SKF promotes remanufacturing at WindEurope 2019

As well as providing a showcase for a wide range of wind energy solutions, the key theme of SKF’s booth at this year’s WindEurope, will be to promote the benefits of remanufacturing and how this approach can reduce downtime, increase asset availability and reduce the levelised cost of electricity.

Gothenburg, Sweden, 12 March 2019: In addition to showcasing its all-encompassing and proven sector capabilities at this year's WindEurope exhibition and conference (Bilbao, Spain, April 2-4), SKF will take the opportunity afforded by this major European wind power event to promote the economic, operational and environmental benefits of remanufacturing.

In the booth this year, SKF will demonstrate how remanufacturing services can improve turbine availability, reduce maintenance cost, and reduce the overall environmental impact of wind turbine operations. Rather than replacing worn components with costly new parts a more sustainable solution is to have them recycled in a rapid turnaround process of disassembly, inspection and repair to create a part to the same standard as a new one. Training and consultation can also be provided to optimise operating conditions once a component re-enters service.

This 'circular economic model' of remanufacturing delivers a significantly more cost-effective, efficient and environmentally friendly approach to the challenge of wind energy generation. Remanufacturing can be performed more quickly than the lead times on many critical components that might otherwise be supplied for new, enabling wind farm operators to achieve much higher availability of these components to maximise electricity generation.

Operators' carbon footprints are also reduced as a result of remanufacturing, highlighted by the fact in requires 90% less energy to remanufacture a bearing compared to manufacturing a new one. Moreover, remanufacturing a bearing can cost between 20 and 50% less than acquiring a new one, assuring operators of increased profitability and competitiveness in the energy market.

SKF's 'Total System' approach to wind turbine drive train design, build and maintenance combines seals, bearings, condition monitoring systems and auto-lubrication technology in an all-encompassing solution that delivers unprecedented levels of turbine drive train reliability for today’s demanding wind power customers.

Among the key products on show this year will be SKF’s Multilog Condition Monitoring System IMx8, an innovative eight-channel version of the highly popular Multilog IMx machine health monitoring system platform and SKF’s most compact, easy-to-use machine health monitoring tool to date. The IMx-8 is internet-enabled, providing remotely accessible machine health data in real time for expert analysis.

Also, on display will be SKF’s latest spherical roller bearings for wind turbine main shafts, a design adaptation of SKF's existing heavy-duty bearings that features a significant reduction in weight, optimised internal geometry and improved lubrication capabilities to ensure lower contact pressures and enhanced load carrying capacity.