False High Wind Alarms Caused Production Loss Under OEM Agreement
"Kavaken identified a pattern of false high wind alarms that were shutting down turbines at moderate wind speeds. These false triggers, excluded from the OEM’s availability guarantee, caused unnoticed production loss until Kavaken’s analysis revealed the malfunction."
The Impact
The Issue
Turbines were repeatedly stopping due to high wind alarms—normally a protective function against excessive stress during extreme wind speeds. However, Kavaken’s data showed that these stops occurred at only 12–16 m/s, well below the expected high wind threshold of 22–25 m/s. The OEM categorized them as environmental factors, excluding them from the availability guarantee and leaving the losses unaddressed.
The Action
Through its Outages module, Kavaken detected the inconsistency and highlighted the mismatch between the actual and expected alarm triggers. The analysis pointed to a malfunctioning or misconfigured alarm parameter within the turbine control system. After investigation, the OEM corrected the issue, confirming that the cause was operational rather than environmental. This intervention restored proper turbine operation and prevented further losses.