Welcome to the Advanced Engineering show edition of Composites in Manufacturing magazine. Held at the NEC, Birmingham on 1-2 November, read all about it in our exclusive show preview starting on page 28.
Our show issue features two articles focusing on wind energy, and particularly the repair and recycling of wind turbine blades. Whilst any attempt to meet net-zero goals should be applauded, are we deceiving ourselves by believing in the use of green energies, when in fact all we’re doing is accumulating more waste by using landfills to bury non-biodegradable glass fibre blades? We need to get rid of them completely.
There seems to be a pattern emerging around the theme of presenting accurate facts and figures relating to sustainability. Together, national news and social media are often guilty of fuelling a greenwash of misinformation to increase their popularity at the expense of accuracy.
For me this mirrors what can sometimes be heard going around the sector, with many conferences invariably focusing on an industry’s standing, the challenges it faces and how it must maintain a competitive edge. A flurry of industry consultants will blow in like the unseasonal weather we’ve been having lately, making predictions on what the sector can expect in the future.
There’s also some debate in establishing an even base of agreement on the accuracy of these figures, with some crazy swings between the highest and lowest estimates. Forecasting facts and figures, like the weather, is changeable. It’s not always doom and gloom – more a case of our industry being prepared for anything that is thrown at it.
A tad pessimistic perhaps, but we’re in an age where much attention is being paid to a greener future. The irony is that without some serious thought given to recycling, we may not have one.
