From the field
Built by the people who use them
Trainees in the workshop, young builders with their first blades, and finished turbines turning above villages.
A step-by-step manual for constructing functional wind turbines using accessible materials — field-tested across off-grid communities in rural Africa.
Every component can be sourced in rural markets across Sub-Saharan Africa — no specialist suppliers needed.
Clear diagrams and written instructions designed for community builders, not engineering graduates.
Developed and refined across real installations in off-grid communities in rural Africa.
Turbines built with this guide generate meaningful electricity for homes, schools, and small enterprises.
Trainees in the workshop, young builders with their first blades, and finished turbines turning above villages.
A small axial-flux turbine designed to be built in a village workshop from wood, scrap steel and recycled magnets, and repaired with the same tools.
The alternator follows the open axial-flux approach popularised by Hugh Piggott, adapted to materials available in Côte d'Ivoire.
Every part is drawn with its dimensions and the number to cut for a batch of twelve turbines. The plans are in French, the working language of our workshops.
A turbine only lasts if the community is ready to own it. That is why the guide starts long before the first blade is carved.
Wind potential, energy needs, social cohesion and willingness to co-manage a shared asset.
Each village forms a committee to mobilise residents and identify a site.
Project staff, technical advisers and community representatives choose the most prepared villages.
Women, young people and local artisans build the turbine by hand from local and recycled materials.
The community raises the tower and commissions the turbine itself.
A checklist covers the mast and guy wires, bolts and air gap, coils and resin, magnets and blade balance.
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