2013 Best Practices Awards

Deadline for entry:

January 18, 2013

Categories

1. FAST STARTS

Engine/fuel system/controls/emissions uprates/improvements/enhancements to enable fast starting of existing gas turbines in both simple- and combined-cycle service.
Improvements/enhancements to enable other grid ancillary services—such as black start, synchronous condenser, etc.

2. NEW SKILLS/WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT

O&M staffing plan (permanent employees) for the next 10 years in terms of numbers, skills development required, etc, for peaking and combined-cycle facilities.
Training program for single plant or fleet (rotating staff).
Multi-skills training—e.g., operator/mechanic.
Specialized training—e.g. controls, cycle chemistry, etc.
Capturing intelligence.
Training for simple-cycle facilities running more.
Finding time for combined-cycle training at high capacity factors.
Scenario training—e.g., what-if problem solving, how to respond to off-normal and emergency conditions.
Retraining programs.
Qualifying employees for advancement.
Repurposing coal-plant personnel for peaker and combined-cycle duty.

3. NERC CIP V.4 COMPLIANCE

Implementation process.
Self auditing process.
Preparations for NERC auditors
Personnel training.
Document control/reporting.
Physical security—e.g., complying with minimal impact on plant O&M and outages.
Cybersecurity initiatives.
Planning for V.5.

4. PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS

Starting reliability.
Availability.
Emissions reduction.
Thermal performance monitoring program.
Benchmarking.
Data retention and analysis.
Diagnostic and analytic tools.
On-staff or contract service for monitoring.
Program for identifying/correcting deficiencies; trigger points for action.
Staff awareness/training.
Condition-based maintenance program.
M&D center.

5. PLANT SAFETY PROCEDURES

Goal is to identify successful procedures for assuring compliance with critical safety standards developed by such industry organizations and professional societies as:

NFPA (56, 70E, 85, 850, etc).
ASME Boiler & Pressure Vessel Code.
IEEE.

6. OUTAGE MANAGEMENT

Planning process.
Outage safety programs.
Pitfalls to avoid from previous outages.
Personnel responsibilities—plant staff, fleet specialists, contractors.
Improving upon past performance—e.g., reducing outage cost, shortening the schedule.
Planned-outage strategy—e.g., shut down or run 1 x 1 while working on one GT and HRSG.
Forced-outage strategy.
Pre-outage inspection program to fine-tune outage scope.
Review process for OEM alerts.

7. O&M—GENERATORS, TRANSFORMERS, HIGH-VOLTAGE ELECTRICAL GEAR

Best practices for:

Inspection.
Maintenance.
Repair.
Upgrade.
Safety.

8. O&M—MECHANICAL: MAJOR EQUIPMENT, BALANCE-OF-PLANT

BOP includes condensers, cooling towers, high-energy piping systems, major valves and pumps, water treatment, fuel handling and treatment, plant auxiliaries, etc.

Inspection.
Maintenance.
Repair.
Upgrade.

9. NATURAL DISASTER PREPAREDNESS/RECOVERY

In the wake of Hurricane Sandy and the continuing struggles and challenges that face the East Coast during the recovery period, this category aims to spread best practices and lessons learned from this storm, as well as experience from past hurricanes, while they are still “fresh” in the mind.

Pre-storm procedures
Evaluation of flooded equipment
Repair onsite/offsite
Recommissioning

Eligible plants

Gas-turbine-based powerplants (combined cycle, cogeneration, peaking) in North and South America

your entry to the 2013 Best Practices Awards online

Judging/recognition

Judging/recognition: All entries will receive industry recognition by way of a profile in a special editorial section on Best Practices published in the Q1/2013 issue of the COMBINED CYCLE Journal. A panel of judges with asset management experience will select for formal recognition at an industry event next spring, the Best Practices they believe offer the greatest benefit to the industry given today’s demanding goals of improving performance, reliability/availability, and safety, and reducing costs, while satisfying the requirements of ever more challenging regulations promulgated by EPA, NERC, OSHA, regional grids, etc.

Rules

1. Entries accepted only from employees of powerplant owners and third-party firms with direct responsibility for managing the operation and maintenance of gas-turbine-based electric generating facilities in the Western Hemisphere.

2. Maximum of four entries from the same powerplant.

3. Entries must be received by midnight January 18, 2013 via regular mail/courier, fax, e-mail or online submission.

Entry Guidelines

1. Award category (select one):

Fast starts.
New skills/workforce development.
NERC CIP V.4 compliance.
Performance improvements.
Plant safety procedures.
Outage management.
O&M: Generators, transformers, HV electrical.
O&M, mechanical: Major equipment, BOP.
Natural disaster preparedness/recovery

2. Title of Best Practice.

3. Challenge: Description of business or technical challenge motivating the development of a Best Practice.

4. Solution: Description of the Best Practice.

5. Results: Document the benefits gained by implementing the Best Practice. For example, percent improvement in starting reliability or plant availability, dollar or percent saving in annual operating cost or reduction in annual maintenance cost, improvement in man-hours worked without a lost-time accident, etc.

Please limit your response for Section 5 to the equivalent of three pages of single-spaced 12-pt. type. Add photos, drawings, tables, etc., to support your entry.

6. Name of plant.

7. Plant owner.

8. Plant manager.

9. Plant personnel, (and their titles and company affiliation) to be recognized for developing and implementing the Best Practice.

10. Add photos, drawings to support entry.

11. Contact for more information (name, title, company, phone, fax, e-mail).