Repair Process Analysis for Wind Turbines Equipped with Hydraulic Pitch Mechanism on the U.S. Market in Focus of Cost Optimization

Abstract

In recent years both the demand and supply for upgrade solutions and repair services are growing. The majority of the American turbine owners are motivated to be able to operate their various fleets of wind turbines on their own and gain sufficient knowledge to do so in a professional manner. With this goal in mind, the learning curve includes optimizing operation cost, fine-tuning practices, and building a network with suppliers. This work focused on hydraulic pitch system designed for a modern wind turbine, technology overview, and economic loss due to leakage. Furthermore, the work covers the drivers of the customers, performance requirements, and evaluation the current solutions that are available on the market. The possible solutions are listed for each scenario and follow up actions are suggested on how to control future processes. The paper describes how to optimize the long-term running costs and discuss on the changes that could maximize the availability percentage. The findings can be also applied to both other platforms in the product line and even other Original equipment manufacturers’ (OEM) turbines to a certain extent.