Colorado Wind Turbine Tower Plant, World's Largest, Gets Expanded
A piece of flat steel is rolled into shape by a plate roller to create one segment of a wind turbine tower panel.
Image courtesy of Burns & McDonnell
Steady, growing demand in the global wind energy market combined with construction incentives in the new Inflation Reduction Act are driving an expansion of the CS Wind facility in Pueblo, Colo., which the South Korean manufacturer says is the world's largest manufacturing plant for wind turbine towers.
Burns & McDonnell will lead the design-build project to add nearly 900,000-sq ft in three phases by 2028 to double production to about 10,000 wind turbine tower sections per year, says firm senior project manager Bryan Allen.
The cost of the expansion was not disclosed.
Onshore wind towers are the firm’s major product, for turbines put to work within a 1,000-mile radius from where they’re built, although the firm also produces towers for offshore wind generation.
Construction of the manufacturing plant will begin in the next three months, as Burns & McDonnell finalizes its contractor selections and awaits air-permitting approvals.
“The crux of a manufacturing project like this is complying with all the environmental conditions,” Allen says. Controlling emissions from the paint process is key, and the design includes sealed paint booths with regenerative thermal oxidizers that destroy the hazardous air pollutants. “It’s a very clean process,” Allen adds.
The design must also address logistics and climate control issues within the facility. The 12,000-lb. steel plate components are delivered by rail and truck and rolled into shape to form a section of these towers. The climate of the building also must be consistent to avoid large temperature fluctuations that could affect welding, Allen says.
The first phase of the new facility is expected to be complete by summer 2024 with phases two and three finished by 2028. The manufacturing plant operates 24 hours per day, seven days per week.
CS Wind, the largest global wind turbine tower manufacturer, acquired the Pueblo facility in 2021 from Denmark-based turbine maker Vestas.
