Wind Turbine Erection

(YouTube link)

Those of you who been around Neatorama for a while know that infrequent author Johnny Cat, our own Don Quixote, went to school to study windmills. He is now close to finishing his classes, and ready to do what you see in this time-lapse video.

One of the aspects of working in the wind industry that I am particularly looking forward to is the installation and commissioning of new turbines. It’s a process that involves precise planning, coordination and execution. Teams don’t have the luxury of putting up the 300? tube sections, and then breaking off until the next day, because the hollowness of the tube will capture the wind (these are built in windy areas, remember), and a vortex will form, tearing the structure apart! Nope, the entire tower needs to go up in four or more phases: bottom tube, top tube, nacelle, and hub- all in the least amount of time possible.