Case study: Nordic Windpower´s critical blade failures

In 2007, the start-up wind turbine generator (WTG) manufacturer, Nordic Windpower, officially launched in North America as a merger between Swedish, US, and UK development teams. Based on a design researched and funded by the Swedish Government, Nordic Windpower developed the N1000, a 2-bladed, 1MW WTG geared toward the distributed and community wind market. The N1000 was the first utility-scale, 2-bladed WTG of its size in North America. It was specifically the features of the 2-bladed design that made the WTG ideal for the community wind market-a growing market, whose capacity was expected to reach 600MW in the US in 2009, and the only market for which Nordic Windpower had a product offering. Serial production of the N1000 began in 2009, producing a total of eight units, with three units being installed in the US. During commissioning, field testing, and after grid production, repeated failures of the fixed-pitch and stall-regulated rotor braking system prevented Nordic Windpower from meeting contractual obligations. On August 28, 2013, Nordic Windpower LLC liquidated the business under Chapter 7. This case study examines Nordic Windpower´s critical blade failures from a Systems Engineering perspective, identifies best practices, and offers potential solutions for Nordic Windpower´s development process. Nordic Windpower Company Profile: · 1975: Research and development began in Sweden. · 2007: Investors from the UK brought the turbine to the US market as Nordic Windpower LLC, officially launching the company. · 2009: N1000 began serial production. ·2012: 8 total turbines sold, produced, and installed since starting production. · 2013: Nordic Windpower LLC liquidated assets under Chapter 7.