The Big Lift
Last month we posted a time-lapse video showing the transport of one of the 160-foot long rotor blades through the streets of Gloucester.
Now, here are some snapshots from the process of mounting the rotor assembly to the nacelle which sits atop the 328 foot tall tower. With National Grid approval scheduled for November 26 we’re just days away from throwing the switch!
 | More than one hundred students, teachers and administrators from the Gloucester Community Arts Charter School visited the Varian site to examine the gargantuan turbine blades and learn about the project. |
 | Technicians install the last of the three turbine blades onto the hub. |
 | A technician inspects the hub before the rotor assembly is hoisted into place. Visible on the left are some of the many signatures Varian employees scrawled on one of the blades from Varian’s “signing day” held on October 26. |
 | To the amazement of onlookers, one of the technicians waits on top of the nacelle for the rotor assembly to arrive. This image really gives a sense of the scale of the project. |
 | The rotor assembly, halfway up the 328 foot- tall tower. The whole process took about an hour. |
 | Left a bit, right a bit… |
 | The completed turbine as seen from the edge of downtown Gloucester. Over the next few weeks, the turbine will be connected to the grid and tested, ready to enter service in the new year. |
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