Power Plant Management & Generation Summit Focuses on Improving Plant Performance & Safety

HOUSTON (Oct. 19, 2016) — The Power Plant Management & Generation Summit is a premium forum bringing senior power generation executives, plant managers and solution providers together. Taking place at the Omni Galleria in Houston, Texas, Oct. 23-25, the Summit includes presentations on the challenges and opportunities for fossil-fired generation, power plant performance, application of new technologies, and how to operate efficiently, effectively and safely. The following Q&A provides insight into today's power generation market. David Orme, VP of operations of Ranger Steel Inc., a solution provider at the marcus evans Power Plant Management & Generation Summit Fall 2016, discusses strategies for power plant maintenance.

What are the biggest operational problems in power plants today?

"Aging infrastructure and lack of capital funds to invest due to market constraints. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission needs to either deregulate the entire industry or to re-regulate it. The playing field is uneven, so de-regulated utilities are competing with regulated utilities in the open wholesale market creating price suppression."

What strategies would improve power plant performance and safety?

"It is important to focus on training in the realm of safety. Regulations are becoming more stringent, expectations are higher, and costs related to injuries are soaring, so they must focus on the upfront and ongoing training of all employees, not just new employees. That is key for success."

What do plant maintenance services usually lack? What costs and issues does insufficient maintenance result in?

"Predictive and preventive technologies. I see many facilities in the fire-fighting mode. There should be operation monitoring, oil sampling analysis and vibration analysis routes established. Those three items must be monitored and tracked continuously. "Power plant managers need to know where the problems are before failure. Sharing information with other utilities about boilers and turbines, which we do not see in the competitive environment, would be valuable. Many plants are ageing or going into new markets, so there is less involvement/cooperation in data collecting and sharing across their fleet. "Higher forced outages lead to increased costs and unreliability, which leads to cycle fatigue and further equipment failures."

Can power plant managers better anticipate potential challenges? How?

"Increase ownership and accountability on the front lines at the plant. The people who are operating and maintaining the equipment need to have a larger role in the analysis of the equipment and reporting the condition/status. That has to be factored into the daily, weekly, monthly and quarterly maintenance strategy."

What are the typical scenarios Ranger Steel Inc. addresses?

"We experience a few different scenarios. We provide base maintenance supplementation, supplying manpower resources of an existing plant. Other times, it is reactionary and we do not get the opportunity to work with the plant until they call us after a breakdown when they want equipment repaired or replaced immediately to get their system back in service. "Power plant managers should always try to maintain a good balance between fixed labor costs and variable labor costs at their facilities. Contractors can provide higher productivity rates at lower costs than internal staff, which leads to quicker service return times and lower life cycle costs on equipment."