DONG Energy's Westermost Rough offshore wind farm will be the first development in the Humber corridor to transfer crew by helicopter, as well as vessels.
The recently-appointed head of operations for the emerging Grimsby base, Rob Sampson, told how the company will use air support to get engineers out to site for essential work. The Danish giant, investing £11 million into the town, will also have two vessels on long term charter with others drafted in when required – particularly for peek maintenance shifts in the summer, when lost time generating isn't as costly.
Mr Sampson, who is from Grimsby, moved to wind from thermal energy, having worked on gas-fired power stations – primarily on the South Bank – for the past 20 years.
He said: "We will have a helicopter under contract, which is provided primarily for unplanned maintenance when you can't get a vessel out in the field because you have been weathered off.
"This will be the first Dong site to use a helicopter, so it is a pioneering area for us."
One of the big cost issues for offshore wind is the inability to access turbines if conditions at sea are harsh.
Westermost Rough is already the first wind farm to use the new 6MW Siemens turbine on a commercial scale, and innovative techniques have also allowed for early stage construction to generate power. With 10 turbines now up and four generating power, the huge jack-up vessel Sea Challenger recently completed its third load out of turbines 11 to 15 in Esbjerg, having returned to the Danish port from the construction site, managed from Dong's first base in Port of Grimsby East.
The new turbines feature a helicopter hoisting platform, with blades stopped remotely by the operations team back at shore, in the "bunny ears" position, ahead of the winch down of engineers commencing.
Mr Sampson told how two six-strong technician teams will be in place, as well as a team looking after the high voltage electricity element.
Of the make-up of the team, 90 per cent from the Humber sub-region, he said: "We have a number of experienced people who have come from the wind industry. About 50 per cent of them have come from other wind farms in the area. The other 50 per cent of the team is people who haven't got direct wind turbine experience. Some are from an agriculture background, some from an electrical background. We look for apprenticeships, and filter by qualification and experience, depending on experience we have in the team.
"We don't necessarily look to put together a team fully experienced, we want to have a really good mix. We do train people up, but we cannot give people the basic hand skills to be a technician."
Touching on the supply chain, he said replacement parts for the turbines was an emerging opportunity, but not just yet.
"Spare parts for the first five years are covered in the warranty, but after five years there is an opportunity to source from elsewhere. It is a long way away, but strategically we are looking to put ourselves in a good position so we have options when that warranty ends," he said, stating it would be through competitive tender.
Facilities management is also being sourced locally, too, for the base, which is close to the entrance to Royal Dock, on the eastern side.This article was first published in December's Business Telegraph, available as an eBook here.
