The challenge of FOM Academy, established in Fukushima
A 30-minute drive from Fukushima Station, a giant windmill blade appears as a sign in the midst of a tranquil landscape. This is the FOM Academy, a training facility specializing in wind power generation. Established in a closed elementary school, it opened in June 2022.
Currently, the FOM Academy is a popular facility with constant bookings. What kind of training does they offer?
Rera Tech Inc.'s Konagaya and Mito visited and spoke with Tatsunori Kanno and Toshimitsu Yoshida of the Fukushima Wind O&M (Operation & Maintenance) Association, a general incorporated association that runs the FOM Academy.
There is an overwhelming shortage of human resources to lead Japan's wind power industry
Wind turbine maintenance involves working at heights and in narrow spaces, and is always risky. To carry out the work safely, it is necessary to have the correct knowledge, undergo appropriate training, and be prepared to protect yourself and your coworkers in the event of an emergency.
GLOBAL WIND ORGANISATION (GWO) is a non-profit international organization established to support accident prevention in the wind power industry, and is composed of many related businesses. GWO has established the "GWO-BST" standard for basic safety training, and certifies facilities that provide training that meets this standard as GWO certified facilities. FOM Academy is one of only four GWO certified facilities in Japan. (As of April 2023)
Mr. Kanno explains the reason for establishing a GWO-certified facility in Fukushima as follows:
"Fukushima has set a goal of converting all electricity demand within the prefecture to renewable energy by 2040, and is particularly focusing on the installation of wind turbines. Currently, there are about 100 wind turbines in Fukushima (as of April 2023), which is one-third to one-half the size of Hokkaido, Aomori, and Akita, but over the next five years or so, the number is expected to increase to a level comparable to those prefectures. If the number of wind turbines alone increases rapidly, there will definitely be a shortage of personnel to manage them if things continue as they are. If things continue as they are, people from outside the prefecture will be in charge of the industry that was born in Fukushima. I thought that would be a shame."
Tatsunori Kanno, one of the central figures in the founding of the FOM Academy
Once a wind turbine is built, it will continue to operate for 20 years. If you receive technical training, you will be able to steadily handle work related to wind turbine maintenance for a long period of time. If you live in the prefecture, you can rush to the scene immediately if there is a problem or something, so living in Fukushima is a big advantage.
However, currently, there are still more visitors from outside the prefecture than from within the prefecture. One of the advantages of the facility is that it is easily accessible from Tokyo and is the first facility in Japan that is open to the public.
"Until now, safety training facilities for wind power generation have been established and used by wind power generation operators and maintenance companies for the purpose of providing in-house education. Nowadays, those facilities are gradually starting to open up to the public, but FOM Academy has been positioned as an institution that is open to the general public from the start. We provide training opportunities to a wide range of people, including new entrants in the industry and students. In the future, there will be a large demand for wind power generation personnel not only in Fukushima Prefecture but all of Japan, so we want to make FOM Academy a place to train wind turbine experts, and an environment where anyone can learn."
Photo of GWO CEO Jakob visiting the FOM Academy. CEO Jakob toured the facility and
In terms of training facilities and educational environment, it was evaluated as being comparable to the best in the world.
A tough training camp held during the COVID-19 pandemic
In order to operate a training facility, it is necessary to train trainers. To do this, we had planned to invite a lecturer from a training facility in Taiwan that is affiliated with FOM Academy to conduct the training. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the lecturer was unable to come to Japan, so we had to quickly hold the training camp online.
"We had a very intense training session, which was scheduled for about a month, compressed into two weeks. The instructor lectured us in English via computer screen on the important points for each training session. The training lasted eight to nine hours. It was really hard, but fun. After that, as soon as the difficult COVID-1 period was over, we had the instructor come to Japan and teach us the practical skills."
Yoshida, who was interviewed alongside Kanno, is also a key member of the FOM Academy. Yoshida originally worked for a global wind turbine manufacturer, where he maintained numerous wind turbines and was also in charge of in-house training. Even someone with such extensive experience like Yoshida says he has learned a lot from the GWO training.
"GWO collects cases of disasters and accidents from all over the world. It analyzes these cases and constantly updates safety measures. This is information that cannot be obtained in Japan or within a single company alone."
Toshimitsu Yoshida has ample experience in wind turbine maintenance.
During the course, Yoshida-san will share with the participants examples of dangerous situations from his own extensive experience. Real-life cases and personal stories will make the participants look even more serious.
"Training is probably the same no matter where you receive it. What we aim to do at our facility is to make sure that the people who come have fun. You can hear laughter even during lessons here. We also had a lot of fun when we learned from our Taiwanese instructor. It was tough, but fun. We would be happy if people felt that way."
Learn GWO training at school
We were shown around the facility. The beautiful school building, with its warm wooden feel, left a strong impression. Built in 1996, the school was closed in 2017 due to a decline in the number of students, so the building is still new and has been used without any major renovations.
Looking into the classroom from the hallway, a first aid training course was taking place. This course teaches basic knowledge and skills of initial first aid, such as how to identify injuries and illnesses and how to provide life-saving treatment including using an AED. As there are many foreign students taking the course, the course is conducted in a hybrid of Japanese and English.
First aid training session
There was also a classroom that displayed various tools related to the wind power industry. Some of the tools are hard to find in Japan, but they were imported from overseas and on display.
In the room where the actual windmill equipment is on display. Mr. Kanno and members of Relatec
We then moved to the gym, where training for working at heights took place.
High-altitude training facility installed in the gymnasium
Relatec members also had the opportunity to try it out.
Put on the safety gear.
Mr. Yoshida giving a lecture
Put on a safety rope and climb up the ladder.
You will receive a lecture at a height of 10 meters above the ground.
The training is conducted at a height of 10 meters, but the actual work is carried out at heights of 80 meters or more. Furthermore, strong winds blow at high altitudes. In the training, we learn how to respond if someone is injured in such a situation.
An instructor at the facility explains the specifications of the equipment that allows even women to pull up injured adults.
She used to work at a wedding hall.
I want to support and raise the foundations of Japanese technology
Large wind turbines are not currently manufactured in Japan. Therefore, in the future, we will purchase and operate wind turbines from overseas. In that case, the people who maintain the turbines will need to comply with the rules of the overseas wind turbine manufacturers, so it will be a prerequisite that they receive training from GWO.
However, conducting such training in-house would involve a lot of cost and effort.
"If the culture of outsourcing training takes root in Japan, the development of this industry will accelerate even more. I would be happy if this academy could become a place like that." (Kanno)
Simulation training using actual aircraft will also be conducted.
In the schoolyard, there is a windmill among the children's playground equipment. Two weeks ago, FOM Academy opened to the public and held an event in the schoolyard, inviting a food truck. Mr. Kanno recalls that it was impressive to see the children looking at the windmill with great interest.
"I hope that when the children play in the schoolyard and see the windmills next to them, they will remember what they were when they grow up, and that through this experience some children will become interested in the wind power industry. Currently, we are using the first floor for training, but in the future we would like to set up a cafe and permanent exhibition room here."
Yoshida continues, saying that they also hold seminars for students at technical colleges and universities.
"Wind power is a new industry, so I would like to see young people and students become interested in it and get involved. It would be great if new jobs were created here in Fukushima, and many employment opportunities were generated. Our facility also actively hires people who have previously worked in industries that have nothing to do with wind power. People with a variety of backgrounds, regardless of gender, are active here, so if you're even the slightest bit interested, we would be delighted if you would feel free to come and see our facility."
(Written by Izumi Kanchiku, edited by Hisae Sasaki)
Part 2: Talking about the future of the wind power industry - Why FOM Academy is betting on human resource development