Currently, the advancement of dependable wind turbines heavily relies on the continuous utilisation of test rigs. Thus facilitating the alignment of calculations and simulations at both the component and system levels, ensuring a seamless progression in turbine development. One notable contributor in this field is RENK Test System GmbH.
Offshore wind turbines have seen a veritable explosion in performance in recent years. And since the development of such turbines is not possible without appropriate testing technology, the corresponding test rigs for wind turbines have followed this performance explosion too. When Clemson University in the US opened its Wind Turbine Drivetrain Testing Facility, now known as the Dominion Energy Innovation Center, in 2013, it was the most powerful wind turbine testing centre in the world by far. Equipped with two test rigs from Germany’s RENK Test System GmbH (RTS) in the 7.5 MW and 15 MW power ranges, the size of the test centre seemed overstated at the time.
