From literature to practice: taxonomy to compare system models for offshore wind farm applications

Offshore wind farm installation requires complex planning under uncertainty, and numerous system models have been developed to support scheduling and resource allocation. However, differences in model formulation, solution methods, and level of detail make it difficult to identify the best approaches for a given project. This paper develops a domain-specific taxonomy to compare and select system models for offshore wind installation planning. The taxonomy is grounded in a systematic literature review of 194 studies and adapts general model comparison criteria to four dimensions: application context, model formulation, solution methods, and model features. The taxonomy is applied to six representative offshore scheduling approaches to illustrate its use. Results show that the taxonomy clarifies model scope, strengths, limitations, and trade-offs, providing a structured basis for model selection and revealing opportunities for methodological refinement. While tailored to offshore wind installations, the approach could be transferable to other domains with heterogeneous system models.