Blade inspection and repair provider Altitec hosted its blade supervisor summit near Berlin, with discussion focused on the leadership and communication challenges of managing global technician teams on multiple sites and developing maintenance relationships with turbine OEMs. Thirty of the wind industry's most experienced blade technicians and supervisors met to review training and repair procedures, discuss project and team management and share tips, advice and observations on blade repair, gathered from work on wind farms around the world.

With more than 150GW of installed wind capacity in Europe alone, Altitec, one of the most experienced contractors in the industry, has identified a pressing need for more technicians with the experience to lead fleet maintenance. As the industry grows, new wind farms continue to come online, and older assets approach end of warranty, Altitec is investing in the skills and knowledge of its supervisors to increase the number of technician teams it can deploy across windfarms in the coming years.

All Summit participants attended training sessions with Altitec's Senior Blade Repair Trainer, Pedro Texeira, and Wind Operations Manager, Drew Sampson. Building on the attendees' many years of blade repair experience, working at height on onshore and offshore turbines, the training sessions focused on advanced blade repair techniques involving the latest turbine technologies, such as larger, 8MW turbines.

As the European turbine fleet ages, the industry will face increasing demand not only for blade technicians, but also for those with the experience to lead inspection and repair teams. Over the coming years, asset owners will be looking at how blade repair and maintenance can help to extend an asset's operating life beyond its design life, securing maximum value in the process.

To do this, the demands made on blade maintenance teams by asset owners will cover not only inspections and simple repairs, but also enhancements that boost production as well as field repairs to blade technologies that may no longer be supported by OEMs. This will require technician teams not only to have inspection and repair skills, but also provide a knowledge-based and analytical consultancy that can provide technical guidance on extending blade - and ultimately asset - lifetimes.

Altitec CEO Tom Dyffort, welcoming supervisors to the Summit, said: "the stresses blades are exposed to by the elements over their working lives make regular inspections essential for sustaining performance and minimising downtime.

"Altitec is investing in skills to increase the number of technician teams we can field, and ensure asset owners can benefit from the expertise and leadership of our teams, particularly during end of warranty inspections. With many turbines likely to operate out of warranty for decades, a smooth transition of maintenance responsibility is essential for ensuring asset performance and investment returns are maintained into the future."

Altitec | www.altitec.co.uk