News
Corporate
March 2014
28
Ridgway Machines has been awarded
a further major contract for the ITER
international nuclear fusion reactor
project. Placed by Elytt Energy, a
European-based
innovator
in
high
technology solutions for atomic fusion
and new energy sources, this order covers
additional tape wrapping head systems to
insulate superconductor coils for the ITER
Toroidal Field (TF) magnets.
Elytt Energy is part of a European Union
(EU) consortium together with ASG Italy
and Iberdrola Spain, responsible for
the manufacture of ten winding packs
for the TF coils. The packs will then be
supplied by Fusion for Energy (F4E) who
are managing Europe’s contribution to
ITER.
ITER has been called the largest
science experiment in history and
aims to demonstrate the technical and
scientific feasibility of fusion power
for commercial-scale energy. The ITER
Tokamak machine will be one of the most
complicated machines ever engineered
– 30 metres high and weighing 23,000
tons, housing an estimated one million
components. The TF magnets produce a
magnetic field around the Torus, whose
primary function is to confine plasma
particles. The coils weigh 6,540 tons; after
the vacuum vessel they are the largest
ITER components.
The ITER organisation was formed to
advance the development of hydrogen
fusion as an energy source. Fusion is a
safe, carbon-free energy source fuelled
by abundant resources (heavy hydrogen
from sea water) and can produce high
levels of power. Partners China, the
European Union (EU), India, Japan,
Korea, Russia and the United States
will implement the project during its
estimated ten-year construction and
20-year operational phases.
The seven ITER members share every
aspect of the project, including science,
procurement, finance and staffing, with
the aim that ultimately each member will
have the know-how to produce its own
fusion energy plant. Ridgway recently
announced a major contract to provide
taping heads to insulate the ITER Central
Solenoid (CS) magnet coils supplied by
the US.
Ridgway’s sales and marketing director,
Andy Clarke, said: “We are delighted to
win this substantial further contract for
the ITER project. We will be working in
close collaboration with our customer to
meet the specification and performance
standards for this demanding engineering
application.”
Ridgway Machines – UK
Website
:
Automated taping head to insulate Toroidal
Field magnet components
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ITER Tokamak (TF coils highlighted in orange)
