Spanish wind power solutions provider Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) is building what it claims is the world's largest blade testing rig at its facilities in northern Denmark.
The new facility will be capable of performing full-scale tests on the next generations of Siemens Gamesa rotor blades and is expected to be fully operational before the end of the year, the company said.
The investment in testing will generate more savings for wind turbine clients of Siemens Gamesa. Siemens Gamesa, the second largest wind turbine maker, will also gain from significant reduction in technical issues. It can also deliver more innovative and reliable wind turbines.
“The first tests will be on the 94 meter-long blades for the SG 10.0-193 DD offshore wind turbine, which are almost the same length as one soccer field. We are however building the test stand to accommodate the blade sizes that we will see in the future”, said Vicente García Muñoz, Head of Validation Means Management at SGRE.
The gigantic structure in Aalborg will have more steel rebar reinforcement per square meter than a wind turbine foundation, so that it has the capability to accelerate the test and prove full reliability over the lifetime of the blade in the shortest possible time, while full respecting IEC regulations.