Des Moines company transforms windmill blades into concrete barriers
DISPOSING OF OLD WIND TURBINES CAN BE A DIFFICULT PROCESS, BUT DES MOINES COMPANY HAS TAKEN ON THE CHALLENGE. I CAUGHT UP WITH THEM AND LEARNED ABOUT THE UNIQUE WAY THEY’RE REPURPOSING THE PLATES. WE SAW A PROBLEM IN THE INDUSTRY WHERE WINDMILL BLADES NEEDED TO BE RECYCLED, AND WITH OUR BACKGROUND IN THE GRINDING AND DEMOLITION BUSINESS, WE KNEW WE COULD PROCESS THEM DOWN. RENEWABLE BLADE IS A WINDMILL TURBINE RECYCLING COMPANY. IT STARTED IN 2020. IT TOOK A FEW YEARS FOR US TO DEVELOP THE FORMULA TO MAKE THE CONCRETE AND GET IT ALL PUT TOGETHER AND CORRECT. WE KNEW WE NEEDED TO MAKE BIG CONCRETE PRODUCTS FOR THE AMOUNT OF BLADES THAT ARE OUT THERE. THERE’S NOTHING ON THE MARKET THAT MAKES EQUIPMENT WISE, THAT MAKES A CONCRETE MADE OUT OF WINDMILL BLADES. SO WE HAD TO DEVELOP THE WHOLE SYSTEM FOR IT. THE FORMULA, THE ADMIXTURES, BECAUSE THE MATERIALS THE BLADES ARE MADE OUT OF ARE SO COMPLEX. SINCE THEN, THEY’VE MADE CONCRETE BLOCKS FROM TURBINES ALL OVER THE COUNTRY, INCLUDING BLADES FROM THE GREENFIELD TORNADO. IN 2024. WE’VE GETTING THEM ALL OVER THE MIDWEST. WE’VE ACTUALLY TAKEN SOME IN FROM MAINE, AND WE’VE TAKEN SOME IN FROM WASHINGTON AND HAVE USED THEM TO REFURBISH PARKING LOTS LIKE THE ONE AT PREMIER CREDIT UNION IN DOWNTOWN DES MOINES, OR AS SAFETY BARRIERS AT CONSTRUCTION SITES LIKE THIS ONE AT MERCY COLLEGE OF HEALTH AND SCIENCES, WHICH ONLY TOOK TWO BLADES TO MAKE. RENEWABLE BLADE SAYS IOWA DOT BARRIERS COST $1,500 AND SAY THERE’S ONLY COST 500. TH
Des Moines company transforms windmill blades into concrete barriers
Renewablade, a Des Moines-based company, is recycling old windmill blades into concrete barriers, providing a cost-effective solution for construction sites and parking lots
Renewablade, a company based in Des Moines, is turning old windmill blades into concrete barriers, offering a unique recycling solution. Nick Wylie, a partner at Renewablade, said, “We saw a problem in the industry work cycle, and that’s our background to the grinding and demolition business process.”The company, which started in 2020, took several years to develop the formula for making concrete from windmill blades. “There’s nothing on the market that makes, equipment-wise, it makes concrete made out of windmill blades. So we had to develop the system for the formula, the admixtures,” Wylie said. Renewablade has sourced turbine blades from across the country, including those affected by the Greenfield Tornado in 2024. “We’ve gotten them all over the Midwest. We’ve actually taken some in from Maine, and we’ve taken some in from Washington,” Wylie said.These recycled blades have been used to refurbish parking lots, such as the one at Premiere Credit Union in Downtown Des Moines, and as safety barriers at construction sites like Mercy College of Health and Sciences. Renewablade says Iowa DOT barriers cost $1,500, while theirs cost only $500. The company is now exploring ways to turn turbine blades into plastic.
Renewablade, a company based in Des Moines, is turning old windmill blades into concrete barriers, offering a unique recycling solution. Nick Wylie, a partner at Renewablade, said, “We saw a problem in the industry work cycle, and that’s our background to the grinding and demolition business process.”
The company, which started in 2020, took several years to develop the formula for making concrete from windmill blades. “There’s nothing on the market that makes, equipment-wise, it makes concrete made out of windmill blades. So we had to develop the system for the formula, the admixtures,” Wylie said.
Renewablade has sourced turbine blades from across the country, including those affected by the Greenfield Tornado in 2024. “We’ve gotten them all over the Midwest. We’ve actually taken some in from Maine, and we’ve taken some in from Washington,” Wylie said.
These recycled blades have been used to refurbish parking lots, such as the one at Premiere Credit Union in Downtown Des Moines, and as safety barriers at construction sites like Mercy College of Health and Sciences.
Renewablade says Iowa DOT barriers cost $1,500, while theirs cost only $500. The company is now exploring ways to turn turbine blades into plastic.