Collett completes delivery of South Kyle Wind Farm turbines – Video

Collett & Sons Ltd completed the delivery of 50 Nordex N133 wind turbines to the South Kyle Wind Farm which is currently under construction by Swedish energy company Vattenfall in South West Scotland.

The 240 MW South Kyle Wind Farm is located 5km to the East of Dalmellington, lying within both East Ayrshire and Dumfries & Galloway. The wind farm comprises 50 Nordex N133 turbines feature a 133.2m rotor with a swept area of 13,935m2. It is Vattenfall’s largest onshore wind farm in the UK in terms of power generation. The wind farm is expected to be operational in 2023.

450 components

Collett was appointed to undertake the delivery of the 450 components required to construct the fifty 84 metre hub height Nordex N133 turbines. Over the course of the project, Collett have handled and transported 150 tower sections, 50 nacelles, 50 hubs, 50 drive trains and 150 blades to the wind farm.

Both the Port of Ayr and King George V Dock were used to store and handle components. The 68 Tonne nacelles, 73 Tonne drive trains and the 63 Tonne hubs arrived at King George V Dock, with the lighter components, including the 18 Tonne blades and the 150 individual tower sections arriving at the Port of Ayr.

At both ports, each of the components were discharged from the vessel to a precise laydown plan, allowing the Collett Team to access each in line with the wind farm’s construction schedule.

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Utilising a combination of 6-axle trailers, 7-axle trailers, 8-axle trailers, 2x tower transporter clamp trailers and 3x super wing carriers from across the Collett fleet, our Project Team transported the components to site, approximately 5km East of Dalmellington town. On site, we had an additional Team in place to undertake tower transport operations across the 50 turbine site, delivering each of the tower sections to their respective crane pads for a just in time for installation service.

With a total of 6 heavy haulage tractor units and 6 steersman/escort vehicles in operation throughout, each of the 67, 48 & 50 Tonne tower sections, along with the 65 metre blades travelled in overnight convoys in order to minimise road traffic congestion from both ports and in the surrounding areas.

Travelling under Police Scotland and Collett private escort from both ports of entry, Collett planned and executed 450 abnormal load movements.  Operating seven days a week (as required), and with Police escort resources high in demand and low in frequency, Collett requested double runs in order to maximise deliveries with the limited resources available.

The Team alternated between tower convoys, blades and nacelle sets as per demand required on site, until all 450 wind turbine components were successfully delivered.

Throughout the entire project, Collett provided a dedicated Project Management Team to successfully handle all aspects of South Kyle Wind Farm, from the initial route surveys to the arrival of the components and through to final delivery. Source: Collett