TSTC Wind Energy Technology students train in new turbine simulator, one rung at a time

(HARLINGEN, Texas) - One thing that Wind Energy Technology students at Texas State Technical College have to conquer is any fear of heights.

To help get them ready to climb inside actual wind turbines that can be several hundred feet high, the program recently introduced a 27-foot-tall portable wind turbine training simulation trailer that was donated to the college by energy delivery company Enbridge Inc.

Patrick Zoerner, a TSTC Wind Energy Technology instructor at the Harlingen campus, said the training can help the students be competitive when looking for jobs after graduation.

"Whichever companies have an interest in hiring our graduates will have a climbing test to demonstrate they have what it takes to do the job," he said.

Students Christian Cortina, a resident of Donna and an Army veteran, and Yasmin Lara, of Weslaco, talked about their first time climbing inside the simulator.

"There's much more exercise involved with this climbing tower in comparison to what I did in the military," Cortina said. "We put on our personal protective equipment before we started. I assumed that our instructor was going to have us rescue a teammate in a mock injury scenario. He just wanted us to get used to the climbing part of our training."

"I thought it was exciting," Lara said. "It gave me a better idea of what to expect."

Ray Longoria, team lead for TSTC's Biomedical Equipment Technology and Wind Energy Technology programs in Harlingen, said the new training tool is intended to help students get acclimated to various working conditions.

"It will provide a dynamic and realistic setting where our students will be able to simulate the effects of being in a wind turbine," he said.

The job outlook for the wind energy industry is bright. According to onetonline.org, the need for wind turbine service technicians in Texas was forecast to increase 102% from 2020 to 2030. The average annual salary for a technician in the state is $59,290, according to the website.

TSTC's Wind Energy Technology program offers an Associate of Applied Science degree and a certificate of completion at the Harlingen and Sweetwater campuses.

For more information about TSTC, visit tstc.edu.

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