Thursday 7 February 2013

Siemens plans new wind training centre in US

Siemens is set to open a new wind energy service training facility in Orlando, Florida in the US.

The 40,000 square foot centre will provide training to new wind turbine technicians as the German company claims the demand for skilled workers is increasing with more wind projects coming online.

With an initial investment of around $7 million (£4.5m), the multinational firm plans to create 50 new jobs and host around 2,400 trainees every year.

The facility will provide technical and health and safety training for Siemens’ wind power service technicians to help them gain the skills required to “safely and expertly” meet the needs of the industry.

Randy Zwirn, CEO of Siemens Energy and its global Service Division said: “As wind energy has become a mainstream source of power generation, the continued reliable and competitive performance of renewable energy is critically important to meeting the nation’s future energy demand… This new, advanced training facility in the US will help ensure that our wind service technicians receive the highest standard of technical and safety training.”

Siemens already has wind training centres in Newcastle in the UK, Denmark and Germany. The new facility is expected to be ready by the end of the year.