A study by a leading industry institute found that just by “having an effective front-end plan one can improve capital costs by 10 percent, reduce schedule by 7 percent and reduce change orders by 5 percent. A good outage readiness review will go a long way toward ensuring this, especially for power generators who have multiple units that will be down either at the same time, or back-to-back.” (citation)

Advanced outage planning allows you to accomplish the work that needs to get done during the planned outage window, and to ensure the equipment is reliable over the next overhaul interval (period of use).

Well-organized outage planning leads to more efficient operations and management of the outage, which ultimately saves money. Also, higher quality advanced planning can potentially lead to a lower number of skilled craftsman required to work on the outage.

But in our experience working with some of the most renown and professional clients in the industry, not everyone properly plans. Here are a few areas you need to focus on before your next outage.

 

1. Establish Pre-outage Milestones

Long before the planned outage, preparation should already be underway. Most major turbine generator outage planning should start 18-24 months from the start of work. To make sure everything is taken care of in a timely fashion, it is important to establish pre-outage milestones that will guide your planning as the outage approaches. Any surprises or problems that may pop up that prevent you from getting these milestones could indicate deeper issues that could be detrimental to the success of the outage project. Her are a few good questions to ask yourself as you begin the outage-planning process. Here are a few questions to helming you guide your pre-outage milestone planning:

* Has a specific starting and cutoff date been established and adhered to?
* Has a budget been decided and approved?
* Have previous outages been reviewed and documented?
* Has a Outage Schedule and Resource Plan been developed?
* Were an outage readiness review and risk assessment scheduled?

2. Review Previous Outage Date

In the pre-outage planning phase it is important to review all prior outage reports, outage work history, inspection results, and history of any major issues. You should carefully note

In the pre-outage planning phase it is important to review all prior outage reports, outage work history, inspection results, and history of any major issues. You should carefully note ff there are any reports of previous irregular findings or trends in the damage on the machine including, bolt cracks, bearing damage or excessive blade path erosion. This could also include abnormalities in instrumentation variables such as vibration, bearing temperature, differential expansion, and more.

If you are aware of these potential problems before starting the inspection, it is possible to pre-order the material necessary in advance. This will prevent you from having to expedite parts and materials that delay the project and save you money on the price of procuring those materials.

Because meticulous records of machines and outages are not always kept or well-organized, we’ve found that interviewing key maintenance and operations personnel on the site can give valuable insight to identify potential concerns that might arise during the outage of a particular piece of equipment. This will eliminate every more surprises and better equip you for proper overhaul planning.

 

3. Create Outage Schedule & Plan Resources

Flying by the seat of your pants can cost you a lot of money in our business – and even more grey hair. For this reason, a careful maintenance timeline should be developed for each service unit and discussed with all parties involved in the scope of work to make sure everyone is on the same page. This schedule should also include potential upgraded services or possible setbacks that have been concluded from your thorough previous outage reviews.

Having this type of detail schedule will also help you make your resource planning much more efficient and cost-effective. Having key part and materials available when you need them is a crucial factor in keeping the outage on schedule and avoided unnecessary outage time. This means it’s important to be aware what parts may be more difficult to get ahold of, and plan according to route parts off-site for repairs, coincide with transportation regulations for your state or municipality, and common shipping practices for your important vendors.

Outages can QUICKLY stretch your resources, and even the smallest piece of equipment can keep work from advancing. So plan ahead and be prepared.

 

Conclusion

The actual project execution will be much smoother where the execution plan is well thought out. The old saying, “plan the work and work the plan” has a paramount place in outage management. A good readiness review will point out early whether this is the case.

Remember that “effective front-end plan one can improve capital costs by 10 percent, reduce schedule by 7 percent and reduce change orders by 5 percent”.

Sources:
PowerMag.com
argoturbo.com
energy-tech.com