Elevating Wind Industry standards with smart solutions

In the wind industry, it is understood that the yaw bearing enables the nacelle to rotate towards the wind direction for optimal blade performance.

Within that system, there’s the yaw claw, which needs the bolt to be tightened to a specific target torque and then loosened to a specified angle to ensure proper tension in the springs. The tension on the yaw claw ensures consistent wear between the ring gear and glide bearing, enabling proper rotation. During the lifespan of a wind turbine, the yaw claw undergoes routine maintenance to ensure optimal functionality.

Depending on the solutions used during this application, the entire process can take upwards of two hours per tower. Atlas Copco has a solution that could reduce the application time by over half. Read on to discover more.

During wind turbine construction, our customer would torque the yaw claw to 200 Nm with a click wrench. This manual process required two tools to complete the rundown and paint markings on the bolted joint to back off 90 degrees with the wrench.

Operators previously had to spend upwards of two hours using a manual and visual process to complete the rundown. By integrating a tool that could automatically complete the rundown and back off to an angle, they could save up to an hour and a half per tower.

At Atlas Copco, we are proud to be a leading supplier to the global manufacturing industry. Decades ago, we introduced smart electric tools in factories, and now we're bringing the smart factory to the field with our high torque battery nutrunner range developed for maximum reliability and unbeatable operator ergonomics.

Our customer was excited to integrate this solution on the line because it could offer:

• A battery tool that requires no cables/controller to bring up the tower
• Torque/Angle programming and easy-to-use interface
• A tool that’s versatile and can be used with other applications
• Great operator ergonomics
• Data collection capabilities

Taking the smart factory to the field should be simple, so we made smart connect bolting solutions to make manufacturing in unique environments quicker, safer, and smarter. For all your critical applications, choose the solutions you can trust to get the job done right the first time, choose Atlas Copco.

Are your operators facing difficulties assembling wind turbines? Contact our experts to start operating better and more efficiently.