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Nathan explained his role and involvement with regards to the conference, critical industry challenges and why it is important for engineers to attend.
Q: Could you briefly explain your role, involvement and experience with regards to this conference?
Nathan Marr (NM): My role as a Sales Engineer is to support offshore wind farm developers and installers when selecting cable protection solutions for their assets. Primarily I work during the tendering and commissioning phases of wind farm installations and I will provide innovative solutions for the project specific requirements present. With regards to this conference I plan to share my experience during this phase of projects, primarily focusing on the methods of how during the early stages, smart design and manufacturing practices can significantly reduce cost and support developers in meeting the significant MWh price reductions recently achieved.
Q: What are the main challenges facing the industry at the moment and what are the most common issues you hear from colleagues?
NM: I believe that the main issue facing the industry at the moment is the management of power produced from offshore wind installations. A lot of emphasis has been placed upon accelerating the installation of offshore wind farms to meet global renewable energy targets, however, much more needs to be done with regards to storage and power distribution to ensure that the renewable growth is sustainable and practical.
Q: What key topics are you excited to speak about?
NM: I am excited to speak about how suppliers throughout the full offshore wind farm supply chain can think smart with both the design and manufacturing processes in order to reduce cost and facilitate the significant reduction in MWh price we recently witnessed during round three of the CfD.
Q: Who else are you most interested in hearing from on the programme, and why?
NM: I am interested in hearing about the design and manufacture of blade technologies. I believe that this will have many interesting points on research and development of composite materials which could be used in other applications too.
Q: What is your top tip for engineers working in similar roles to your own?
NM: Always remain creative and strive for innovation. Within industries such as wind power, this is essential due to the extreme growth and development we have seen in the past 10 years and the renewable targets that have been set for the future.
Q: Why is it important for engineers to join this conference?
NM: It will provide an excellent understanding of where the wind industry is today and how moving forward, through innovation and collaboration we will be able to see significant growth that will help the UK reach their renewable energy targets.
Wind Turbine User Group 2021 will be taking place online on 19-20 May 2021. To view the two-day programme and book your place, visit www.imeche.org/windturbines.