Museum

With the arrival of the Enercon-18, 80kW, the German Windpower Museum is one legendary exhibit richer. Thanks to the engagement of Enercon and museum manager Jaeger a complete blade set and a nacelle were saved from scrapping.

This unit was originally installed on a concrete tower at Hohne close to Celle in Lower Saxony. Units equipped with a steel three-legged tower were applied as well.

This turbine type was popular among farms in northern Germany. It was often applied at sewage plants, too.

Between 1991 and 1995 more than 100 units of Enercon-18 were manufactured. Thus, it is considered a best seller within its power range.

Enercon-18 either had an 18m or 19,4m rotor. The high-quality blades were manufactured by danish LM.

Still for this turbine type a transmission was used and the drivetrain was fully integrated meaning that all components were assembled as one compact unit.

The German Windpower Museum thanks Enercon for this technologically attractive donation!

A very rare exhibit has made its way from Lubing, Barnstorf to the German Windpower Museum. A tiny windpump from the 1960s was intensively overhauled by a Lubing employee and can now be spotted in the museum as a permanent loan. Erwin Scissek, a society member, was the initiator of this project.

Still today, Lubing wind pumps appear on meadows, farms or along dikes. In most cases it’s downwind turbines equipped with blue colored plastic blades and four or six bladed rotors. They are used for water pumping or ventilation. Especially in northern Germany these wind pumps were ubiquitous.

Thanks to Lubing for this outstanding engagement!

The German Windpower Museum is – once again – one more exhibit richer. This time it’s a very special machine which heavily influenced the German and international wind scene in the 1990s. The Enercon E-40, made by Enercon, rated at 500kW and equipped with a 500kW ring generator was the sensation at its market introduction in 1993. There was no comparable wind turbine of its class before that dismissed a transmission.

The E-40 was more than a milestone even for Enercon. It meant more than just a technological skip from conventional wind turbines with transmissions to gearless machines. It was the first international and commercially successful breakthrough for the Aurich based company.

The unit in Stemwede originates from 1995 and, thus, is an E-40 5.40 with 65m hub height, tubular steel tower and 40m diameter. The turbine stood in close proximity to the former test site of DEWI, located in Wilhelmshaven-Sengwarden.

Of this “original” E-40 alone more than 1000 units were manufactured until 1999. Thus, it is considered the most successful wind turbine in 1990s Germany – surpassing the Tacke TW600. In addition, this wind turbine proved that ring generators are suitable for mass production and can stand technical criteria. Thus, conventional wind turbines with transmission faced “new competition”.

In the late 1990s follow-up models with larger diameters, increased rated power (E-40 6.44) and the well-known “egg shape” were introduced.

This transfer was enabled by the engagement of manager Jaeger and company Enercon who we would like to thank for this outstanding cooperation with the German Windpower Museum!

On November 14, three members of the German Windpower Museum met representatives of GEW (utility) in the futuristic building of the former jade wind farm close to Wilhelmshaven.
It was all about the intention to take down the closed facility and reinstall it at Stemwede as part of the German Windpower Museum.

The building was installed in the late 1980s as part of Jade wind farm, then new and spectacular. Three single-blade turbine of type Monopteros-50 made by MBB, made up the core of the former wind farm. With a rated power of 640kW and 56m diameter they were the largest single-bladers the wind industry had ever seen.

In 1993 the Jade wind farm was extended by a 3MW two-blader. Aeolus II by Kvaerner/MBB was the fourth highly visible large-scale turbine, served as a prototype and led to even more exclusivity for the Jade wind farm..

In the previously mentioned building visitors were able to get a detailed impression and retrieve live data of all four machines. In addition to that people were informed about wind energy in general.

All wind turbines of the Jade wind farm disappeared between 2001 and 2008. Thus, keeping the existing building is of high importance.

Both sides gave a positive signal at this first meeting. GEW as well as German Windpower Museum think there’s a chance in transferring and keeping this building. Further steps are planned.

The German Windpower Museum thanks representatives of GEW for this first meeting.