The very first inkling of the emergence of wind power started with STG over twenty five years ago. A company in Denmark asked if we could survey a route on the Orkneys – it turned out that they were considering positioning a prototype turbine on the top of a hill, purely because there was a minimum, guaranteed wind speed, for almost every day of the year.
From there, for one of the major players, other surveys followed, principally in Scotland – all being potential sites for wind farms. Some were favourable, others less so. We can well remember the site which, although ideal, was prejudiced by a nearby, Roman burial ground.
In any event, STG have always maintained a presence in the wind farm industry – albeit slightly low key for the last ten years, with the emphasis being on offshore projects.
Moving on to Solar, despite the fact that the panels are not oversize, there is always one problem – inevitably the site is in the middle of a field, in the middle of nowhere. Farm tracks, deep mud and strewn with potholes are the only access – how close can the trucks and cranes get, before they get stuck? STGs role is to survey the final stage of the route, determine the solution – thereafter, invariably, ensuring everything goes smoothly.
Before we close this section, we will just touch on one other form of energy generation – water power. Working on the Archimedes Screw principle, STG have delivered units throughout the UK – one of the more interesting being to Windsor Castle.
