While the wind industry has been through several challenging years in terms of numbers of orders and installations, the rise of emerging windpower markets such as China, India, Eastern Europe and Brazil has arguably reinvigorated the turbine manufacturing industry, with leading manufacturers establishing new centres to capitalise on new opportunities.
To adapt to shifting manufacturing strategies, component suppliers are being forced to evaluate their approaches to forge stronger relationships with OEMs so that they can contend with a more globalised and competitive supply chain environment.
As well as adapting to the new sourcing strategies of turbine manufacturers, component suppliers of gearboxes are being forced to content with the development of direct drive, gearless turbines which remove the need for a conventional gearbox and arguably resulting in a more efficient turbine.
In an effort to facilitate the relationships between manufacturers and suppliers, OEM and component suppliers are meeting to establish stronger relationships and identify the new opportunities to work together in the emerging and new offshore opportunities.
