A wind powered odyssey through doctoral studies

Panagiotis Korkos experienced the real “sisu” when journeying through his doctoral studies and the – sometimes challenging – Finnish weather. This took perseverance, patience, and the attitude of being open to learning.

“We have to have this constant learning ability in our life, and we have to search for it so that we develop ourselves further”, Korkos explains.

Korkos has done his thesis research in collaboration with Tampere University and Suomen Hyötytuuli Oy. Suomen Hyötytuuli is a forerunner in wind power production and participates in preventing climate change by producing clean and renewable energy.

“I felt welcome from the beginning”, Korkos describes his relationship with Suomen Hyötytuuli.

Collaboration with the company was altogether fruitful. Korkos often met with them to discuss his research and get insight and opinions from experts in wind turbine technology. They gave him freedom to be innovative and to present his ideas, which in time turned into results that were very useful for the company.

The goal of Korkos’s research was to create a data driven method for detecting faults in the hydraulic pitch system of wind turbines, using only data coming from already installed systems in the wind turbines. No other sensors need to be installed as faults can be detected from the data that is already produced. Conveniently, this way faults can be detected on time to prevent the wind turbine from ceasing to operate, which in turn saves resources.

Creating an innovative model that can also be transferred to other similar wind turbines has been one of the highlights of Korkos’s time as a doctoral researcher. This has been the first time in literature that a researcher lists all the included fault types of the pitch system that the model was trained on to detect faults.

“My approach was really easily maintainable by the company so that they could use it again to retrain the model without difficulty.”

Path to professional fulfillment

Korkos has enjoyed Finnish work and study culture. He has been able to formulate his studies based on his interests and needs, which in turn has shaped research in ways that are respected in his field.

“I like the freedom and the way that people respect and appreciate my work”, Korkos exclaims.

Conference visits and events related to his field have helped Korkos build his professional network as they have provided him with a chance to meet other researchers and industry professionals. His research work has been greatly appreciated by these people and has gained a lot of interest in the industry.

Tampere University’s Hervanta campus and its surroundings have left a great impression on Korkos. He enjoyed the fact that the campus is very close to many companies, making it easier to get in touch with the industry. He also describes Hervanta as a vibrant and creative area.

“Our campus made me motivated to be innovative and creative.”

The journey to graduation wasn’t without its challenges. Learning to write academic papers wasn’t easy, but Korkos managed to develop this skill throughout his studies. A course on scientific writing was a big help. He also learned to manage his time effectively. Having a lot of ideas, but only limited time meant that Korkos had to be strategic about which ideas to focus on and implement.

The fast-paced rhythm and vibrant atmosphere in working for the industry enticed Korkos early on, motivating him to establish a career in the private sector. All the hard work paid off, because now Korkos works as a deep learning engineer for a company.

According to Korkos, doctoral graduates are a good fit for industry positions: “They are innovative and want to constantly learn new things.”

DSII

Korkos has found that DSII’s monthly peer meetings with other DSII doctoral researchers have been a great opportunity to develop his skills in communicating about his research. He is now able to explain his research topic and its importance to anyone.

He has also made lasting memories during DSII’s visit to industry destinations. Learning more about the companies that were visited was essential for him, since he knew he would one day work for industry.