Opportunities in the wind

The announcement this week that GM was closing several truck-making facilities around the U.S. and Mexico came not as a surprise, but as a disappointment. These high-paying manufacturing jobs are instrumental in keeping these communities alive: Workers invest in their homes, keeping property values up; shop at local stores; eat at local restaurants; and support nearby charitable endeavors.



The big sports-utility vehicle assembly facility in Janesville, Wis., was on the list of doomed factories. Local leaders said it would be a hit to the community, but over the last several years, they have worked hard to diversify the area"s economy.



Politicians talk a lot about investing in green energy when news of these old industrial plant closures occurs. I kind of shrug the talk off as political posturing. To be honest, the talk of being green and environmental friendliness gets to be a little heavy-handed sometimes, and this comes from a guy who absolutely loves his recycle
bins.


Maybe I"m wrong, however. There"s a lot of buzz around wind energy, and companies are investing a lot of money in former industrial sites. Tower Tech, Manitowoc, Wis., is building wind tower support structures in a former shipyard, and Spanish company Gamesa Corp. is building wind turbine blades and towers on a former steel-making site in Cambria County, Pa.



The U.S. government has made no formal declaration—backed by federal funds, anyway—to support wind-generated energy, but the feds do have interest in the area. Motivation for alternative energy is easy to find when the
voting populace is paying $4 per gallon for gas.) The U.S. Department of Energy has signed a memorandum of understanding with GE Energy, Siemens Power Generation, Vestas Wind Systems, Clipper Turbine Works, Suzlon Energy, and Gamesa to improve the quality of turbine components and reduce the installation and operating costs of the turbines.



Even in the face of the NIMBY (not in my backyard) crowd, these wind farms are going up in rapid fashion. The U.S. wind energy market has grown 30 percent annually in the last five years and now accounts for 25 percent of the global installed capacity.



When an oilman takes notice of wind energy, it might be time for the rest of us to take notice too. The June 2008 issue of Fast Company has a question-and-answer feature with T. Boone Pickens, the wealthy Texas oilman. He"s investing a big chunk of change into what could be one of the world"s biggest wind farms. It"s Texas, after all.



When asked if this is about money or the environment, Pickens responded: Money! First thing, it"s about money. Of course, I"m also a good environmentalist. I can pass the saliva test. But I"m not going to go do a 4,000-megawatt wind farm for the environment first and money second. I"d rather go give money someplace else. You"re talking about $10 billion.



Follow the money. In the U.S., that"s a sure sign of commitment to a cause.



Unfortunately, the supply chain to help create these giant wind farms in the U.S. may be lacking. Gear Technology magazine has an excellent article covering some of the shortcomings on the gear-making side of things. I"ve heard similar worries about the machining base.



That"s a major opportunity for shops that want to take a look at this industry. The American Wind Energy Association just held its conference and exhibition in Houston this week. The 2009 event is slated for Minneapolis June 7-10. It might prove to be an interesting opportunity to look behind the hype associated with one of these green technologies.