Periodic Reporting for period 1 - GW-FortyForty (Gaia-Wind's Advanced Small Wind Turbine FortyForty)
Periodo di rendicontazione: 2016-07-01 al 2016-12-31
The primary aim of this feasibility study, which forms part of the GW-FortyForty project – funded by the European Commission under Phase 1 of the SME Instrument Scheme – has been to prove both technical and commercial feasibility of this further development of GW-FortyForty (Gaia-Wind’s novel Small Wind Turbine (SWT)) prior to the roll out of the technology at EU and global level.
The project will take GW-FortyForty from its current status at TRL6 – a prototype demonstrated in a relevant environment – to TRL8, a complete and qualified commercial prototype. This will enable it to take advantage of the major business opportunity that exists for an advanced SWT that overcomes current technical and economic challenges facing the market. This in turn will make a significant contribution to reducing carbon emissions. The additional forecast sales of the new turbine, together with the higher output, means that by 2023 the annual CO2 emissions saved by this project will be approximately 90,000t CO2.
In summary during the 6 month project, Gaia-Wind has completed the following tasks:
T1.1 TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION AND VALIDATION - Defining optimization variables and techniques for the technology (optimization of components) and manufacturing process; and simulation of impacts and costs of optimization.
T1.2 SUPPLY CHAIN INVESTIGATION AND OPERATIONAL CAPACITY – Investigation of materials and manufacturing supply chain inside and outside the EU, logistics analysis and value added vendor relationships.
T1.3 MARKET ANALYSIS AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT ASSESSMENT – Commercialization strategy; investigation of target markets for commercial roll-out, identification of re-sellers and partners, market barrier analysis, analysis of legal, market conditions and regulatory framework, user scenarios and ROI for customer.
T1.4 GAIA-WIND BUSINESS ASSESSMENT – FTO, IP and ROI analysis, Phase 2 budget development.
This will impact the business and its suppliers by enabling rapid sales growth as the greatly improved ROI will open up new markets and improve the sales returns.
The impact on the wider society will be a significant reduction in carbon emissions by displacing grid electricity with renewable electricity at the point of use. The SWT can also be used off-grid, creating a power supply in remote locations where no grid is available.