About the Wind Energy Center

 

The Wind Energy Center (WEC) at the University of Massachusetts is the national leader in wind energy education, academic research, and service to government and industry.

We know wind. For over 50 years our campus has been conducting research, education and training in wind energy. We are the country's first academic wind energy research center.

We wrote the book, literally. Our world renowned educational program includes undergraduate and graduate classes on site and online, and an interdisciplinary PhD program. We even wrote the leading textbook, Wind Energy Explained, found in wind energy graduate education settings worldwide.

Our educational programs are exceptional. Our program is interdisciplinary, educating students in engineering, environmental science and social science to better position the US workforce to be globally competitive in wind energy. 

Our alumni are industry leaders. We've graduated hundreds of alumni who work in wind energy and have helped create the US wind energy industry.

We are leaders in offshore wind. We perform cutting edge research, shape the vision for offshore wind, and educate the next generation of leaders.

We approach our work from multiple perspectives. Many perspectives means better solutions. Our engineers conduct cutting edge research on rotor aerodynamics, turbine design and control, turbine design and control, floating structures and mooring/anchors, electricity markets and grid-integration, and offshore structure/geotechnical engineering. Wildlife ecologists, public policy experts, planners, and political scientists address the socioeconomic and environmental impacts of offshore wind.

Our work has impact. Our research has led to technical innovation in the wind energy industry, improved management of environmental species, innovative policies for offshore wind development, and fundamental insight into offshore wind energy systems.

We have the vision. We understand that in order for offshore wind development to most benefit the U.S., innovation is necessary to develop a domestic industry, and big-picture thinking is needed to maximize benefits to everyone. Our vision includes game-changing technology advancements; sensible and streamlined models for permitting, regulation, and data collection and sharing; system level approaches to offshore wind infrastructure investment and management; and proactive public engagement with stakeholders. We are collaborating with other national academic experts to create a vision for a national research network in offshore wind. Such a network would strategically coordinate research among academic institutions while collaborating with industry and federal agencies on critical offshore wind research areas.

We see the big picture. Our approach to offshore wind is comprehensive - we bring together researchers who understand the technical challenges, environmental implications, socioeconomic impacts and regulatory hurdles of offshore wind development.

Scholarship Fund

Support wind engineering students through the William Heronemus Graduate Fellowship Fund, an endowment created to support graduate students who have an interest in renewable energy in the Department of Mechanical and Industrial Engineering.