Recent independent research found that ORE Catapult innovation and support over the past 10 years has generated significant impact for the UK and led to £470m investment in the offshore renewable energy sector. We delve further into specific areas of the research in our Impact Evaluation blog series for more insight into how we deliver these results.
One of the key findings was that our significant investment in R&D facilities, research, and technical support has facilitated the development, demonstration, testing, validation, derisking and acceleration of cutting-edge technologies that are crucial to the UK reaching net zero.
A huge 96% of SMEs who responded to an anonymous survey said they were able to progress technology further or faster with ORE Catapult support. This feedback, together with further evidence, suggests that our unique facilities and expert support have proven integral for accelerating technological development in the offshore wind sector.
We spoke to Thomas Wildsmith, Head of Commercial at ORE Catapult to find out more.
In the evaluation, we were described as a world leader and one of the best partners to develop new technologies with – what makes ORE Catapult facilities unique?
“ORE Catapult has been operating world leading assets and facilities since it was established in 2013. Since then, we have continuously invested in both facilities and our people, and this has allowed us to harness our capabilities to lead research and innovation programmes tailored to the needs of the offshore wind sector. Over the last decade, we have delivered a wide range of programmes – for example over 30 leading blade test programmes, including those for the world’s largest blades.
“We built our flagship blade and drivetrain facilities at the National Renewable Energy Centre in Blyth to support late-stage research and development – demonstrating how to progress a full-scale prototype towards active deployment within the industry. At Blyth, we currently provide access to 15 MW scale technologies for blades, drive trains, subsea cables and wider electrical components.
“Our focus has expanded to include emerging areas in operations and maintenance, and lifetime extension programmes – championed by our Operations and Maintenance Centre of Excellence in Grimsby. We have also made significant investment in digital robotics, with our Digital, Autonomous and Robotics Engineering (DARE) Centre at Blyth, supporting operations and maintenance, and helping to accelerate active deployment.
“Crucially we also offer testing and development in real world conditions such as at our Levenmouth Demonstration Turbine in Fife, and at Aberdeen Offshore Wind Farm, in collaboration with Vattenfall. Our Floating Wind Innovation Centre in Aberdeen is also accelerating the commercialisation of floating offshore wind through testing and validation of new technologies and products specifically for this growing part of the industry.
“We focus on pairing solution focused engineering with those assets, and our talented teams of engineers work closely with industry partners to develop bespoke, effective technical expertise.”
ORE Catapult offers test and validation services – what factors led us to design and build these innovative, industry-leading tests and facilities?
“We address technical challenges and market barriers faced by the industry. For example, our large-scale blades and drive train test capabilities were built with a relatively long lifespan, and maximum adaptability was built in to accommodate the anticipated growth in components. When we build a facility, we are always working on predicting future industry challenges and how to meet them.
“When conducting tests, we’re looking at the unique challenges that each company is trying to overcome – which is different for a tier 1,2 or 3 supplier or an SME. As part of the independent research on our impact, we learned that 784 unique organisations were accessing ORE Catapult’s various R&D facilities.”
Why do we keep investing in assets and expanding what we offer?
“With any programme focused on research and development, you need to progress towards some form of practical demonstration. For late-stage R&D development, full scale test and demonstrations are crucially important. It provides a wealth of knowledge and information to support product development for the organisation and this approach has underpinned our investment strategy.
“We secured an £86m investment from the UKRI (UK Research and Innovation) infrastructure fund which will facilitate our new 23-29 MW drive trains and blade testing facilities in Blyth – possibly even up to 30MW components, meaning we will be able to support the next generation of turbines coming in at full scale.
“But we also need to work with supply chain companies working on emerging technology needs. Investment in assets needs to be coupled with investing in people and in de-risking technology through innovation.”
How will ORE Catapult continue to support technology acceleration?
“We will continue to invest in our flagship assets and development programmes, adding value to OEMs, developers, supply chain companies and their customers.
“We are also targeting further investment in grid integration, specifically High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) technologies. We recognise that both array cables and export cables are becoming a critical part of the ecosystem, as offshore wind farms expand in size and scope, and we offer world class cable testing at our Floating Wind Innovation Centre in Aberdeen.
“We will further develop our robotics, machine learning and the application of AI by expanding our facilities in Blyth and in Grimsby.
“Floating wind is also a huge space for supporting technology – looking at the environment and strain of being a floating structure – and this is an area we are pioneering at our Floating Offshore Wind Innovation Centre in Aberdeen.”
To access the full evaluation, click here