The Global Wind Organisation (GWO) announced Wednesday that the German Nordex Group became its 17th member company.
Based in Copenhagen, Denmark, the non-profit body was founded by leading wind turbine manufacturers and operators to create safety training standards for the wind turbine industry. It employs 5,500 people in 40 countries.
"As a new member, the Nordex Group commits to using GWO standards where appropriate for its employees and contractors," the group's statement read.
"By doing so, the companies behind GWO have created a globally recognized standard of training, helping almost 80,000 people to work safely in a wind turbine environment," it added.
David Goodfellow, head of Quality, Health Safety & Environment for Northern Europe at the Nordex Group, said the decision to join GWO complements the global safety management system currently used by Nordex.
"In addition to our own proprietary training requirements, we already expect many of our people to have similar if not identical credentials to GWO.
"Also, an increasing number of our customers in the utility sector want their main contractors and employees to work according to a recognized level of safety and technical competence. GWO standards and the transparency of the WINDA database [the Wind Industry Database] in which workers' certificates can be viewed online will help us meet this important customer need," he added.
Eloy Jauregui, safety director of Acciona Energia and chair of the GWO, said the wind energy industry could have a safer and more productive workforce if major employers collaborate.
"So we are delighted a global manufacturer such as the Nordex Group is bringing its considerable expertise to the table," he added.
Other members of the group are E.ON, Enercon, Envision, Equinor, General Electric, Goldwind, Innogy, MHI Vestas, Orsted, SSE, Senvion, Shanghai Electric, Siemens Gamesa, Vattenfall and Vestas.
By Hale Turkes
Anadolu Agency