Page 16 - North American Clean Energy January/February 2020 Issue

16
JANUARY•FEBRUARY2020 /// www.nacleanenergy.com
wind power
Preventive Reconditioning
How an upfront investment can save you excessive costs down the road
by Scott Carroll
If a wind turbine goes down, how significantly will this affect your business operations? For Wind Energy stakeholders, this can severely affect their business, and even their reputation. While serious incidents are unpredictable, a preventive reconditioning program can help keep your equipment reliable and extend its life expectancy.
When equipment is operational and business is able to maintain production, capital expenditures unfortunately tend to take a back seat. An effective preventive reconditioning program can drastically reduce the number and severity of electrical and mechanical malfunctions, improve equipment safety, and keep the maintenance, repair, and overhaul expenses economical.
What is preventive reconditioning?
Preventive reconditioning, otherwise known as planned maintenance, is an important aspect in effectively maintaining or servicing equipment in an effort to increase productivity, reliability, and the overall life cycle of the equipment. In many cases, planned reconditioning can prevent catastrophes (such as those caused by electrical fires).
The importance of preventive reconditioning
Wind turbines are extremely expensive pieces of equipment that are required to operate in harsh environments. We
expect them to withstand constant impact to extreme heat, extreme cold, dust, sea mist, lightning, humidity, and other contaminants. In the face of these hazards, it is vital to have an effective preventive reconditioning program in place to keep the equipment operating optimally and extend its longevity.