Vestas and Boeing to collaborate on technology research projects

Wednesday, Mar 11, 2009

Vestas and Boeing today announced their intent to seek opportunities to work together on joint research projects that further the development of environmentally progressive technologies.                                      

Representatives of the companies, who are attending the International Scientific Congress on Climate Change at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, this week, said they are exploring possible civilian collaborative technology research projects in areas such as aerodynamics, structural health monitoring, and composite materials fabrication processes, design and analysis.                

Boeing and Vestas have high levels of expertise in many of the same technology fields, such as aerodynamics and materials science, and are committed to developing solutions to help their respective customers reduce energy use, greenhouse gas emissions, pollution and waste. During 2009, researchers from both companies will work to identify joint projects, with the intent to rapidly incorporate improvements into the respective companies' future products and services, thereby contributing to efforts to address global climate change concerns.                                                                      

“One of our major objectives at Boeing is to continue producing commercial airplanes that are much more efficient and environmentally progressive,” said Jan Närlinge, President of Boeing Northern Europe. “We are always looking for aerodynamic advancements to increase fuel efficiency, as well as ways to improve the overall performance of the in-service fleet.”                              

“There is a strong correlation between new technologies needed in the aerospace industry and new technologies needed in the wind energy business, and by pooling our research and development efforts on specific projects both Boeing and Vestas will benefit, as well as the environment that we live in,” Närlinge added.     
                                                                               
Finn Strøm Madsen, President of Vestas Technology R&D, continues: “We are highly interested in working closely with leading researchers worldwide in order to ensure that we maintain our position as the leading supplier of wind energy solutions. The Vestas and Boeing research and development collaboration will be an important milestone in the expansion of Vestas' collaboration with major mature adjacent industries.”                                                   
                                                                               
The collaboration between Vestas Technology R&D and Boeing Research & Technology will take place both in Europe and the USA.                                    

Vestas is the world's largest manufacturer of wind turbines and has the wind industry's largest research and development unit. Vestas has research centers in Denmark, Singapore, India and the United Kingdom, and new R&D units are being established in the United States in Houston and Boston. Vestas develops its wind turbines in-house, but also collaborates worldwide with leading universities and adjacent industries in the traditional energy and transport industry. For more information, please visit www.vestas.com.                                      

Boeing is the world's leading aerospace company and the largest manufacturer of commercial jetliners and military aircraft combined. Through its Boeing Research & Technology organization, including the Boeing Research & Technology-Europe center in Madrid, Spain, the company conducts its own research and development and also works with top government, private and university research centers, and
companies throughout the world to find the most innovative and affordable technology solutions for aerospace applications. For more information, please visit www.boeing.com.                                                          

Source: Vestas