whitelee windfarm visitors centre
Whitelee is the UK’s largest onshore windfarm generating around the same amount of power as a coal burning power station. We designed an engaging STEM based resource for schools - and other visitors - to learn about farming and storing wind energy as a naturally sustainable resource.
Scottish Power
Eaglesham Moor
Strategic Design
Interpretation Design
Interactive Design
Production Management
Project Management
What Did We do?
We oversaw a fully updated interpretation plan based around the curriculum for excellence to ensure as effective an experience as possible. It’s also fun: we created a variety of physical and digital interactives whilst sharing information in a visually impactful way. This takes visitors through the basic principles of where wind comes from, why it’s strength is variable & changing and how we harness it’s raw power. There is also key information about the 90km of path for those visitors who enjoy or want to know more about this offer.
Work it
To help visitors understand how a wind farm functions, a 3-man digital control station allows visitors to work around the clock, in teams, to supply electricity to nearby Glasgow. Over the course of a sped up typical day - with some unorthodox variations thrown in for fun - we use real life supply and demand variables to describe the challenges engineers face. Be careful not to create a power cut!
Access for all
We also offer a very physical activity where you virtually race around one of the many routes at Whitelee, exploring the flora and fauna of this wooded and peatland location. For when it gets too windy, or if you are unable to venture out, the game play can be driven by arms or legs and is wheelchair accessible. We sprinkle this with some reminders of the Scottish Outdoor Access Code for good measure. Leave no trace!
Access all areas
A wind tunnel, live & interactive global wind map, net-zero realities, extreme weather stories, lifestyle calculator and quiz to check you were paying attention are the other all components to this ambitious visitor centre’s offer.
With 3.6M tons of potential carbon capture in it’s peatland and proposed Solar farm to power Green hydrogen production and storage there’s a lot more coming at Whitelee.
