General Machine Products Company, Inc. reintroduces its repair facility dedicated to the reconditioning of the company’s brand of cable lashing machines. Staffed by a team of experts with decades of hands-on experience, GMP’s Lasher Repair Center facility thoroughly inspects, reconditions or replaces worn-out or damaged cable lasher components with original quality parts. Cable lashing machines, sometimes called “lashers” or “spinners”, are designed to wind stainless steel wire around telephone, power, and other utility cable, thereby securing or “lashing” the cable to the supporting messenger strand that spans between utility poles. Since its introduction, GMP has produced over 30,000 lashing machines, with some manufactured in the 1950’s still in service today.

Accepted as the industry standard, GMP lashers have been known to operate typically for 25 years or more, lashing thousands of miles of cable in their lifetimes. This wear and tear can necessitate factory-authorized repairs during the life of the machine. The Lasher Repair Center provides a convenient solution for keeping lashers on the job longer. GMP also discounts the parts used in its repairs, adding more value to this needed maintenance function.

To offset the purchase price of brand new units, the company also accepts GMP brand lasher trade-ins. Contact the sales department at 215-357-5500 or info@GMPtools.com for details about the lasher trade-in program or visit www.GMPtools.com.

Located in Austin, Texas, FT Technologies announces the opening of its office. Gordon Bease will manage all business operations from this site.

“FT Technologies has been very successful in creating a portfolio of established clients in North America, and the N.A. office and operations will capitalize on our geographical proximity to existing and new markets. I believe that excellent in-region customer service, in addition to superior and differentiated products, are the keystones to business success,” said Bease.

With over 10GW of installed wind power capacity, Texas has a significant installed base of FT Technologies’ FT702LT ultrasonic wind sensors, and also has a strong academic focus on wind power. Austin, in particular, is very active in attracting investment from leading-edge Cleantech companies and provides an excellent business environment.

Greg Wortham-Executive Director, Texas Wind Energy Clearinghouse, added “TWEC is delighted to have FT Technologies setup their North American headquarters in Texas. This reflects our State’s leadership in wind energy and is indicative of the potential of the North American wind industry as a whole.”

The new office is located at: 12600 Hill Country Boulevard, Suite R-275, Bee Cave, TX 78738.
For more information, call 512-329-2622 or visit www.fttech.co.uk.

LORD Corporation–a global leader in the management of motion, vibration and noise–now offers gearbox bushing and generator mounts for the growing wind turbine industry.

According to Susan Alice, LORD National Account Manager, at the request of OEMs, LORD entered the wind energy market by applying technological solutions proven in other industries.

“With more than 80 years of experience in vibration isolation and industrial damping applications, LORD is uniquely qualified to respond to the growing industry need for solutions in the wind energy market,” said Alice. “Our expertise serving the demanding global aerospace and industrial markets makes us a prime candidate to be a major supplier to the wind energy market because we understand the importance of durability and long life-cycles for all components.”

Vibration and motion can contribute to premature failures in wind turbine gearboxes and generators, and the cost of service and the associated downtime is significant.  LORD is able to leverage its engineering design, testing and quality systems developed to make mission critical parts on helicopters and industrial vehicles to provide isolation and motion control products to more than meet design requirements.

LORD Corporation’s first production contract is for a major North American manufacturer of large wind turbines. This OEM sought a local source for key critical components of their turbines in order to reduce supply risk. LORD responded with a design for gearbox bushing and generator mounts. Not only does LORD Corporation’s vast global manufacturing capabilities ensure local production, but the bushing and mount design has proven, through internal testing, to exceed the 20-year service life requirement.

“As a North American supplier, we offer the market the opportunity to design and manufacture components here in the United States, eliminating the need to import large, heavy parts,” said Alice. “But, as a global supplier with manufacturing throughout the world, we can meet customer requirements on a global scale.”

LORD is now working on vibration and motion control products for larger turbines and for new applications including pitch control box mounts. For more information on custom or off-the-shelf design solutions for the wind energy market, please contact LORD at +1 877 ASK LORD (275 5673) or visit www.lord.com/products-and-solutions/wind-energy.xml.

The Canadian Wind Energy Association (CanWEA) applauds the Québec government announcement of a fourth call for tenders for the commissioning of a new 700-MW wind energy block. In issuing this new call for tenders, Québec Premier Jean Charest reaffirms his government’s commitment to renewable energy by seeking to attain the 4,000-MW objective set in its 2006-2015 energy strategy.

“This is great news for communities where new projects will be developed. In addition to the significant investment it will bring into the province, new wind energy projects will create new jobs throughout Québec,” said Chris Forrest, vice-president of Communications at CanWEA. “We applaud the Quebec government for its vision and leadership in supporting the development of more wind energy to deliver clean electricity, new jobs and regional economic investments.”

Experience has shown that the economic impact of wind energy is considerable. Between 2005 and 2015, wind energy is expected to generate investments in Québec exceeding $10 billion and economic benefits for municipalities and landowners in the tens of millions, as well as create some 37,000 jobs (person-years). In 2011, the Gaspésie region – birthplace of Québec’s wind energy industry and home of several businesses operating in this sector – posted its lowest unemployment rate since 1987 and positive net migration for the first time in a decade.

Quebecers show strong support for continued development of their province’s wind energy sector, the highest level of enthusiasm being among those who live closest to wind farms. A new survey, conducted earlier this year by Léger Marketing, found that 83 per cent of Quebecers see wind energy in a positive light.

The wind energy industry is very well established in Québec and continues to show growth. In 2010, CanWEA unveiled its strategic vision for development of this form of energy in the province beyond 2015.

“Québec’s wind energy potential is immense. Almost 4,000 MW will be installed by 2015, and we expect to increase this objective by another 8,000 MW between 2016 and 2025 –which will generate $25 billion in investment and create 90,000 jobs in the construction phase,” said Jean-Frédérick Legendre, Québec regional director for CanWEA. “Revenues to landowners and municipalities could reach as much as $25 million annually by 2015,” he added.

The document, titled WindVision 2025 –A Strategy for Quebec can be found online at:  http://www.canwea.ca/windvision_quebec_e.php.

AEE announces the 35th anniversary of the World Energy Engineering Congress (WEEC) at Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center, October 31 – November 2, 2012. The WEEC is recognized as the most important energy event of national and international scope for end users and energy professionals in all areas of the energy field. This year’s keynote speakers will include General Colin Powell and legendary newsman Ted Koppel. The WEEC will feature 14-track conference agenda, a full line-up of seminars on a variety of current topics, and a comprehensive 100,000-square-foot exhibition of the world’s most promising new technologies. Topics will include energy policy, high performance buildings and energy management “best practices” for the federal, commercial, institutional and industrial marketplace. Stimulus funding updates, green jobs and financing will be covered in detail. For more information, please visit http://www.energycongress.com.

For more information, visit www.aeecenter.org.

A consortium including GE and Spanish energy services company Tamoin Energias Renovables signed the largest single GE wind turbine maintenance agreement in Europe with Iberdrola Renovables S.A. of Madrid. The contract with Iberdrola, one of the largest wind energy companies, covers servicing 310 GE wind turbines installed in Spain.

The agreement is set for three years with an option to extend for two additional years and provides the foundation for a long-term relationship among Iberdrola, GE and Tamoin. GE will act as the technology partner in the consortium to provide high availability and reliability for the installed GE wind turbine fleet by supplying parts, specialized labor and technological support, while Tamoin will supply skilled labor. The scope of the agreement includes planned and unplanned maintenance for the GE wind turbines at the following Iberdrola wind farms: Cuesta Colorada, Cerro Calderon, Cerro Palo, Muela 1, Maza, Calleja, Isabela and Sierra Quemada y Gavilanes.

GE also announces that it has received commitments to provide its 1.6-100 wind turbine for projects that will add 1.8 gigawatts of capacity to the worlds’ clean energy supply by the end of 2012. Agreements for the 1.6-100, the highest capacity factor wind turbine operating in North America, have totaled $3.6 billion since its introduction a year ago, with projected volumes of more than 1,500 units installed globally by 2013.

Recent commitments for the 1.6-100 have come from Canada, Brazil and Turkey, as well as the United States, according to the company. With blades and towers that extend 100 meters, the 1.6-100 wind turbine captures additional wind energy. It offers a 47 percent increase in swept area over previous megawatt-class models, resulting in a 19 percent increase in annual energy production at wind speeds of 7.5 meters per second. This enables the turbine to deliver moderate wind speed performance even when operating in low-wind environments.

The 1.6-100 wind turbine builds on GE’s global fleet of 18,000 operating wind turbines. It is based on the proven hub and blades of GE’s 2.5-100 and the nacelle and electrical system of GE’s 1.6-82.5, which is currently operating at 98.5 percent production-based availability.

For more information, visit www.ge.com.

The heart of a wind tower is a large metallic box filled with specially designed gears, bearings, an input shaft, an output shaft and a couple gallons of highly engineered lubricating oil. It’s the gearbox and its job is to help convert the rotary movement of the impeller blades, into energy. If it’s working well it’s an asset, generating Kw’s and revenue, but when it fails, it quickly becomes a liability costing thousands of dollars and lost revenue.

Every minute of every day the gearbox is exposed to many high stresses and the only thing preventing its immediate deterioration and eventual failure is the specially designed lubricating oil. It reduces friction between wear surfaces. Typically it is not the gearbox that fails, it is the lubricant that breaks down due to heat, moisture, or particulates. No generator is 100% efficient, so heat will be a condition of all gearboxes. The lubricant is designed to help reduce and dissipate the heat and as long as the heat doesn’t become excessive, it shouldn’t be an issue in the lubricant degradation. Moisture and particulate however are two conditions that are usually over-looked.

When the wind starts blowing and blades start to turn, that means the gearbox is turning also and the oil is going to warm up. That thermal expansion of the oil means that air will be evacuated from the gearbox (this is the exhale of air). When the blades slow or stop turning, the gearbox will also decrease in speed, causing the oil to cool and a thermal contraction (this is the inhale of air). This cycle of air into and out of the gearbox occurs all day, everyday, it’s how the gearbox allows for the various operating temperatures. It is also single leading cause of lubricant failure, external contamination sources.

Ask your maintenance staff what type of breather is on your gearbox. Most breathers consist of a small plastic or metallic body with a course screen inside. They cost around $10 and only prevent large obstacles from entering the gearbox, but they do not filter out humidity, condensation, or smaller contamination particles. Those are the attributes that will accumulate and break down lubricating oils, causing premature failures.

A Guardian gearbox breather is a desiccant type breather that filters both humidity and small particulates from the air, before it enters a gear box or comes into contact with the lubricating oil. It is specially designed to protect lubricating oils with two 2 micron absolute particulate filters and a solid bed of desiccant that the air must pass through, proving three layers of high efficiency air filtration. This helps elongate the life of the lubricant and allows for longer, more efficient operation of the gearbox.

Whether on a family farm or offshore platform, all wind tower gearboxes require better air filtration to protect gearbox lubricant longevity and integrity. The Guardian breather was designed to provide that barrier of protection and help extend the life of gearbox lubricants.

For more information, visit www.airsentry.com.

Leading global developer and manufacturer of polymer and syntactic foam-based solutions for the offshore industry, Trelleborg Offshore, has been awarded the ISO 22899 certification for its passive fire protection material, Firestop. The official certification, which was awarded by the International Organisation for Standardization, confirms that the company’s innovative solution can safely and confidently be used for Jet Fire protection within pipes and hollow sections.

Oddvar Kopstad, Senior Design Engineer at Trelleborg Offshore, commented: “Passive fire protection systems are designed to contain fire and provide protection for people and equipment when it matters the most. In the extreme conditions of the offshore oil and gas industry, it is absolutely essential that engineers have the peace of mind that only comes from high performance, quality products.

“Achieving the ISO 22899 certification is an extremely positive step for Trelleborg Offshore and clearly demonstrates our dedication to continually ensuring the upmost quality and performance of our passive fire products and solutions.”

Firestop is a rubber-based passive fire protection solution, which can be customized to meet the demands of specific offshore oil and gas projects and installations. By utilizing a layered construction, Firestop provides corrosion, thermal, fire and mechanical protection.

Applications for Firestop include rigid riser or tubular fire protection, flexible riser fire protection, ESD valve protection, escape way tunnel seal and protection of riser Hang off arrangements.

For more information visit www.trelleborg.com/offshore. 

Ingersoll Cutting Tools introduces the T-Micro system specifically designed for the machining of very small internal diameters. The T-Micro system is a 2-piece design, consisting of a sleeve and replaceable carbide inserts. Applications include grooving, profiling, chamfering, face grooving/deep face grooving, threading, and back turning starting at .024” (.6mm). The inserts feature coolant thru capabilities and are available in grade TT9030, a submicron substrate with PVD-TiAlN coating, making them the perfect solution for all miniature internal applications.

Inside the new T-Micro sleeve design is a locating pin to ensure repeatability when indexing the inserts. This allows operators to return to machining without resetting the tool. The locating pin also allows operators to replace inserts without removing the sleeve from the tool post. The T-Micro sleeve also features an angular clamping design to avoid interference when replacing the insert allowing simplified tool change on Swiss-type and other multi-spindle lathes.  Ingersoll offers this sleeve in many shank sizes .500”, .625”, .750”, and 1.00” also 12mm, 14mm, 16mm, 20mm, 22mm, and 25mm to accommodate all machines. For more information visit www.ingersoll-imc.com.

NK Technologies introduces the newly re-designed ASM Series Smart-Switch. These self-calibrating switches use the actual load current to set the trip point and provide the simplest way to ensure that a motor is working properly. These current sensing Smart-Switches are self-powered and self-calibrating to speed start-up and minimize installation costs. Three models are available to provide status monitoring, overload or underload, or operating window (overload and underload) functionality to suit particular pump, fan, heating element, conveyor or multi-load safety-interlocked application needs. The output contact is AC and DC compatible for use with any automation system.

The ASM sensor slides or snaps over one conductor feeding the load. The contact controls the input voltage, AC or DC, to 135 volts to a controller or small relay. It takes just a couple of seconds of steady running conditions before the sensor locks onto the normal current level. If the load draws more current than normal or the current drops significantly, the sensor output will open. If the current falls below 85% of normal or increases above 125% of normal the contact will open, with no manually setting trip points and no adjustments needed unless a motor is replaced. Should a motor be replaced calibration is very easy, and within a matter of minutes the system is back in operation.

For more information, visit www.nktechnologies.com.

Herguth Laboratories, the industry leader in specialized and innovative oil analysis and tribology testing is proud to announce the introduction of its new Flender Foam Test.

Critical foaming and air release properties of wind turbine gearbox lubricants are effectively measured and analyzed using the Flender Foaming Test procedure ISO/DIS 12152.

Excessive foaming and too slow of a release of dispersed air in gear oils have a negative influence on the load-carrying capacity of gears and bearings and causes low oil trips costing thousands of dollars if not corrected.  Additionally, excessive foaming can result in oil leaking at shaft seals and breather screws.  For this reason, gear oils should be checked for foaming characteristics and air release properties using an appropriate test method.

A gear pair rotates in the oil to be tested and thus mixes air into the oil. In this way it is possible to rapidly evaluate how oil behaves with regard to the absorption of air, oil-air dispersion, and surface foam at various temperatures.

Herguth Laboratories has a full complement of state-of-the-art testing equipment. All equipment is calibrated to the most demanding industry standards to provide customers with quality decision data.

For more information visit www.herguth.com or call 1-888-HERGUTH (1-888-437-4884).

Greg Knitz, President of Alignment Supplies, Inc., announces the ALiSENSOR™ LEVEL, for super-accurate geometric measurements. The ALiSENSOR™ platform, which is known as Industrial MFi (Made for iPad), is a groundbreaking integration of the iPad and other iOS devices into industrial-grade tools and equipment.

The ALiSENSOR™ LEVEL system consists of a sensor unit and an iOS unit (iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch).  The ALiSENSOR™ LEVEL sensor unit is a complex but rugged data collector that contains MEMS gyros, accelerometers, and a microprocessor.  Data of angular and translational movements are provided via Bluetooth® to the iOS unit, which provides an unsurpassed user-friendly environment for the operator to analyze the data. Typical measurement applications to be performed with the ALiSENSOR™ LEVEL are: straightness, level, inclination, and base flatness, with the accuracy required by precision machine workshops.

The ALiSENSOR™ LEVEL is supported with a dedicated App (Application), downloadable for free from the App Store, which guides the user throughout the measurement. The ALiSENSOR™ LEVEL hardware will be supported by several free Apps that can use the functionality of the hardware to implement different types of measurements.  New Apps designed for use with the ALiSENSOR™ LEVEL will soon be available for use in measurement applications such as: flatness, squareness, parallel, milling machines, lathes, and more. For more information, visit www.alignmentsupplies.com.

Cape Wind Associates announces it plans to base its wind farm operations on Falmouth Harbor, in another step toward building the more than $2.7 billion Cape Wind offshore wind project.

The development firm said it signed a purchase and sales agreement earlier this week for the East Marine boat yard, located on Falmouth Heights Road. The site will employ 50 permanent full-time operations workers.

The Cape Wind project, a 130-turbine wind farm slated for construction in Nantucket Sound, has yet to finalize its financing but has signed agreements with National Grid and Nstar for the purchase of a combined 77.5 percent of the project’s electricity.

The Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound appealed the Federal Aviation Administration’s approval of the project, Wednesday after the FAA issued permitting approval.

Existing operations at East Marine will continue unchanged for this winter’s boat storage season and for summer operations of 2013, according to Cape Wind. The firm plans to begin interior renovations of East Marine’s two buildings after that.

Moventas, one of the world’s leading wind gear manufacturers, is expanding its up-tower service globally after a successful track record in North America. up tower repair significantly lowers wind farm O&M costs, hence making wind power even more competitive than before.

Developed by Moventas’ U.S.-based engineers and following a year of successful up tower full-helical gear repairs in North America, the Moventas up-tower ability is the finest in the industry. Moventas can perform on-site inspections and repairs of high speed, low speed and intermediate assemblies to its own gearboxes as well as competitor models.

“Our goal is to significantly shorten response time, reduce customer cost and to continue to lead the industry in repairs that can be done on-site rather than in a workshop. This is a significant cost-saver for the industry, making it even more competitive compared to traditional energy forms than before”, says Olli Välimäki, Senior Vice President of Service with Moventas.

By utilizing a mobile service unit and a small hydraulic crane, the Moventas up tower repair eliminates the costs associated with mobilizing large boom and secondary cranes normally required to bring the complete gearbox down from the nacelle. Shipping costs to and from the workshop are also eliminated, as well as the cost of the longer downtime of the turbine.

Every Moventas up tower repair also contains Moventas CMaS, an industry leading preventative condition management system that raises the turbine’s reliability to the next level. All up tower repairs are carried out by experienced Moventas field service personnel, all qualified and trained to work safely at heights.

Moventas is currently building multiple self-contained mobile workshops specifically designed to perform this service at the wind site. Five mobile workshops will be strategically located in North America and an additional two units will be located in Germany and Spain before the end of the year.
For more information, please visit www.moventas.com.

On the floor of the House of Representatives, Congressman John Garamendi (D-Fairfield, CA) offered amendments calling for immediate action to prevent the imminent collapse of the wind energy industry and the loss of 37,000 American jobs, including 1,000 in California.

The fast growing wind industry is crucial to securing energy independence and employs over 75,000 workers across the U.S. However, the Production Tax Credit (PTC), which supports the development of this emerging industry, is set to expire at the end of the year. The PTC, which is contingent upon energy production, helps wind energy businesses by attracting private investment.

“The wind energy industry in this country is about to come to a screeching halt,” said Congressman Garamendi. “Instead of wasting billions padding the pockets of Big Oil, we should invest in the clean energy industries of the future, so once again we can Make It In America.”

Congressman Garamendi submitted two amendments to the so-called Strategic Production Act, a bill that greatly benefits oil and gas producers, while wasting the enormous growth potential of renewable energy. Garamendi’s first amendment called for a study of how the expiring tax credits would impact the expected increase in wind energy production over the next four years. The second amendment expressed the sense of Congress that wind energy is of the utmost importance to the supply of our future energy needs and thus the job creating wind energy PTC should be extended. The House Republican Majority prevented both amendments from being considered.

Local wind energy companies like NextEra and Enxco have been able to successfully expand production over the past few years in both Solano and Alameda counties, but if the PTC is not extended these expansions will likely cease, leading to avoidable job layoffs.

Congressman Garamendi is the author of H.R. 487, The Manufacture Renewable Energy Systems: Make It In America Act, which would create American jobs by requiring federal tax dollars for renewable energy systems are spent only on projects manufactured in the United States. As a state legislator, Garamendi wrote the first ever state clean energy tax credit.

The major companies in the wind industry have decided to go with HUSUM WindEnergy in 2014. Today, two years before the leading international wind trade fair in 2014, bookings have already been taken for half the exhibition space. Before the 2012 exhibition opens its doors in almost three months, the organizers are completing a variety of infrastructure projects.

In the run-up to the 2012 edition of the international wind industry meeting in September the organisers, Messe Husum & Congress, are taking stock.

“We have long been fully booked for this year, and have firm bookings for 50% of the exhibition space for HUSUM WindEnergy in 2014,” says Peter Becker, managing director of Messe Husum & Congress.

Various major wind industry businesses have already secured their space for 2014, including international turbine manufacturers such as Samsung, Vestas, Enercon, and Vensys, as well as major suppliers like WKN and Beckhoff AutomationFor chairman of the Vensys board, Jürgen Rinck, the advantages of Husum as an exhibition venue are obvious.

“HUSUM WindEnergy is the mother of all wind trade fairs. We have been showing here since 2005 and we will be back in Husum in 2014. Husum is the longest established trade fair for our industry and is notable for its high level of internationality. We particularly value the optimistic, happy and infectious atmosphere of HUSUM WindEnergy, which is the best possible foundation for showing successful projects.”

The construction of a new access road, a logistics hall and a car park for an additional 1,000 cars are ongoing, but will be completed in time for the exhibition in September. “We are investing another 450,000 euros in the exhibition grounds, and we will have no problem at all in coping with the expected 36,000 visitors“, says Peter Becker.

A new radio mast has already been erected at the fairground, which will provide glass fiber Internet access to all exhibition halls. Erection of the lightweight exhibition halls will begin in mid-July, all of which will be equipped with effective air-conditioning.

Once these are up the real excitement will kick in for the Husum crew. “We are really looking forward to this year’s show. With 1,200 exhibitors it will be the biggest HUSUM WindEnergy since we started back in 1989,” adds Becker.

Romax has signed a contract with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to perform a major redesign of the research gearbox for the dynamometer testing facility at NREL’s National Wind Technology Center (NWTC).

The gearbox will be redesigned by this summer and rebuilding will commence later in 2012.  Engineering and drafting services provided by Powertrain Engineers Inc. will assist Romax in this project.

In an effort to document and assess the design process, NREL previously completed a redesign/rebuild of two heavily used gearboxes that subsequently underwent in-field operation and dynamometer validation testing. With the help of industry and academic partners, NREL has highlighted significant findings to reduce the number of gearbox failures seen by the wind turbine industry.

Ashley Crowther, the VP Engineering, at Romax’s Wind Technology Center in Boulder, Colorado, is positive about gearbox reliability, saying, “Gearboxes are a reliable workhorse for so many industries, they increase the output velocity and provide a large saving in the costs of the electrical machine.  Programs such as this one at NREL are important as they improve the knowledge across the industry allowing the progression of the wind turbine gearbox into a reliable product.”

The redesign has the primary goal of allowing for the exploration of the effect of design details on the loads and deflections within the gearbox and a secondary goal of improving the design from the previous configuration. Romax has developed a detailed drivetrain engineering model of the current gearbox and performed extensive validation of the model versus a wealth of test data generated so far by the program.

Chris Halse, Engineering Manager at Romax, said, “We have shown by simulation and test several key issues with the 3 pointed mounted arrangement, such as the high sensitivity of the designs to rotor loads, if the gearbox is not correctly supported in the planetary stage. By improving this aspect of the design we can return to simulation and test and demonstrate the engineering approach to ensure future gearboxes don’t have such problems. An original goal of the project was to ensure modelling tools are up to the tasks of predicting gearbox behaviour and we have certainly shown Romax is on top of that.” For more information, visit www.romaxtech.com.

The Supervisory Board of REpower announces the appointment of Marcus A. Wassenberg as Chief Financial Officer, and Vinod R. Tanti as Chief Operating Officer. Tulsi Tanti, Chairman of Suzlon Group and Chairman of REpower’s Supervisory Board, said, “For some time now we have been looking to both strengthen REpower’s Executive Board and also leverage some of the many synergy benefits between Suzlon and REpower. We believe today’s Supervisory Board appointments progresses this in both regards.”

Wassenberg has held a senior position at REpower since 2009. He brings to the CFO role strong management skills and a proven track record of realizing efficiencies in progress and change within the organization. Tanti, as COO, brings the strong supply chain strength of Suzlon into REpower to maintain and improve cost-efficiency, while meeting the highest standards of reliability and quality, in a highly competitive market. “The Suzlon Group is committed to REpower for the long-term and wishes to further develop the profitable and sustainable growth of the company. By appointing these senior and experienced professional executives to the company, I believe we will create significant value for our stakeholders over the near and mid-term.”

“I have worked closely with Marcus Wassenberg for a number of years now and know he will make an important contribution on the EB as CFO,” said Andreas Nauen, CEO of REpower. “I am also delighted to welcome Vinod Tanti to REpower. His rich experience and deep knowledge of supply chain management will benefit us significantly.”

Wassenberg holds an economics degree from Ruhr-Universität, Bochum, and has held a number of senior finance and managerial positions in a range of sectors. Most recently he has been senior vice president of management control, where his duties included managing accounting, invoicing, and controlling for both REpower and its subsidiaries. Before joining REpower he held a number of senior positions at the Cirrus Group.

Tanti is a civil engineer with over 24 years’ experience, including the last 16 years in the wind sector. As a senior member of the Suzlon Group he has been involved in all facets of the business, especially in organizing the low cost country supply chain into a highly aligned, lean, productive and competitive organization.

Encorp LLC, a distributed energy control company, recently completed the integrated monitoring and controls system as part of a first-of-its-kind smart microgrid at Santa Rita Jail in Dublin, Calif.

The microgrid, developed by Chevron Energy Solutions, is among the most advanced in the country. It integrates a diverse collection of onsite renewable energy sources at the 1-million-square-foot, maximum-security jail to ensure around-the-clock power reliability and reduce utility costs.

The Encorp system helps aggregate the jail’s onsite generation sources of solar photovoltaics, fuel cells, wind turbines and emergency backup diesel generators with an advanced 2 megawatt energy storage system to reduce the facility’s energy costs by an estimated $100,000 each year to safeguard it against power loss.

Six Encorp Gold Boxes™ help control the jail’s daily 2-plus megawatt power demand by seamlessly balancing onsite generation and utility power to provide synchronous power. The seamless conversion of energy sources mitigates power disturbances.

An Encorp SCADA system automatically monitors and controls the operation by aggregating and analyzing real-time data from the different power sources that is sent to a central computer for operators to easily view.

With the completion of the smart microgrid, Alameda County’s Santa Rita Jail is considered one of the most energy efficient jails in the U.S., with one of the most advanced power systems in the world. Part of what makes the microgrid “smart” is the Encorp computer system, which allows the jail to monitor how much power it’s bringing in and how much it’s generating onsite. This state-of-the-art Encorp technology also allows the jail to disconnect seamlessly from the grid and operate independently if needed. In all, the smart microgrid enables greater efficiency, reliability, security and resilience of electricity delivery systems.

“Encorp microgrid equipment supports the high-security needs of the jail, helping to ensure safety of inmates and staff,” said Michael Clark, Encorp President. “Encorp equipment helps tie the disparate onsite energy sources together so they can communicate in the same language and perform at optimum levels. The Santa Rita Jail microgrid is the latest example of Encorp’s success integrating different forms of distributed generation sources.”

For more information, call Encorp at 888-295-4141 or visit www.encorp.com.

Northeastern Junior College (NJC) in Sterling, CO, is beginning its fifth year of wind technology training programs. Situated in an area, which is a hot bed for wind development with more than 800 megawatts produced wind energy in an 80-mile radius of the school and two more sites going up this summer that will be producing an additional 200-300 megawatts. Six different turbine technologies are currently operating in the area near NJC near the Nebraska state line NJC, with the help of industry partners, developed an Associate of Applied Science degree in wind technology to produce competent and well-rounded technicians that can adapt to different technologies and situations. The local wind companies have helped by supplying equipment, and donations to advance the college’s program. The students complete a 240-hour internship in the wind industry to gain valuable work experience and must also take general education classes that advance computer, communication, and soft skills.

The NJC wind program recently graduated the second class of 17 technicians in May 2012. Within three months of graduation, 14 of the 17 students were employed as technicians with GE, NextEra Energy, Invenergy, enXco, and Blattner Energy. The remaining three students are continuing their education in business or engineering.

What sets NJC’s wind program apart is its strong safety practices and on the job training attitude. Twenty-two students are allowed into the program each fall. The small class size allows for more hands on and one-on-one instructor time. Tuition, fees, and books for the program are approximately $10,000 for the full two year A.A.S. degree.  Students leave NJC with an OSHA 10 hour certificate, CPR and First Aid certificate, and an associate’s degree. At NJC, the three instructors in the wind training program have a combined eight years of wind industry experience as technicians with three different companies. For more information, visit www.njc.edu or contact Jim Lenzen, assistant director of Renewable Energy at (970) 521-6740.