CASE STUDY ENERCON _ WIND TURBINES EQUIPMENT INSPECTIONS RENEWED CONTRACT

WIND TURBINES EQUIPMENTS INSPECTION
Project Manager – Eng. Luís Reis

LOCATION Portugal

YEAR 2016 – 2020

THE PROJECT

EQS has assumed responsibility for the Inspection of the Equipment that constitutes the wind turbine within the scope of the Work Equipment Directive, which is transposed into national law by Decree 50/2005 of the February 25th. According to Eng. Luís Reis of EQS – responsible for this project – “the inspection, according to good practices, should be made to this type of equipment, at least once a year. These annual inspections are guaranteed internally. However, our contract with Enercon consists in making these inspections every 4 years, in an impartial and neutral way, in order to add value and guarantees to Enercon’s clients”.

With a partnership established in 2005, EQS initially inspected the components associated with the assembly of the wind turbines – load-lifting accessories, shackles, chains, cranes, among other components. From 2016 until now, the contract with EQS for the performance of Inspections of the Equipment inside the wind turbine and Lifting has been renewed. EQS Global recognizes that the development of solutions to the challenges presented, since 2016, of the ENERCON project, provides a true Case Study.

CHALLENGES

To the services requested annually by ENERCON, EQS Global has proposed to provide a more efficient response in service delivery. The challenges constantly launched by ENERCON have increased EQS Global’s commitment to include the digital factor in this service, namely the digital transformation.

As Eng. Luís Reis mentions, the biggest challenge is the adaptation to new scenarios, “the wind part was not a new thing for EQS because we followed a lot of assembly work on the wind farms of Enercon, however, it was from 2016 that we started to acquire much more experience, in the wind turbine itself, and in the work inside the wind turbines. This created some challenges for us, namely the need for the team to adapt to these new scenarios and also to be technically very capable”.

APPROACH

With the challenge launched, and with a series of requirements to be respected, EQS actively participates in qualifications and training, both internal and external, in order to guarantee a high technical quality service, as considered by Enercon. For example, EQS is the only Portuguese company to have the LEEA – Lifting Equipment Engineers Association – world association certification, which certifies companies working in the area of lifting equipment, both for loads and people, from manufacturers to inspection entities.

In addition to external training and certifications, EQS has a close relationship with its clients in terms of skills acquisition, attending specific internal training for Enercon’s own manufacturing components. That is, this partnership guarantees that EQS is technically capable within the scope of the legislation and normative references, but also that it is also certified by manufacturers.

Another approach to this challenge was the use of digital, as an indispensable platform for speeding up the reporting process, particularly inspections of lifting accessories. The shift from manual to digital, making the process more automatic, provided optimization of the work and consequent competitiveness in the market. In 2021, EQS will start the implementation of the inspection using the tablet in the Enercon project, in order to generate the reports automatically and immediately. This optimization will also make it possible to standardize criteria parameters and create better results.

The excellent relationship with the various departments and the synergy created between Enercon and EQS is obvious. “The feedback from Enercon regarding EQS has been very good, there is the recognition that the combination of technical performance, digitalization and follow-up are the fundamental elements for EQS to remain as a partner”, guarantees Eng. Luís Reis.

“Enercon has been working with EQS Global for 4 years and so far the balance has been more than positive. Competitive pricing of services, trust, professionalism, and safety are the reasons why we are and will continue to be partners of EQS Global.”

GLOBAL PARTNERSHIP

Currently, EQS supports Enercon in Portugal, and in some works abroad, namely in Spain and Costa Rica. However, and taking into account that EQS combines a global presence with experienced local teams in each market it operates, EQS has the purpose of supporting Enercon in the international business and increasing this partnership.