Energie-Winde.de is a portal specialized on offshore wind energy applications and is supported by DONG Energy, the market leader for offshore wind energy solutions. Here, experienced specialists explore and inform about developments comprehensively, people as well as companies focused on system solutions and sustainability of renewable energies. In a contribution on 20th of April, Lufft wind and weather representative Udo Kronmueller presents our products and the company…
Mechanic weather meter (photo source: Timour Chafik/Dong Energy)
The reporters of Energie-Winde.de visited us in April this year and were interested in our environmental sensors. The focus was on the robust VENTUS ultrasonic anemometer – but also classical barometers surviving in ice for decades. To find out more about it, they interviewed wind and weather expert Udo Kronmueller. As contact person for operators of renewable energy facilities and meteorologists, he knows what counts when it comes to the choice of the best measuring instrument. The weather stations you can discover along motorways, in wine-growing regions, on airports, on power poles etc. were developed within the long company history of over 130 years.
The business of Gotthilf Lufft was concentrated on barometers at the very beginning, but soon he started to sell altimeters and compasses in addition. Nowadays the many different weather sensors run automatically, autonomous and with remote access at best. This led to the requirement of weather sensors to run maintenance-free for a long time. These are also modular and combine several measurements in one housing. Besides, the wind measure devices are a clear “A-part” for the operation and the safety of wind power plants, as stated by Udo Kronmueller. This demands highest reliability. Before a wind energy station is accepted, a lot of obstacles have to be overcome. And the highest possible reliability is necessary. The evidences and documentations which need to be handed over to the customers can be compared with a whole “application dossier”. Successful corrosion, vibration, ice and HALT (destruction) tests must be presented to the wind turbine operators. “Absolute absence of errors” should be reached with the help of continuous improvement processes. However, the product price should be very low…
But we have proven to be a patient partner and take on lengthy processes from the initial sampling over the test sample reports to the parts series in order to achieve the best possible products for reasonable prices. For this we benefit from our collected experiences from all our business areas such as road weather, pharmaceutical industry, climatology and agricultural meteorology.
More details about
- the VENTUS anemometer,
- the WS family,
- and the whole “Energie-Winde” article (in German only)
