We’ll Change Our Windmills, But Only if They Stop Working
The Windmills of Nashtifan, Iran have been spinning for over one-thousand years. Meanwhile, I can’t keep holes out of my socks for two months. What is it about these windmills that has made them so sustainable for over a millennium—and how can we integrate those windmills’ unique qualities into what we do here at Ashton Technology Solutions?
Iran’s centuries-old windmills are historic, even to the residents of Nashtifan. These mills are not at all similar to those found in European fantasies. They are tall and vertical, not unlike the revolving doors found in American high-class hotels. Their bases are small and petite, comparable to a totem pole. Their patent sails are wooden, tightly packed together, spinning fast, mere feet away from the base. Spurs and guant shafts off the ground translate the force of its caught wind into raw power for the town in the valleys below.
Form here fits function. The winds here come off the ground; a Dutch windmill would only block the air these windmills capture. Despite the old “blueprints,” the “hardware” of these windmills are being kept up to date by the watchful Mr. Etebari. His reasons for his maintenance are simple: The windmills are a service to the community. The community serves them in return. An ecosystem of wind lives on in this town.
Etebari has rejected plans to change the design of the windmills. Why bother? As they are, they provide the best solution for what the town needs.
But what if the windmills grew out of fashion? What if there were better alternatives? Then Etebari would have to either adapt them to suit the needs of the town, or they would—unfortunately—fall into disrepair.
Our systems for data recovery and monitoring alerts undergo similar audits. If we find them to be a poor fit for what the client needs, we find a new solution. Likewise, if the windmills work consistently, we keep the windmills. If it’s time for the windmills to go, we can’t help that—only adapt to the changing world.
Keep on spinning, Nashtifan.
