Area to see new winds of energy
INDEPENDENCE — Kansas Lt. Gov. Mark Parkinson will be in Montgomery County next Wednesday to unveil the area’s newest industry — Wind Energy Services Company (WES).
A ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for noon next Wednesday, April 2, at Wind Energy Services Company’s new offices at 1200 W. Sycamore in Independence. The company also plans to unveil a new office in Sweetwater, Texas, the next day.
Wind Energy Services Company specializes in the repair and upgrades to wind turbines — those large windmills that have started popping up across the American horizon to meet growing energy needs.
Wind Energy Services Company is comprised of engineering and repair professionals including general manager Ricardo Arellano and field service manager Thomas Herrera who have over 40 years combined wind energy market experience.
Said Arellano, “WES was built to respond to the markets immediate needs—wherever they need us.”
The company’s mobile response service teams are equipped to swiftly assess and repair a myriad of issues which arise due to lightning strikes, shipping and installation damage, structural cracking, leading edge erosion and coating failure, blade balancing, and cosmetic/general warranty repair.
The Independence plant will provide FRP (fiberglass reinforced plastic) components for wind turbine machinery and related devices.
In response to the challenge of the meteoric growth of the $36 billion U.S. wind energy market and the sustained renewable repair demand therein, Wind Energy Services Company (WES) will hold grand openings for the inception of its new FRP (fiberglass reinforced plastic) wind energy service and repair operations in Independence, Kansas and Sweetwater, Texas respectively.
Parkinson will be present because of his interest in energy diversification. Parkinson serves as the co-chair of the Kansas Energy Council and chairpersons of the Kansas Wind Working Group.
With an average annual growth rate of 28 percent over the past ten years, wind is the fastest-growing energy source in the world. According to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), the U.S. wind energy industry installed 5,244 megawatts (MW) in 2007. This represents an expansion of the nation’s total wind power generating capacity by 45 percent in a single calendar year—injecting an investment of over $9 billion into the economy.
We have seen the acres and acres of windmills in California that bring energy to that state. It’s good to see SEK getting into the alternative energy business.