Taking another step in the development of its wind farm design software, GL Garrad Hassan has released version 5.0 of WindFarmer. The software aids the design and analysis of wind farm layouts, to give maximum energy yield with minimum environmental impact.
The new release includes wind flow modelling technology, enabling wind farm analysts to calculate the changes in wind speed across a site. A feasibility study grade model is bundled with the package, and optionally the industry standard WAsP model can be directly controlled from within it.
WindFarmer has, for many years, been the industry standard software for making energy production assessments based on measured wind data. Version 5.0 has now added tools enabling it to base calculations on the production data of operational turbines – a technique common in Germany and parts of Europe.
Wind analysts processing data from meteorological masts will have their jobs made easier with the provision of new displays to help compare multiple signals, and project developers have a new tool to help manage the increasingly important issue of shadow flicker. The ‘shadow reporter’ gives a powerful graph showing the timing of shadow effects throughout the year.
Professionals around the world work with WindFarmer to design both onshore and offshore wind farms of all sizes. This software tool integrates wind farm energy and environmental assessments with wind farm layout design and data handling. It is acknowledged not only for its user-friendly interface and the speed and accuracy with which it provides calculations, but for the transparency of its data models.
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Offshore WIND staff, June 29, 2012; Image: GL