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When Wind Farms
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Wind farms are digitizing their operations. Internationally, an Internet of the
renewable energy industry is emerging. Data communication in this network
must be available without interruption. R&M is meeting the demand with a
special cabling and service program.
The switch to renewable energy sources has
driven decentralized energy generation forward.
Concurrently, the weather influences
the output of wind turbines and solar plants
and their feed-in to the power grids.
This results in a growing demand for coordination
between energy production, network
operators, electricity exchanges, municipal
utilities and consumers. Operators are already
using 5G radio, virtualization and
artificial intelligence to manage wind farms
efficiently. They are digitizing their operations.
They need fast data connections for the wide
range of applications. These range from sensors,
antennas and controllers in the power
plant nacelles to operation centers and data
centers. These are typically large onshore
and offshore installations that can only be
controlled remotely. This is why the data network
cabling has to be suitable for the long
distances and harsh operating conditions on
the ground and at sea.
Data traffic requires an infrastructure that
can withstand the environmental conditions
in the wind farms. It must also meet special
operational and business requirements.
Avoiding risks
The network cabling must also be as cost-efficient,
installation-friendly, maintenance-free
and durable as possible. Operators plan with
an operational life of more than 20 years.
Time-consuming installation work, declining
quality or data transmission failures, unexpected
repairs and subsequent adjustments to the
network infrastructure should be avoided as
far as possible. Such risks would place too
great a burden on efficiency and total cost
of ownership.
R&M understands these needs and provides
the renewable energies market with a complete
range of cabling solutions. The focus is
on all-purpose, pre-terminated platforms and
robust plug-and-play solutions. This reduces
the material required and the installation
process. Even in harsh weather conditions,
the cabling systems can be installed by a
team of technicians who do not need to be
specially trained.
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