The number of wind farms in Australia is expected to grow significantly over the next few years with over 5000 wind turbines in the planning stage. An integral part of any wind farm is the monitoring of meteorological parameters both prior to installation and during the life of the farm. Meteorological data which is accurate, certified and analysed effectively is important for both project development and on going operation and maintenance activities.

Wind speed and direction is best measured at the same height as the turbine as well as at other elevations in order to calculate turbulence and shear. Therefore sensors are mounted on a tower at elevations such as at 9, 39, 64 and 78 metres. Temperature, humidity and barometric pressure is also measured. Sensors are connected to a data acquisition system mounted on the mast and data is then transmitted by telemetry (ie radio, 3G) to a central office where data is interpreted or fed into a SCADA system.

The energy generated by the wind is a cubic function of wind velocity, so an error of 5% in the recording of wind speed can result in errors of 15% in energy capture projections. Therefore routine maintenance and calibration of sensors is critical in maintaining sensor accuracy.

Ecotech is able to provide a variety of products and services for wind farm meteorological monitoring including:

• Supply of wind sensing instruments and complete monitoring systems
• Installation of wind and other meteorological sensors on towers
• Routine maintenance and breakdown services
• Repair and/or replacement of wind instruments
• NATA calibration of wind sensors in our inhouse wind tunnel
• Daily data collection, flagging and verification services
• Weekly site status reports
• Monthly raw and processed data feeds
• Establishment of website for real time data display

Ecotech is able to supply and service a wide range of sensors and data loggers including Vaisala, Met One, Vector, RM Young, Campbell Scientific, Secondwind (Nomad II). Ecotech also runs its own 3G telecommunication network as well as being able to offer other telemetry options.