Windurance Exhibits at AWEA WINDPOWER 2011

Anaheim, CA; May 22-25, 2011 – The Windurance Team had a very successful 2011 WINDPOWER trade show and exhibition at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, CA. Located in booth number 4687 in Hall E, near the outdoor exhibitions, Windurance had engaging conversations with those ranging from the curious to well-informed wind industry experts. The annual event drew in hundreds of exhibitors and thousands of attendees.

This was the 2nd year for the current design of the 20' X 20' contemporary booth display. On display within the Windurance booth were the four pitch control systems that are available for wind turbine manufacturers: Servo Pitch (the flagship DC system), i-Pitch (AC brushless system), mini-Pitch (for smaller turbines) and new to the line-up, the Servo Pitch LRU. This newest system utilizes modular, Line Replaceable Units (LRU's) similar to the i-Pitch and mini-Pitch systems. Also on display was a demonstration of the Windurance FAST program, which simulates wind turbine Fatigue, Aerodynamics, Structures, and Turbulence.

Windurance also hit a home run this year by giving booth visitors a real baseball with an imprinted Windurance logo and question, "How fast is your pitch?" Coincidentally, show organizers had also booked former Anaheim Angel's baseball pitcher, Jim Abbott, to sign baseballs. The Windurance baseballs became even more popular during the time that Mr. Abbott was signing baseballs.

Windurance has reserved Booth # 5033 for the 2012 WINDPOWER show being held in Atlanta, GA.

WINDURANCE INTRODUCES NEW SERVO PITCH LRU SYSTEM

May 20, 2011 - Windurance introduces the new Servo Pitch LRU pitch control system for utility scale wind turbines. The system utilizes modular, Line Replaceable Units (LRU's). The ultimate in modularity provides for ease of manufacturability and serviceability. With 100 MW of the new systems already globally commissioned, the Servo Pitch LRU's are designed to ease installation of the pitch system in wind turbines, fast and uncomplicated.

Windurance experience combines high reliability and low maintenance for a very robust and sophisticated pitch system. The Servo Pitch LRU was recently certified High Temperature [50°C] and High Humidity [100%RH] by a third party agency.

Simple diagnostics and verification tools speed turbine assembly, commissioning, service and maintenance operations. The diagnostic software provides quick identification of any required service actions. The standard maintenance interval for the system is 5 years, with an option for a 10-year interval.

WINDURANCE AND NIRE ENTER INTO STRATEGIC RELATIONSHIP

November 22, 2010 -- Windurance, headquartered in Coraopolis, PA and The National Institute for Renewable Energy (NIRE), headquartered in Lubbock, TX have established a long-term mutually beneficial relationship to exchange knowledge and equipment with the ultimate goal of improving the technologies employed in future utility scale wind turbines.  The research and technologies will then be integrated into the designs of wind turbines to optimize the entire system from the concrete base to the tips of the blades, to improve availability and reliability, which are essential for minimizing generation expenses and maximizing generation output.  Turbine OEM’s are becoming more and more aware of the role that the pitch control system plays in the overall performance, safety and long-term reliability of the system.

Windurance has committed to utilizing existing and prototype products to be used in NIRE’s wind projects.  Specifically, Windurance will customize their highly modular blade pitch control systems for use in wind turbines constructed by various wind turbine manufacturers.  NIRE will develop wind energy projects to build wind turbine equipment and wind farms.  NIRE will also work in partnership with Texas Tech University and other research entities to further their collaborative research and education missions.

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AWEA FALL SYMPOSIUM NOVEMBER 17 -19, 2010

November 17-19, 2010 -- Windurance participated in the three day conference for members of the Wind Energy Association held this year in Chandler, Arizona, at the Sheraton Wild Horse Resort. The American Wind Energy Association holds this event annually to spur interaction among its members and allow feedback to help formulate and adapt strategy for the upcoming year. Program Chairperson, Edward Zaelke, Partner in the law firm of Chadbourne & Park, LLP in Los Angeles, CA laid out for the over 800 attendees a rigorous two and one-half day schedule.  Two tracks were offered to the attendees: Realities of the Market and Managing Your Future for Profit along with a General Session each day of the conference.  Windurance participated in the following panel discussions moderated by industry experts and professionals...

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WINDURANCE ATTENDS THE WIND ALLIANCE CONFERENCE IN ALBUQUERQUE, NM

November 3-4, 2010 -- Windurance staff were in attendance at the fall 2010 conference hosted by The Wind Alliance.  The conference was held in Albuquerque, NM, on November 3-4, 2010. Previously only open to membership, this year’s conference was open to the public.  The two-day event proved to be a great forum for networking with industry, educational and public representatives.

The Wind Alliance members have developed large-scale solutions and have many projects in progress, such as a Workforce Plan and Safety Standards. The conference included prominent speakers, a guided tour of Sandia Lab and an opportunity to help refine critical solutions for the wind industry.  During the conference, attendees helped develop working relationships with key leaders in industry, academia and the public sector that will have long-term tangible and intangible benefits.

The Wind Alliance is an established collection of industrial, academic and public-sector entities that collaboratively focus on continuous pre-competitive improvement of workforce, infrastructure and technology within the wind industry.  Members have well established working relationships through the execution of previous projects and access to an unparalleled collection of physical assets and technical capabilities.

WINDURANCE AT THE CANWEA 2010 SHOW IN MONTREAL, QC

November 1-3, 2010 -- Windurance attended the 26th annual CanWEA conference and exhibition. The event was its largest ever with a record breaking attendance of 2, 685 participants from all over the world.  The 3-day conference was held in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The exhibition hall featured over 250 companies and provided Windurance the opportunity to network and generate new business leads.  On the opening day, CanWEA unveiled its strategic vision for wind energy development in Quebec.  WindVision 2025 – A Strategy for Quebec proposes that an average of 800 MW of wind energy capacity be added each year between 2016 and 2025 – for a total of 8,000 MW – increasing wind energy to 20 per cent of Quebec’s overall installed capacity for electricity generation. This is great news for the industry as a whole.

Windurance was able to attend several of the conferences to keep in touch with industry and market trends to ensure our pitch control products continue to lead the way for turbine performance and reliability.

WINDURANCE EXHIBITS AT THE 3RD ANNUAL AWEA OFFSHORE SHOW IN ATLANTIC CITY, NJ

October 5-7, 2010 – Windurance exhibited in Booth 106 at the 3rd annual 2010 North American Offshore Wind Conference & Exhibition in Atlantic City, NJ.  The event was held at the Atlantic City Convention Center during the first week of October.  The 2-day event was a great success for all of those in attendance. 

Windurance was able to downsize their versatile 20’ X 20’ which recently debuted at the Windpower show in Dallas, TX.  The new 10’ X 10’ booth was simple in design, but underlined the commitment to “availability delivered”.  Also on display were 2 of the enclosures that comprise the i-Pitch system.

Visitors to the booth were informed of the advantages the new i-Pitch platform can provide in availability, reliability and overall turbine performance. One visitor described the i-Pitch system as "the future direction of pitch control technology". The future is definitely here!

Many large wind turbine OEM’s had booths at the show, along with a number of second-tier suppliers, service providers and other wind industry businesses. Traffic was steady throughout the day and picked up in between conference sessions. Overall, the show was a great success for Windurance.

WINDURANCE UNVEILS NEW CORPORATE IMAGE AT WINDPOWER 2010

Coraopolis, PA, – Windurance, the global leader in electronic blade pitch control, unveiled the new corporate image at the WINDPOWER 2010 show in Dallas, Texas. The show was held at the Dallas Convention Center from May 23rd to May 26th.

A newly designed and ultra-modern trade show exhibit was the focal point of the new corporate image. A multilingual four-sided floating banner gave show attendees the ability to easily locate booth 9663 in Hall F.

A new company tagline "availability delivered - in changing wind conditions" helped to emphasize that Windurance custom engineers and manufactures each pitch system to maximize the availability, performance and reliability of the system to be the best in the world.

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WINDURANCE ACQUIRES ISO 9001 CERTIFICATION

Coraopolis, PA – Windurance has acquired ISO 9001 certification of the quality management system from Bureau Veritas, a globally renowned third party auditing firm.  Windurance is driven to deliver quality - from the day-to-day operations, to the customer service standards established and the products delivered.

ISO 9001 is an international standard related to management systems, applicable to any organization from all types of business sectors and activities. It is based on the process approach toward customer focus, leadership, and continual improvement. 

MLS ELECTROSYSTEM ACQUIRED BY MATRIC GROUP AND R2J TECHNOLOGIES

Coraopolis, PA-- Controlling interests of MLS Electrosystem, were acquired by the Matric Group located in Seneca, PA, and R2J Technologies located in Pittsburgh, PA from Standard Industrial Products Company. (SIPCO) of Webster, TX.  MLS Electrosystem has been engineering and manufacturing blade pitch control systems for utility grade wind turbines since 2000.  Today, over 1,800 MW of power are being generated optimally using MLS Electrosystem pitch systems in Europe, Asia and North America.

Click here for the entire press release.

2009 TRADE SHOWS

WINDPOWER 2009 - With a rallying cry, a governor's roundtable, words from visionary Texas oil man T. Boone Pickens and other influential wind supporters, WINDPOWER 2009 Conference & Exhibition broke all former attendance records with over 23,000 attendees and 1,280 exhibitors. The conference was held in Chicago, Illinois, from May 4-7, 2009. Windurance Control Systems was located in both # 1326.

2008 TRADE SHOWS

WINDPOWER 2008 - On June 1-4, 2008, the Windpower 2008 show was held at the Houston, TX. With a record-breaking 776 exhibitors and over 13,000 registrants, WINDPOWER 2008 Conference & Exhibition was nearly twice the size of last year's event in Los Angeles.  Windurance was located in booth 839.

HUSUMWIND 2008 - Windurance exhibited at the Husum Wind show held in Messe Husum, Germany, from October 9-13, 2008. Over 700 exhibitors from 35 countries were at the show.

WINDURANCE MOVES TO NEW CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS IN CORAOPOLIS, PENNSYLVANIA

Coraopolis, PA - Windurance moved into its new corporate headquarters location in September, 2008. The facility is an approximately 6,500 sq. ft. building built in 1990. Located at 1300 Commerce Drive in Coraopolis, PA or "Moon Township", it is just 5 minutes away from the Pittsburgh International Airport.

After a brief period of renovation, the Windurance staff moved into the new and improved facility. A new engineering lab was built with anti-static flooring to protect sensitive equipment. A state-of-the-art training room was designed to allow for in-house training. Large conference rooms, a spacious lobby, ample office spaces and a modern kitchenette round out the facility. The other impressive feature is that the building is centered within a beautifully landscaped lot with a country feel.

2007 TRADE SHOWS

EWEC 2007 - Windurance had a booth at the 2007 EWEC show in Milan Italy. The show was held from May 7th until May 10th, 2007. The Windurance representatives had an excellent location with booth D025 being very near to the large wind turbine manufacturers.

WINDPOWER 2007 - The premiere US Windpower show was held at the Los Angeles Convention Center in California from June 4-6, 2007. Windurance executives once again had a booth at the show to exhibit some of the newest features of the Windurance pitch control systems.

2006 TRADE SHOWS

EWEC 2006 - Windurance executives attended the 2006 European Wind Energy Conference & Exhibitions (EWEC) in Athens, Greece, from February 27 to March 2, 2006. Sponsored by the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA), the event attracted over 2,800 participants from 50 different countries.

There were also over 500 oral and poster presentations done during the conference. Paul Rowan, Director, Research & Development at Windurance , presented two posters with advanced technology information. The poster presentations were "Batteries and Ultra-Capacitors" and "A Comparison of Pitch Control System Technologies".

On Tuesday evening, Windurance hosted a Tech Forum and Cocktails Open House at the Hotel Hilton Athens. Attendees were presented with more in depth information on the same topics as those covered in the aforementioned poster topics, along with a sneak-peek at integrating Blade Strain into the pitch system.

WINDPOWER 2006 - This year the WINDPOWER conference brought together the industry’s leading wind energy professionals from around the world for 3 days of conference sessions and an interactive trade show where exhibitors showcased their products and services. Windurance Control Systems executives set up an exhibition booth for the show which was located at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh, PA.. The booth featured a Windurance exclusive demonstration of a brand new software program called "Windurance FAST", an informative powerpoint presentation explaining Windurance and an actual pitch control system.

Sponsored by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), the event started on June 4th and ended June 7th. With over 5,000 attendees and over 290 exhibitors, WINDPOWER 2006 Conference and Exhibition was a record-breaking success for AWEA. 

WINDURANCE CO-OWNER - MATRIC COMPLETES 20,000 SQ. FT. EXPANSION

Seneca, PA -U.S.A - A 20,000 square feet expansion was completed at Matric in September, 2006.  The building addition was constructed to provide a dedicated manufacturing space for the production of wind turbine, blade pitch control systems.  The addition will also serve as much-needed warehouse space for raw materials and finished goods storage. The addition brings the entire building size to an impressive 75,000 sq. ft..

Other reasons for the expansion include the purchase of a new automatic SMT system that required a lot of manufacturing space that was already congested.  Restructuring the manufacturing portion at Matric has been challenging since the arrival of the new equipment in early 2006.

Matric provides electronic manufacturing services, contract design services and aftermarket service & repair. Other specialties include electromechanical and cable assemblies. In addition, Matric has a line of wireless control products that are ideal for distributed applications where wiring is easily damaged, or where freedom of motion is critical.