Founded in 2010, Bladefence offers sophisticated methods of maximising the performance and endurance of wind turbine blades. The Finnish company is committed to changing the common practice of reactive and expensive wind turbine blade repairs towards shared risks, preventive maintenance and fixed fees. It’s an endeavour that is beginning to reap rewards argues the company’s Sanna Heinonen.
PES: Welcome to PES. Would you like to introduce the company and tell us a little about how you serve the wind industry?
Sanna Heinonen:Thank you. Bladefence is a Finnish company providing wind turbine blade condition analysis and maintenance services throughout Europe. The company was founded in 2010 and since then, our focus has been on changing the common practice of reactive and expensive wind turbine blade repairs towards shared risks, preventive maintenance and fixed fees.
With a rapid skylift (aerial platform) access to the blades and the UV curing repair method we use, we aim to offer high quality services, while at the same time minimising the downtime of the turbines. Our company has been certified by Germanischer Lloyd for blade repairs in 2012; the first company in the Nordic countries.
PES: And what is the state of the inspection and maintenance market at the moment?
SH: The general outlook towards blade maintenance has been gradually changing. While in the past the blades were sold as maintenance free, now the need for regular maintenance is being recognised. However, the industry and the market are still rather new, and there are various approaches to the way the inspections and maintenance of the blades are handled.
The inspection methods vary from photos taken from the ground or with a UAV drone to up-tower inspections with rope, platform or skylift access. There are vast differences in the quality and amount of information that can be gathered through the different methods, and the same goes for the repairs. The majority of the repairs are carried out with traditional wet lamination materials, originally created for factory conditions. Repairs with these materials require ambient temperatures of at least +15 degrees Celsius and relative humidity of no more than 60%, while the curing of the materials takes hours.
This creates challenges and quality issues in the changing weather conditions of field repairs. Being a company based in Finland, and given the weather conditions here in the Nordic countries, it was clear from the beginning that we should look into alternative options and innovations. The UV curing repair method that we mainly use allows repairs in temperatures as low as +5 degrees Celsius and relative humidity up to 90%, and the curing happens in minutes. This has removed the quality issues caused by long curing times and changing weather conditions, and extended the repair season significantly.
