to be easily serviced or replaced in the event of generator failure. This unique feature allows the tower to remain online, even during a generator swap or clutch assembly repair. The generator size is dependent on the megawatts produced by the tower.

The company has secured Proof of Concept on four models of wind towers. Through simple downscaling of key transmission mechanics, the design will be available in 3.3, 5.5, and 7.7MW sizes, as well as the largest 11MW unit. The tower and blade height would remain the same on all Airgenesis products. To accommodate the generators, the tower base is expected to be 34 feet in diameter. A 14-foot flywheel in the tower base transfers energy to the generators. Figure 4

A Developer’s Perspective
“As a developer of all forms of renewable energy production facilities, we believe the wind component is critical for creating and sustaining momentum in the overall renewable energy sector,” Wright says. “We are always on the lookout for emerging and potentially ‘game-changing’ renewable technologies, and believe Airgenesis is a prime example. The initial business appeal of the Airgenesis wind turbine is its expanded production capacity per tower and supporting strong intellectual property, or patents. The company’s appeal is considerably amplified by their reduced capital expenditure profile, substantially lower maintenance costs, and reduced threat to avian/bat mortality—an increasingly sticky issue in obtaining EPA and Fish & Wildlife project site and operational permits.

“Of course, the expanded production capacity lowers overall production start-up expense by reducing site preparation, tower foundation, and lease expenses against anticipated energy production,” he says. “The reduced maintenance expense improves the operational cost profile. All of these attributes speak to competitive advantage in the marketplace for wind energy production facility owner/operators.”

Cost Efficiency
The Airgenesis 11MW tower is expected to cost about $600,000 per MW when complete, or roughly half of the cost of wind towers in production. Current 1.5MW towers require an approximate $1.3 million per MW in construction costs. Most of the setup is on the ground, which will speed turbine installation. Planning is underway to construct and test the 11 MW tower in 2012. The project location is still under wraps.

“The emergence of Airgenesis wind turbines in the marketplace will benefit the wind sector in a number of ways including improved cost parity against traditional energy production,” Wright says, “as well as providing wind facility owner/operators a highly efficient, lower cost, alternative wind offering against traditional wind turbine manufacturers. We believe Airgenesis will deliver substantial value to the renewable energy sector as it demonstrates what we believe will be a game-changing value proposition.”

Assuring Quality
In part to address the supply chain issues facing wind-energy professionals throughout North America, all components of the Airgenesis wind system—with the exception of the generators—are to be manufactured in the United States. “It would be cheaper to use overseas manufacturers,” Smith says, “but it is important to me to source components in the United States for Airgenesis products.”

He hopes the new design will be more environmentally friendly than current technology, as well.  Although untested, Airgenesis engineers theorize the slower blade speed may have less of an impact on migratory birds and bats. Avian mortality threats are mitigated by constraints imposed on rotor rpms. The torque generated by these same constraints is transformed into energy.