What is The Wind Agent and who is it for?

The Wind Agent is an instrument for working people. It is not a general weather app. It gives you wind information at your working height and checks it against your own operational limit. It reads forecast models (ECMWF IFS, GFS and ICON), three ensembles (GEFS, ECMWF ENS and ICON-EPS), and the nearest observation from METAR reports or marine buoys. The instrument at /app is free to use without an account. The agent is a built-in assistant you open with Ask the agent. It fetches the same data, shows the checks it ran, and explains the result in plain words. Numbers in its answers come from tools, not from the model's memory, and it does not rule on whether you should proceed.

Wind speed changes with height above the ground. The instrument reads modelled levels at 10, 80, 120 and 180 metres and interpolates between them on a logarithmic height scale, so a crane jib at 45 metres and a drone at 100 metres get different numbers from the same forecast. You can set your Height between 2 and 300 metres in the top bar. Values between 10 and 180 metres are native or interpolated. Values outside that range are extrapolated and labelled as such. Gust is the exception: the models give gust at 10 m only, and the gust figure is always labelled 10 m.

You can set your own Limit for wind speed, taken from your own documents, such as a manufacturer's manual or a method statement. The instrument then shows the probability of crossing it, as the fraction of ensemble members at or above your limit for a given hour. For example, if 10 of 40 members are at or above your limit, you see 25%. That number measures forecast disagreement about your limit. It is not a promise. The decision and the responsibility remain with the person on site. You set the limit with the Limit box in the top bar. Set your limit has the steps.

You can freeze a record with the Freeze record button in the instrument. A frozen record is a time-stamped copy of the forecast you were viewing, with the place, hour, height, limit, wind numbers, ensemble member counts and data sources. It does not update after it is created, so it answers any later question about what the forecast said at that time. Each record has its own link, which anyone who holds it can open, and it is kept for one year. The /records page lists the records you froze in that browser, so it is not shared across devices.

The Wind Agent is built for people whose work depends on wind at a particular height. The persona menu in the instrument names the main groups: crane and lift teams, drone pilots, spray contractors, marine users, golf courses, wind operations, motorsport and event organisers. Each persona sets a starting height, unit and, for some, a starting limit, which you then replace with your own. It is a tool to support planning. Choose your persona and units explains the presets.

The Wind Agent reports wind data and the probability of exceeding your set limit. It does not tell you if it is appropriate to lift, spray, or fly. The decision to proceed with an operation, and the ultimate responsibility, always rests with the competent person on site. The instrument also does not show zero for missing data. If a value is missing, it shows UNKNOWN. This is because missing data is not the same as calm conditions. It also does not provide legal, statutory, or manufacturer limits. These limits must come from your own operational documents. For more detailed explanations, see How we compute P(exceed).

To start, open the instrument at /app, set your working height and enter your limit. If you have a site you check often, create an account and save it, which also lets you set alert rules. The Fleet board, which shows many sites on one screen, is part of the Ops plan. Email alerts and the morning brief start on Pro. The Records page lists the records you froze on that device. If you have a question, check the /faq page or use /contact. For more detailed instructions, see First five minutes.