I’m not sure if the title of this post is correct, but it does seem appropriate!
The engineers have spent the last week transporting all the components down to the site in the field and bolting the three sections of the tower together ready for lifting. There has been quite a bit of rain in the last few days, so we have decided to put the temporary roadway back in again for the crane. I’d hoped to avoid this, as the cost will be another £2,000, but if we got the crane stuck it would not be good. The crane arrived on time about 11 am. We have hired what is called a “contract lift” which means that the operation of the crane is at the hire company’s risk, not ours. I hope their insurance is good!
I needn’t have worried of course, the lift went perfectly. The tower stood, it fitted exactly onto the bolts protruding from the concrete, and the fitters used a hydraulic powered torque spanner to tighten the nuts down which I had not seen before. They had fixed the turbine blades to the nacelle earlier, so the combined generator, gearbox and hub were lifted as one unit, and duly bolted in place.
There are two cables threaded up inside the tower, the main power cable, and a reinforced CAT5 data cable which also was laid in the trench from the turbine site back to the farm buildings. This turbine will actually be connected to the internet so not only will I be able to monitor its performance from my computer in the office, but it will be accessible to the engineers at the factory in Holland. They will be able to update the control software and make any adjustments as required without leaving the comfort of their own workshop. We have had it running to test, but sadly everyone has gone home now and left it switched off. It has been a really exciting day today. It feels like we have achieved a great deal, everything and everyone has worked well.
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