A wind turbine manufacturer had erected a wind farm in the mountainous Cameron Ridge in California. Originally, Ocean Team was contracted to convert one gear system oil type to another in 60 of the turbines. During routine oil analysis, we discovered that oil conversion was the least of the worries. There were far too many particles in the oil, which took on a shiny appearance due to the amount of metal worn from the gear. The quantity and size of the particles constituted a very considerable risk that the bearings would disintegrate and damage the gear. If that happened, the wind turbine would be put out of operation, causing considerable losses for the owner and the manufacturer.

Subsequently, after numerous inspections all over the world, we discovered that many similar gear systems were also so worn that they were close to break down. A new solution had to be found. The wind turbine manufacturer therefore began a retrofit project for the gear. At the same time, Ocean Team developed a new PLC-controlled oil flushing system capable of cleaning the gear system oil coolers day and night, seven days a week fully automatically. During this unique retrofit project, we oil flushed a total of more than 1000 contaminated oil coolers, saving the manufacturer the need to purchase new coolers at almost double the price. Moreover, the cleaned coolers had a higher degree of purity than new ones would have had. Fully documented, of course!

The result was: more focus on impurities, extended gear system lifetime and coolers with a higher degree of purity than new cooling systems.