Offshore wind industry helicopter evacuation training in Germany is now being certified by a leading verification body.
GL Renewables Certification (GL RC) has certified Deutsche WindGuard Offshore GmbH’s helicopter underwater escape training (HUET) courses.
So far, helicopter usage by the still embryonic North Sea wind industry has been sparse, but is set to grow as turbines increase in size. This has long been predicted by Aberdeen Renewable Energy Group.
However, just like the oil and gas sector, personnel working for the offshore wind sector must pass the HUET.
GL RC certifies training providers to its standards, which set out the fundamental prerequisites for efficient training, such as proper organisation of the training course, careful documentation and high-quality teaching equipment and materials.
Again, this is routine for the oil and gas industry and Aberdeen is a major training centre in this regard.
The importance of training personnel working with offshore wind is highlighted by figures recently announced by the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA).
The association estimates that the number of people employed in offshore wind will rise to 170,000 in 2020, a five-fold increase from 2010 and many more than the North Sea oil industry sends offshore.
“The demand for safety training is increasing with the expansion of offshore wind industry,” said Reinhold Heller, certification of training systems specialist at GL RC.
“This is why we developed a technical note for the ‘Certification of Training Programs and Training Systems in the Renewable Energy Industry’, which has recently been updated to meet the latest developments in the industry.”
Completing the HUET course, as provided by Deutsche WindGuard Offshore, is compulsory in the German wind industry.
Deutsche WindGuard is said to be one of the leading consulting companies in the German wind energy industry.
Headquartered in Varel, it offers a broad range of engineering services in all areas of wind energy utilisation, from site assessment issues to the complete surveying of wind turbines for on and off-shore.
In addition, the firm offers tailor-made safety training courses for personnel requiring to access wind turbines offshore.
GL Renewables Certification has offices in Germany, US, Canada, India and China, and employs 185 people worldwide.
Recommended for you
