Swiss company RigiTech has unveiled a prototype of an advanced lowering system that demonstrates delivery accuracy and efficiency by eliminating the need for landing and takeoff. The system will ensure fast and accurate transport of parts to offshore wind farms.

The lack of required parts during a turbine repair can be costly as it requires the service ship to return to shore. This leads to a significant time delay and high diesel fuel consumption.

Equipped with a drop-off system, the RigiTech Eiger drone can deliver spare parts from shore to offshore wind turbines in 30 minutes, much faster than traditional water transport. This ensures same-day repairs, greater safety for on-site technicians, and minimal turbine downtime.

Thanks to the fully autonomous nature of RigiCloud and Eiger, it is possible to integrate drone delivery into existing workflows. While warehouse personnel load spare parts onto the drone, BVLOS operations are remotely controlled by Holo in Copenhagen, hundreds of kilometers away. Network video streaming from Eiger provides live monitoring of every delivery for warehouse staff of both Holo and Ørsted.

A prototype of a new advanced reset system has been developed as an add-on to the Eiger platform. The company’s largest unmanned aerial vehicle to date, the Eiger, is configured to operate at night and can operate at wind speeds of up to 54 km/h. It can cover long distances in excess of 100 km.

Thanks to Eiger’s impressive precision marking capability, the new precision drop system ensures that items are delivered accurately to their destination, streamlining operations and saving valuable time. The prototype plugin has an autolinker that is remotely and automatically activated by RigiCloud to release the module after it reaches its destination.

During the project, RigiTech and Holo completed a total of 40 sea flights with multiple autonomous load drops to the top of a 95 m wind turbine 30 km offshore, with a 100% success rate despite challenging wind conditions. Source