Remanufacturing of wind turbines: design and applications

On Wednesday 7 July 2021, 17:00 CET, Professors Matthias Vette-Steinkamp and Wolfgang Gerke of Trier University of Applied Sciences and Apra Europe former Chairman Fernand Weiland are inviting again to their 6. online Symposium. This time the conference is themed “Remanufacturing of end-of-life wind turbines in a closed-loop supply chain: Design and applications”.

This 2 hour symposium is focused on the analysis of the alternatives to recover wind turbines at the end of their useful life after several years of operation:
a) Dismantling for recycling or disposal;
b) Lifetime extension or revamping, after a high investment in maintenance to keep the wind turbine under operation and control; or
c) Remanufacturing combined with repowering in order to reuse, remanufacture, recycle or disposal of the different components according to their condition and the most convenient recovery option from an economic and environmental point of view.

In addition, the design of a closed-loop supply chain and an effective reverse logistic network are considered to maximise the benefits of remanufacturing. Another urgent problem is the processing and remanufacturing or recycling of the composite blades.

Remanufacturing of end-of-life wind turbines in a closed-loop supply chain: Design and applications

The first speaker is Dr. F. Javier Ramírez who is Assistant Professor at the School of Industrial Engineering, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Albacete, Spain. Ramirez’s research focuses on operations research and manufacturing engineering. He has participated in more than 120 R&D projects and has co-authored over 50 research papers in journals, specialised conferences and book chapters. The title of his presentation is: Remanufacturing of end-of-life wind turbines in a closed-loop supply chain: Design and applications.

The pathway to circular wind turbine blades

The second speaker will be Mr. Harald Van der Mijle Meijer, MSc. a senior Consultant for Wind Energy Technology from TNO. His presentation will focus on the pathway to circular of wind turbine blades. TNO has analysed various circular solutions for a wind turbine blade based on both the business case and the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). The title of his presentation is: The pathway to circular wind turbine blades.

The Wind industry’s green dilemma

The third speaker will be James Barry from Renewable-Parts, CEO of Renfrew (Scotland), his presentation will focus on the lifecycle of a wind turbine and the opportunities it presents to the application of circular economy technology. The title of his presentation is: The Wind industry’s green dilemma.

Bolting technologies

The fourth speaker will be Mr. Frank Hohmann, of ITH Schraubtechnik, Germany. Title of his presentation: Bolting technologies needs intelligent tightening and loosening tools which are developed by ITH Schraubtechnik

Following the presentations, to animate the discussion, invited to comment are:
Mr. Fernand Weiland, Consultant and Apra Europe former Chairman, Germany.
Ms. Rachel Waugh MEng PhD, Senior Consultant at European Remanufacturing Council, Brussels.

The Video-Audience will also be invited to ask questions. The organisers would be pleased to welcome you to this event.

• if you wish more information please email to:
  Wolfgang Gerke or Fernand Weiland
• To attend the free Symposium, please register under:
  www.umwelt-campus.de/en/online-symposium-on-remanufacturing