Summary Report for:
49-9081.00 - Wind Turbine Service Technicians
Inspect, diagnose, adjust, or repair wind turbines. Perform maintenance on wind turbine equipment including resolving electrical, mechanical, and hydraulic malfunctions.
This title represents an occupation for which data collection is currently underway.
Tasks | Tools & Technology | Education | Work Values | Wages & Employment | Job Openings
Tasks
- Inspect or repair fiberglass turbine blades.
- Troubleshoot or repair mechanical, hydraulic, or electrical malfunctions related to variable pitch systems, variable speed control systems, converter systems, or related components.
- Climb wind turbine towers to inspect, maintain, or repair equipment.
- Diagnose problems involving wind turbine generators or control systems.
- Perform routine maintenance on wind turbine equipment, underground transmission systems, wind fields substations, or fiber optic sensing and control systems.
- Start or restart wind turbine generator systems to ensure proper operations.
- Test electrical components of wind systems with devices such as voltage testers, multimeters, oscilloscopes, infrared testers, or fiber optic equipment.
- Test structures, controls, or mechanical, hydraulic, or electrical systems, according to test plans or in coordination with engineers.
- Assist in assembly of individual wind generators or construction of wind farms.
- Collect turbine data for testing or research and analysis.
Tools & Technology
Tools used in this occupation:
| Hammers — Claw hammers; Sledgehammers |
| Stripping tools — Wire strippers |
| Torque wrenches — Manual torque wrenches; Torque multipliers |
| Voltage or current meters — Voltage testers; Voltmeters |
| Wattmeters — Conventional watt meters; Electronic watt meters |
Technology used in this occupation:
| Electronic mail software — Microsoft Outlook |
| Industrial control software — Industrial control systems software; Programmable logic controller PLC software; Supervisory control and data acquisition SCADA software; Vestas Wind Systems A/S Vestas Remote Panel |
| Office suite software — Microsoft Office software |
| Project management software — Microsoft Project |
| Spreadsheet software — Microsoft Excel |
Education
This occupation may require a background in the following science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) educational disciplines:
Work Values
| Support — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical. |
| Achievement — Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement. |
| Working Conditions — Occupations that satisfy this work value offer job security and good working conditions. Corresponding needs are Activity, Compensation, Independence, Security, Variety and Working Conditions. |
Wages & Employment Trends
National
Employment data collected from Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers, All Other.
Industry data collected from Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers, All Other.
| Median wages (2012) | $22.10 hourly, $45,970 annual |
| Employment (2010) | 144,000 employees |
| Projected growth (2010-2020) | 
Average (10% to 19%)
|
| Projected job openings (2010-2020) | 43,200 |
| Top industries (2010) |
State & National
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics 2012 wage data
and 2010-2020 employment projections
.
"Projected growth" represents the estimated change in total employment over the projections period (2010-2020). "Projected job openings" represent openings due to growth and replacement.
