Expert Interview 

Tim Delaney, Wind Construction Expert

Tim Delaney is founder and President of The Delaney Group, A Tetra Tech Company, which has been part of Tetra Tech since 2007. Mr. Delaney is also the President of Tetra Tech Canada Construction. As the leader of Tetra Tech’s wind construction team, Mr. Delaney works with Tetra Tech offices across North America to provide safe, efficient, and cost-effective wind construction services to our clients.

Tetra Tech has been involved with almost 30 energy construction projects in the past four years, representing well over 2,500 megawatts of new power.  Additional wind construction awards are pending. Mr. Delaney’s emphasis on safety, environmental diligence, and teamwork are seen throughout Tetra Tech’s wind projects, ensuring successful outcomes for the project developers and private land owners.

Learn more about Tetra Tech's wind energy experience in this related Expert Interview with Anntonette Z. Alberti.

Q:  What are some of the signature wind projects you have been involved with?

A:  Maple Ridge was our first wind project and was the largest project east of the Mississippi at the time. The project is 197 turbines, which you rarely see in the eastern part of the United States.

Other signature projects include a series of five projects we built for Noble Energy in northern New York, all in very close proximity and totaling about 240 turbines. We also completed the Pillar Mountain project for the Kodiak Electric Association on Kodiak Island, Alaska. It is small, complex project, and the island location required that all materials be brought in by barge.

We are currently building a Canadian wind project for Acciona in New Brunswick.

Q:  What expertise did you bring to the wind industry from your experience in heavy civil construction?

A:  We had a very strong civil and concrete foundation team from our years as a transportation contractor in New York building roads and bridges. That was where we started in the wind business as well.

Our ability to handle fast-paced projects with difficult schedules has helped us because wind developers look to get projects online as quickly as possible. For nearly a decade we were one of the few emergency contractors in New York, charged with responding to highway emergencies in the most mountainous part of the state. When one of the state’s busiest interstates washed out, we had 24 hours to respond with all necessary personnel and a plan to have the road reopened in the shortest amount of time possible.

Q:  What are the differences between wind construction and heavy civil construction projects?

A:  As I mentioned, wind projects tend to have a quicker completion schedule. Also, the time available for construction is especially short in areas that are weather sensitive.

Wind projects are also typically built in very rural areas, so the logistics of transporting large loads – from turbines to aggregate for the roads to concrete for the foundations – is quite different from a normal construction project.

But probably the biggest difference is that on wind projects you’re dealing with many private land owners as well as the project owner or developer. On the Maple Ridge project, we had to communicate with over 150 different land owners. In heavy civil construction, you typically have just one owner.

Q:  How do you work with multiple landowners effectively?
A:  On the Maple Ridge project – and now on all of our projects – we dedicate a very high level person to landowner communications. We are very diligent in making certain that landowners know ahead of time when we will be on their property and what we will be doing. To the greatest degree possible, we prevent surprises.  As long as we keep folks informed, the relationships go well.

The bulk of these landowners make their living off their property. It’s near and dear to them and often has been in their family for generations. We respect that, and we know that without landowner consents, it would be very difficult to construct a wind farm. So we make sure to leave their property in better condition than we found it.

Q:  What are the challenges in delivering a wind project on time and on budget?

A:  Each project has its own challenges, so we identify the challenges upfront and then focus on incorporating the solutions into our plans. For example, on a project like Kodiak Island, we had to bring everything in on barges – a unique challenge.

Our latest project on Lamèque Island in New Brunswick, Canada, contains many firsts for us in wind construction: our first project in Canada, our first with a joint venture partner, our first project for this client, and the first time we’ve been solely responsible for the transportation of all turbine components.

This is also the first time we’ve experienced the particular type of resource constraints that we’re encountering in New Brunswick. We’re committed to using local suppliers and subcontractors, and there are very few in the area. We’re working with the area’s only concrete supplier to help him expand his business so he can meet the needs of this project. The project is challenging, but working through these logistics and solving these problems for our client makes us much stronger as a team.

Q:  How do you maintain such an outstanding safety record?

A:  We ingrain safety in our culture, no different than brushing your teeth or combing your hair. Before you start work, you think safety. We talk safety throughout the project and throughout the day. Every day the team members get together – every employee on a project – to talk about the potential hazards we’re going to face that day. Additionally, every employee has the ability to shut a project down if they see a safety violation.

Because of the remoteness of these projects, we’re often utilizing local subcontractors who have not previously worked in the wind industry. It’s critical that we manage safety proactively. Many wind developers are much more interested in safety than they are price. If you don’t have an outstanding safety record, you’re not even going to get in the door. So we talk it and we really walk it as well.

"We ingrain safety in our culture, no different than brushing your teeth or combing your hair. Before you start work, you think safety." -- Tim Delaney