The wear is in the oil
long before it is in the vibration signature
Oil debris monitoring, capacitive level sensing and non-contact position feedback for nacelles, so a gearbox becomes a planned change rather than a crane hire and a lost season.
The repair is not the cost, the access is
Gearbox and main bearing failures dominate unplanned downtime on a wind site, and the component is the cheapest part of the event. The expensive parts are the crane, the weather window that decides when it can lift, and the generation lost while both are arranged.
A failure found in service is a recovery. The same failure found three months earlier is a planned change, scheduled into a low-wind period with a crane already on site for something else.
The difference between the two is whether anything was watching the lubricant. Ferrous wear debris accumulates in the oil through the whole degradation process, and it is doing so while the vibration signature still looks acceptable.
Every renewable decision starts at a measurement point
A renewable site measures across the whole asset. Wind at the nacelle and on the mast. Turbulence and shear across the rotor. Irradiance across the array, ambient at the substation, and the condition of the machinery below.
Nacelle-mounted wind sensor
Yaw and pitch are set from the nacelle reading, so an error there is not a data problem, it is lost yield on every hour the turbine runs.
- WindObserver 75 turbine-control accuracy 1 percent within 25 degrees of datum
- WindObserver 90 0 to 90 m/s where the site sees extreme gusts
- WindSonic M heated aluminium, operating to -40 degrees C
Met mast at hub height
The hub-height reading is the reference the whole power curve is argued from, and it has to survive a decade on a mast nobody climbs lightly.
- WindObserver 75 316 stainless open head, no moving parts, IP66
- WindMaster Pro 3-axis to 32 Hz for turbulence intensity
- MetConnect THP adds air density from temperature, humidity and pressure
Lower mast levels and the shear profile
Wind shear across the rotor is what turns a good site into a marginal one, and you only see it by measuring at more than one height.
- WindObserver 70 heated head for a second and third measurement level
- WindSonic 60 0.5 kg, low cost per additional level
- MetConnect THP WMO-compliant separation of sensors by height
Blade pitch and yaw position feedback
Pitch and yaw actuators run millions of cycles across a turbine life, and a position sensor with contacting parts is a scheduled failure.
- Blade position sensors non-contact inductive, linear and rotary
- Blade60 contactless linear position feedback
- Blade360 contactless rotary position feedback
Gearbox and main bearing condition
A gearbox failure means a crane, a weather window and weeks of lost generation. The wear shows up in the oil long before the vibration.
- WearDetect oil debris sensing for ferrous wear particles
- WearDetect with display local indication alongside the output
- LevelPro lube and hydraulic level with no moving parts
Hydraulic and lubrication fluid level
Level in the tower base is checked on a service visit, which on a remote site can be months apart.
- LevelPro capacitive level sensing, no moving parts
- LevelLite level measurement for smaller reservoirs
- DD1615 level display local display for the level output
Substation and grid connection
Transformer ratings derate with ambient temperature, so the substation needs its own measurement rather than the site average.
- MaxiMet GMX500 wind, temperature, humidity and pressure in one unit
- MetConnect THP accepts Pt100 and analogue inputs from existing kit
- WindSonic 60 a local wind reference for the compound
Solar array irradiance and soiling
Performance ratio is only meaningful against measured irradiance, and a soiling loss you cannot see is a soiling loss you do not clean.
- MaxiMet GMX301 solar radiation only, 0 to 1600 W per square metre
- MaxiMet GMX551 wind, T, H, P, solar and rainfall in one station
- MaxiMet GMX501 wind, T, H, P and solar without rainfall
Battery storage containers
Battery containers are rated on ambient temperature and airflow, and derating on a hot still day is a commercial event, not a technical one.
- MetConnect THP temperature to 0.2 degrees C, humidity to 1.5 percent RH
- MaxiMet GMX300 temperature, humidity and pressure, no wind
- WindSonic 60 airflow reference at the container face
Control building and SCADA
The measurement is only useful once it is inside the system that acts on it, in the protocol that system already speaks.
- MetConnect One Modbus RTU and ASCII, SDI-12 v1.3, NMEA 0183
- WindObserver 75 RS422 and RS485, Modbus RTU variant available
- MaxiMet GMX551 one cable, one output string into the logger
Crane pads and construction lifts
A nacelle lift stops at a defined wind speed. The argument afterwards is always about what the wind actually was.
- WindSonic 75 0 to 75 m/s, full-range accuracy published
- WindObserver 90 0 to 90 m/s for exposed lifts
- MaxiMet GMX200 wind only, 0.5 kg, for a temporary works mast
Turbulence and wake effects
Wake losses across a row are the difference between the yield model and the revenue, and measuring them needs the vertical component.
- WindMaster Pro 3-axis, 32 Hz, 0 to 65 m/s, stainless steel
- WindMaster 3-axis to 20 Hz with a 32 Hz option
- R3-50 50 Hz research-grade 3-axis for detailed studies
Icing and cold-climate operation
An iced cup anemometer reports a false calm, and a turbine that trusts it stops earning while the wind is still blowing.
- WindObserver 75 heated head, icing tested to MIL-STD-810F
- WindSonic M heated aluminium body, operating to -40 degrees C
- WindObserver 70 heated, operating to -55 degrees C with heating
Precipitation and site conditions
Rainfall matters for erosion, access and soiling, and on a remote site the maintenance burden of the gauge matters as much as its accuracy.
- TruMet PW100 optical, 0 to 200 mm/hr, no moving parts to block
- MaxiMet GMX551 rainfall alongside wind, T, H, P and solar
- MetConnect THP contact-closure input for the TruMet pulse output
Site assessment and pre-construction survey
The measurement campaign that sets the yield assumption is the single most expensive number in the project, and it is taken years before revenue.
- WindMaster Pro 3-axis for turbulence intensity and flow inclination
- WindObserver 75 the long-duration reference on the mast
- MetConnect THP air density from temperature, humidity and pressure
Calibration and verification
A power curve warranty is argued from measured wind. Traceable calibration is what makes that measurement admissible.
- UKAS-accredited air velocity calibration traceable certification for anemometers
- Multi-parameter calibration six parameters, equipment from any manufacturer
- Recalibration scheduling intervals, reminders and turnaround
Oil debris, level and position answer different questions
Oil debris monitoring watches the wear itself. WearDetect captures ferrous particles suspended in the lubricant with a magnet and reports how much fine and how much coarse debris has been captured, so a rising coarse count identifies a component that is failing while it is still a component.
It also reports water presence and oil temperature, which covers two of the other common routes by which an oil-lubricated system is damaged.
Capacitive level sensing covers the fluids around the drivetrain. Hydraulic and lubricant reservoirs in a nacelle sit in vibration and temperature cycling, and a float introduces a mechanical component into a place nobody wants to visit.
Non-contact position sensing covers the mechanisms. Pitch, yaw and brake positions are measured without contact between the sensor and a passive activator, so the sensor is not itself a wear item at the top of a tower.
Trend the debris, not the hours
Two machines on the same site with the same hour count wear at different rates, because they have not seen the same wind. Scheduling on hours is a bet that the average applies to both.
WearDetect distinguishes fine from coarse ferrous debris in real time, and a rising coarse count is a component reporting its own condition. It fits as a smart sump-plug replacement or in a bypass circuit, with 0-10 V, 4-20 mA, CANbus or Modbus RTU output into the turbine controller or the condition monitoring system.
Wear caught while it is still wear
View WearDetectEverything up the tower is a climb
A nacelle is reached by climbing or by lift, in a possession of the machine, in conditions somebody has judged safe. That makes every sensor a maintenance liability if it has a wear item in it.
Capacitive level sensing has no float and fully sealed electronics. Blade position sensors measure across a gap to a passive activator, with nothing in mechanical contact, sealed to IP67 for temporary immersion (1 m for 30 min). Neither adds a service visit to a place that is expensive to reach.
Sensors that do not become the maintenance
Explore position sensorsA maintenance decision gets reviewed too
Warranty claims, insurance positions and end-of-warranty inspections all ask what was known and when. A condition record that shows a trend, and the date a decision was taken against it, is worth more than a maintenance log that shows an interval was kept.
That is a specification decision. Choosing sensing that produces a continuous trend rather than a periodic inspection result is what makes the argument available later.
Where the site also carries anemometers, pressure instruments and probes, Labcal is an independent UKAS-accredited laboratory operating to ISO/IEC 17025:2017, calibrating equipment from any manufacturer so a mixed site sits on one schedule.
What the nacelle has to measure
Oil debris monitoring for the drivetrain, capacitive level for the fluids and non-contact position for the mechanisms.
Machinery condition
WearDetect
Oil debris sensor
Fitted as a smart sump-plug replacement or in a bypass circuit, capturing ferrous wear particles and reporting how much fine and coarse debris has been collected.
Level sensing
Capacitive liquid level sensors
Hydraulic, lubricant and coolant level with no float to jam, including a FEP-coated variant for the liquids that defeat everything else.
Blade position sensors
Non-contact inductive position sensing
Pitch, yaw and brake position feedback from a sealed sensor measuring across a gap to a passive activator, so there is nothing in contact to wear.
Site conditions
WindSonic
Lightweight 2-axis ultrasonic anemometer
For the wind measurement that decides whether a lift can happen, on the day the planned change is scheduled.
WindObserver
Heated 316 stainless 2-axis anemometer
Where the site is severely exposed or coastal, and the measurement has to keep reporting through a winter of standing.
MaxiMet
All-in-one weather station, no moving parts
One unit and one output string for the site conditions behind a maintenance window and the record of the day work was carried out.
Where drivetrain condition monitoring does the work
Main drivetrain
Ferrous debris trending on the component whose failure sets the crane bill and the outage length.
Slow-speed drives
Heavily loaded slow-speed rotation, where vibration analysis has little energy to work with and debris appears first.
Position feedback
Non-contact position measurement on mechanisms that cycle constantly at the top of a tower.
Level and condition
Reservoir level without a float, and debris monitoring on the circuit that operates the brake and the pitch.
Planning the window
Condition data across a fleet, so the crane visit does the work of several scheduled interventions.
Trackers and inverters
Drive and gearbox condition on tracker rows, and level sensing across the balance of plant.
UKAS-accredited calibration for six measurement parameters
Labcal is an independent UKAS-accredited calibration laboratory, Lab 0625, operating to ISO/IEC 17025:2017. It provides calibration across gas and air flow, air velocity, liquid flow, pressure, temperature and humidity.
Where the site also carries anemometers, Pitot tubes, thermal probes, pressure instruments, temperature and humidity probes and data loggers, one accredited laboratory keeps the whole installation on a single traceable schedule.
Gas meters · Mass flow controllers · Dispensing systems
Anemometers · Pitot tubes · Thermal probes
Flow meters and sensors · Process control equipment
Gauges · Transducers · Manometers · Transmitters
Thermometers · Probes · Thermocouples · Data loggers
Hygrometers · Probes · Transmitters
Getting condition data into the system that acts on it
A condition measurement is only useful if it reaches the turbine controller, the SCADA layer or the condition monitoring platform that someone actually reviews.
Gill supports environmental monitoring, industrial sensing, embedded electronics and systems integration, so turbine manufacturers, owners and service providers can bring condition sensing into existing control and monitoring architecture.
Whether the requirement is CANbus into a turbine controller, Modbus into SCADA, an analogue channel into an existing input, or a configurable sensor embedded into an OEM build, Gill engineers can support integration from specification through commissioning.
Outputs and options
- CANbus & Modbus RTU : Turbine controllers and SCADA
- 4-20 mA & 0-10 V : Existing analogue inputs
- RS232 & RS485 : Serial links and local displays
- BladeCom : Travel, switch points and output limits set before fitting
What the specification looks like in practice
Wear measured rather than modelled
WearDetect captures and counts ferrous debris in the oil, so the trend describes the component rather than the interval somebody chose for it.
Fine and coarse reported separately
The distinction is what separates normal running-in debris from a component entering failure.
Water and temperature as well
Two of the other common routes to damage in an oil-lubricated system, on the same sensor.
Nothing to service up the tower
Capacitive level sensing has no float, and Blade position sensors have no mechanical contact between sensor and activator.
Sealed for the nacelle
IP67 across the Blade range, sealed for temporary immersion (1 m for 30 min), with fully sealed solid-state level sensing.
Into the system you already run
CANbus, Modbus RTU, analogue and serial outputs, so the measurement reaches the controller or platform that already exists.
Questions about drivetrain and machinery condition
It measures the wear itself. WearDetect captures ferrous particles suspended in the oil and reports how much fine and how much coarse debris has been collected, so a failing component is visible while it is still a component.
It also reports water presence and oil temperature.
Either as a smart sump-plug replacement or in an oil bypass circuit, with a range of fittings available and a separate electronics enclosure for mounting flexibility. It suits gearboxes, main bearings and hydraulic systems.
They answer different questions and are often used together. Vibration analysis has relatively little energy to work with on a slow, heavily loaded drive, which is where debris measurement is particularly useful.
A float is a moving component inside a fluid that is vibrating and cycling in temperature, in a location that is expensive to reach. Capacitive sensing has no float and fully sealed electronics, with LevelPro in stainless at IP66 and IP68, LevelSlick FEP coated, and LevelLite in lightweight aluminium.
The sensor measures across a gap to a passive activator, so there is no mechanical contact between the sensing components as the mechanism moves. Blade25 measures 25 mm and Blade60 measures 60 mm of linear travel, and Blade360 measures a full 360 degrees.
WearDetect provides 0-10 V, 4-20 mA, CANbus or Modbus RTU output models, so it can feed a turbine controller, a SCADA layer or a condition monitoring platform directly.
Speak to our team
Tell us what you need to measure, where and under what conditions. We’ll help you work out the appropriate approach.
We aim to respond in one working day.