Wind Today

Natural Power Starts First Independent Operational Control Center in UK

Natural Power switched on the UK's first independent Operational Control Center (OCC) Aug. 28, helping to keep wind farms safe and controlled for all staff on site.

Graham West, Operational Controller is part of the OCC team who ensure operational control of wind farms from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. 365 days a year providing site access control, work control, weather watch, outage notifications and emergency coordination. Natural Power, who already operate 10 percent of the UK's installed capacity, will initially provide this service to three clients assisting them in implementing the BWEA Wind Turbine Safety Rules (WTSR) and other Health and Safety requirements on their sites.

Commenting on the launch, Scott MacKenzie, Head of Asset Management at Natural Power said:

"As a leading provider of wind farm asset management services we are constantly looking to enhance the range of services and products we can offer. We have spent a significant amount of time developing the OCC in response to our existing Clients health, safety and work control needs. We are particularly pleased with the rounded site management service which the OCC facilitates.

“It also enhances our existing site management services and our performance analysis / executive reporting tool Melogale™, to the benefit of existing and new clients. Through the OCC we can now provide independent wind farm owners with the kind of full site management service previously enjoyed only by utilities, without the additional cost risk and inconvenience of attempting to manage site operations under the WTSR as an internally managed function."

One site owner, Fred Olsen Renwables Ltd (FORL) has employed Natural Power as Site Managers for a number of years and now plan to use the OCC across all their UK sites. Anders Falkfjell, Head of Operations and Maintenance at FORL noted that "Safety of staff and contractors working on FORL sites is our highest priority so naturally the full implementation of BWEAs Wind Turbine Safety Rules across our portfolio is essential.

We considered many options both internally and externally before determining that the OCC provided by Natural Power is the most efficient and cost effective way for FORL to ensure that our work practises follow the safety standards set out in the WTSR.

The OCC does not only help us to enhance our health and safety management, we also expect to see increased turbine availability as a result of a more structured and disciplined approach across our portfolio of sites."

For more information, call 44-0-1644-430-008.