From Superinnovators 07/11/23. This article is in TLDR (Too Long Didn’t Read) format which is popular in the innovation community and provides a bullet summary of information.
- Innovative heights in renewable energy: Danish energy company Ørsted is pioneering the use of autonomous heavy-lift drones for delivering parts and tools for offshore wind turbine maintenance. The trials began at the end of Oct at Hornsea 1 Offshore Wind Farm in the UK.
- Milestone achievement: The groundbreaking initiative transferred cargo from a Crew Transfer Vessel (CTV) to the top of the wind turbine, marking a new era in offshore wind farm maintenance.
- Benefits: Normally, the fossil-fuel powered vessel has to sail to each turbine to drop off equipment which takes 30mins. Using drones is much faster, cheaper and reduces carbon emissions.
- Technological mechanics: These battery-powered autonomous drones boast a payload capacity of 68 kilograms. The payload is attached to a fastener at the end of two metal cables which are attached to releasable rail at the bottom of the drone.
- Cost considerations: The investment details for the drone technology remain undisclosed, yet the operational savings indicate a cost-effective innovation.
- Pioneering company profile: Ørsted leads the charge in offshore wind power since its inception in 1972 as DONG and rebranding in 2017. They are the world’s largest offshore wind power company by number of installations.
- Drone-integrated future: Ørsted’s drones aim to tackle the logistical hurdles, high costs and carbon footprint of traditional offshore wind turbine maintenance. They envision a fully drone-integrated future for offshore wind farm operations, potentially establishing a new industry benchmark.
More info
Orsted company profile Wikipedia
