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Key Responsibilities and Required Skills for Wind Farm Intern

💰 $ - $

Renewable EnergyWind EnergyInternshipOperations & Maintenance

🎯 Role Definition

The Wind Farm Intern will support day-to-day operation, maintenance, commissioning, and performance optimization activities across onshore and/or offshore wind farm assets. Working under supervision of O&M engineers and site managers, the intern will gain hands-on experience with turbine systems, SCADA and condition monitoring platforms, health & safety procedures, field inspections, data analysis and stakeholder documentation. This role is ideal for students or recent graduates seeking practical exposure to wind turbine technology, asset performance, and renewable energy project workflows.

📈 Career Progression

Typical Career Path

Entry Point From:

  • University internships in mechanical, electrical, civil, environmental engineering or renewable energy programmes
  • Technical apprenticeships or technician roles in utility, industrial or energy sectors
  • Research assistant positions in wind resource assessment or power systems labs

Advancement To:

  • Wind Turbine Technician (Tier 2 / Tier 3)
  • O&M Engineer / Field Service Engineer
  • Commissioning Engineer / Performance Engineer

Lateral Moves:

  • Asset Analyst / SCADA Analyst
  • Health, Safety & Environment (HSE) Coordinator for renewables
  • Environmental / Compliance Officer (permitting and surveying)

Core Responsibilities

Primary Functions

  • Assist senior O&M engineers and site technicians with scheduled preventive maintenance on wind turbines, including bearings, gearbox checks, hydraulic systems, pitch and yaw systems, and electrical panels, ensuring tasks are completed according to manufacturer procedures and safety standards.
  • Support reactive maintenance by helping to diagnose fault codes logged in the SCADA system, documenting fault history, coordinating with spare parts inventory and escalating complex issues to technical leads.
  • Perform supervised on-site inspections of turbine components (nacelle, hub, blades, tower internals), collect photographic evidence and produce clear condition reports highlighting defects, recommended actions and risk ratings.
  • Participate in turbine commissioning and performance verification activities: assist with pre-commissioning checks, power curve validation tests, yaw alignment checks, and run-up procedures to confirm asset readiness.
  • Monitor SCADA telemetry and alarm dashboards to identify performance anomalies, energy losses, curtailment events or communication interruptions and log incidents for follow-up.
  • Contribute to condition monitoring and vibration analysis workflows: assist with data collection, trending, basic FFT analysis, and flag abnormal vibration or temperature signatures to senior analysts.
  • Help maintain and update site documentation: as-built drawings, maintenance logs, inspection records, work orders and permit-to-work forms in the enterprise asset management system.
  • Collect, clean and analyze meteorological and production data for site performance reporting, energy yield assessment and wake loss studies using Excel, Python, MATLAB or R.
  • Support electrical testing and diagnostics under supervision: insulation resistance testing, thermography surveys, current and voltage measurements, and documentation of electrical anomalies.
  • Assist with blade inspection campaigns (visual and borescope) and coordinate with rope access teams or drone contractors to gather high-resolution imagery for damage detection and repair planning.
  • Aid in health & safety delivery on site: participate in toolbox talks, complete job safety analyses (JSAs), ensure compliance with GWO/basic safety training and report near-misses or hazards.
  • Help coordinate logistics for field visits, spare parts shipments, lifting operations and contractor mobilization to minimize downtime and ensure safe access to turbines.
  • Support environmental monitoring and compliance tasks: help with bird and bat monitoring data collection, erosion control checks, and reporting required for permits.
  • Prepare clear, concise technical summaries and daily field reports for site managers, stakeholders and engineering teams, emphasizing findings, actions taken and recommended next steps.
  • Assist with cable and substation inspections: help inspect medium-voltage switchgear, cable trenches and earthing systems for visual defects and report anomalies.
  • Participate in outage planning and execution: assist with job scheduling, resource allocation, isolation procedures and post-outage performance verification.
  • Collaborate with SCADA and control engineers to support software updates, alarm tuning, historian configuration and improvement of data logging fidelity.
  • Support asset performance improvement initiatives: help gather baseline metrics, participate in root-cause analysis workshops and implement low-complexity corrective actions under guidance.
  • Help evaluate condition-based maintenance triggers by compiling sensor data, threshold breaches, and maintenance histories to inform work order generation.
  • Assist in procurement activities: help prepare bill of materials for routine maintenance, document spare part usage and track warranty claims with OEMs.
  • Support stakeholder engagement and community liaison activities by preparing non-technical summaries of site activity, repair timelines and environmental measures when required.
  • Contribute to continuous improvement by identifying inefficiencies in field workflows, suggesting documentation improvements, and participating in lessons-learned sessions.

Secondary Functions

  • Support ad-hoc field measurement campaigns (anemometry, acoustic measurements, thermal imaging) and help operate portable measurement equipment following calibration procedures.
  • Assist with drone operations logistics (flight planning, safety briefings, data transfer) when drone teams are engaged for inspections.
  • Maintain and tidy workshop and storeroom areas: receive goods, label spares and update inventory records.
  • Support the preparation of technical proposals, tender responses and maintenance cost estimates by compiling data and reference documentation.
  • Assist in compiling monthly production and KPI reports for asset managers and investors.
  • Aid in basic GIS tasks: updating turbine locations, access tracks and environmental constraint maps.
  • Provide administrative support for safety certification renewals and training tracking.

Required Skills & Competencies

Hard Skills (Technical)

  • SCADA fundamentals: monitoring telemetry, alarm triage, historian data extraction and producing performance snapshots.
  • Basic electrical knowledge: understanding of LV/MV distribution, circuit protection, transformers, and ability to assist with electrical test logging.
  • Mechanical systems awareness: familiarity with drivetrain, gearbox, pitch and yaw systems and mechanical inspection checklists.
  • Condition monitoring basics: exposure to vibration analysis concepts, FFT interpretation, bearing fault indicators and temperature trending.
  • Data analysis and reporting: intermediate Excel (pivot tables, formulas), and experience with Python, MATLAB or R for time-series processing and simple statistical analysis.
  • Wind resource and energy yield concepts: power curves, capacity factor, wake losses and site-specific met mast data handling.
  • GIS and mapping: basic use of ArcGIS or QGIS to view layouts, mark up access routes and overlay environmental constraints.
  • Drone/visual inspection support: understanding of inspection photography standards, data transfer and image cataloguing (no piloting certification required unless specified).
  • Technical documentation: competency in producing clear service reports, work orders and SOPs using common office tools.
  • Health & Safety compliance: knowledge of permit-to-work systems, JSA, and ability to follow GWO, PPE and site induction procedures.
  • Familiarity with enterprise asset management (EAM) or maintenance management systems (e.g., SAP, IBM Maximo) for logging work orders and inventory.
  • Basic understanding of grid connection and electrical compliance: curtailment, fault ride-through, and reactive power management concepts.
  • Use of handheld diagnostic tools: thermal camera, multimeter, clamp meter, and vibration sensor basics.

Soft Skills

  • Strong verbal and written communication: articulate findings simply for technical and non-technical stakeholders.
  • Teamwork and collaboration: ability to work closely with field crews, engineers, contractors and environmental teams.
  • Attention to detail: thorough documentation habits and methodical inspection practices to ensure asset integrity.
  • Problem-solving mindset: comfort troubleshooting under supervision and escalating with clear, evidence-based recommendations.
  • Time management and organization: prioritize tasks in dynamic field environments to support safe and efficient operations.
  • Adaptability and resilience: ability to work in harsh weather, remote sites and shift-based schedules when required.
  • Safety-first attitude: demonstrates consistent adherence to HSE policies and encourages safe behaviours in others.
  • Initiative and eagerness to learn: proactive in seeking guidance, training and exposure to new technical areas.
  • Stakeholder sensitivity: tact in communicating with landowners, local authorities and internal commercial teams.
  • Data literacy: able to interpret trends, visualize findings and support data-driven recommendations.

Education & Experience

Educational Background

Minimum Education:

  • Current enrollment in or recent completion of a Bachelor's degree (or equivalent) in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Renewable Energy, Environmental Science, Civil Engineering, Physics or related technical discipline.

Preferred Education:

  • Bachelor's degree in Wind Energy Technology, Power Systems, Mechatronics or a Master's degree with specialization in wind energy, power electronics or condition monitoring.

Relevant Fields of Study:

  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Electrical / Power Engineering
  • Renewable Energy / Wind Energy Technology
  • Environmental Science / Ecology (for environmental monitoring roles)
  • Data Science or Applied Mathematics (for analytics-focused internships)

Experience Requirements

Typical Experience Range:

  • 0–2 years (student internships, co-ops, or recent graduates). Prior hands-on technical experience or field placements preferred.

Preferred:

  • Previous internship or project experience in wind farm operations, power generation, utility maintenance, or related industrial environment.
  • Familiarity with SCADA systems, condition monitoring platforms, or prior field inspection participation.
  • Certifications desirable: GWO Basic Safety Training (or willingness to obtain), First Aid, Working at Height, Confined Space awareness, and any relevant local site access certifications.
  • Demonstrated coursework or project work involving time-series analysis, MATLAB/Python, electrical testing, or mechanical diagnostics.
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