10 reasons to design wind parks with Windplanner

Nowadays data is abundantly available to help you choose the optimal location for your wind farm. Think about it: geographical data, open street maps, 3D maps, Street View, all readily available on the internet. What is needed, is to combine these with relevant local data (wind speeds, animal habitat, powerlines, etc.). The right visualization tool will integrate all data to help you scout the right location.

Imagine you are sketching on a 2D map… . You measure the distances, so you are sure the turbines are not too close to residential areas, you know the turbines have the correct radius, and you clearly see any potential obstructions on the map. You choose a location for your wind farm and: you see straight away what it looks like in 3D and Street View. And you can look at it from different angles. Is this possible? Yes it is. You can do this today. All by yourself.

Whatever your plans are for wind energy, you will always have to gain support from stakeholders. Landowners, residents, investors, colleagues… all of them will have a say about your plans.

A dialogue about your ideas is difficult if you only have dots on a map to show. What will that look like in reality? It is much more efficient to show realistic visualizations. They ensure that everyone talks about the same thing. They show precisely what it is going to be like in the future. And thus they clarify, even before significant investments are made.

During the development of wind projects, progressive insights often incur revising the plan. When you make the visualizations yourself, that is no problem at all. Why waste time and money to explain the necessary changes to somebody else, if you can adjust the plan yourself with a few mouse clicks?

There are many design considerations, in addition to the choice of location. Do you go for structured or unstructured configuration, large turbines or several smaller ones? A dialogue with stakeholders most useful when you show a couple of possibilities. In that way, you learn most from your stakeholders, as they will sum up the pros and cons of each option. On top of that, they will feel heard and taken seriously. In our opinion, that is vital for a successful wind project. Based on these discussions, the preferred option can be selected.

Wouldn’t it be great to share your plans and visualizations online? And how about working together on one project without transferring huge files? Windplanner allows you to do so.

Many wind projects fail to materialize. So it’s key to keep the costs low in the early stage of a project. Why would you spend money on an expensive visualization agency if you can do it yourself? Without high investment cost for software, but with a monthly subscription in stead, you are good to go.

You can make high-resolution prints, show the plan on a touch screen, see the plan from different angles, make a video and share it on -for instance- Facebook and Youtube. The choice is yours. You can even see it in VR. If you’d ask an agency to create this for you, you easily spend thousands of euros per project. Why? Only because you have not tried the alternative yet.

Sounds familiar? “Wind energy is great, but not in my backyard… “ Wouldn’t it be great to show what the view truly will be from that person’s garden? By taking a 360-degree photo of that location, you can show precisely what the view will be. 100% accurately.

Visualizations have added value in each phase of the project, from (pre-)feasibility to realization. A few examples: site evaluation, public consultation, environmental impact assessment, permit application, and communication during the construction. In each phase, you can add new data layers to the existing map.