AkzoNobel has opened a wind turbine blade testing facility at its Felling plant in the UK.

The multi-million euro investment will support the development of the company's International® protective coatings brand, which supplies wind farms around the globe.

Researchers at the new facility will be able to triple the number of rain erosion tests that can be run every week. At full speed, the so-called 'helicopter' test is capable of running at 176 meters per second.

Ralph Slikkerveer, R&D Director of AkzoNobel's Marine and Protective Coatings business, said: "Bringing this type of world class testing in-house – where we can immediately generate the data, analyse results and prolong testing periods – will transform our contribution to innovation in the wind energy sector. As one of the market leaders, we’ll be able to participate in a more meaningful way in lifetime prediction discussions on protective coating systems for wind turbine blades.

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"The protective coatings we’ll be testing will help to future-proof our customers’ blades so they can withstand the most extreme weather conditions,” adds Slikkerveer. “We’ll now be able to perform more cost-effective and accelerated testing on new products, offering the best possible solutions for our customers at a time when global investment in wind projects continues to grow.

"It's further proof that AkzoNobel is setting industry standards through sustainability-driven innovation by continuing to expand its game-changing portfolio of products and technologies."