Week Two of the 7F Users Group’s innovative 2020 Digital Conference begins tomorrow at 1 p.m. Eastern with Danny Parish, plant manager of Green Country Energy, explaining how NAES Corp’s talented staff performed an exciter removal and replacement during peak demand with limited financial impact. CCJ previewed the presentation last week and the editors give it their “two thumbs up” rating. 

Week One of the conference was an unqualified success. Good days all in all. They certainly beat the alternative. Nearly 600 owner/operators registered for the meeting, which has sessions scheduled for the next four weeks (including this week), closing July 16. Registration remains open for users only. 

The content is compelling and easy to access; plus, no travel required, no additional cost to the plant. The Q&A following the presentations is more robust and efficient than at most face-to-face meetings which have “dead” time as microphones are passed around the room and attendees gravitate to email.

Tomorrow’s Auxiliaries Session, chaired by Entergy Corp’s Bryan Graham, has an open discussion period scheduled after the Green Country presentation. Later in the program are the following special technical presentations by vendors that have been vetted by the 7F Steering Committee:

• • Five generator minors turn into three generator majors, Jamie Clark, AGTServices Inc. 

  • Optimize maintenance: From turbine decoupling to generator removal and alignment, Chris Stocker, Enerpac. 

Both offer a potpourri of best practices and lessons learned. Attendees will have access to these speakers after their presentations during a “private” vendor fair for both AGTServices and Enerpac, enabling a deeper dive into specific details of value to their plants.

The Auxiliaries Session continues on Wednesday at 1 p.m. with Graham presiding. Two user presentations highlight the program. The first discusses the experience with an oil change to Mobil SHC 718EE, the second non-chemical algae control for a cooling tower. The schedule is designed to accommodate Q&A and follow-on discussion.

Immediately following, MD&A (Mechanical Dynamics & Analysis) conducts the meeting’s first extended technical vendor presentation, encompassing these four subjects:

• • Mark VI controls, Joe Clappis, senior controls engineer.

  • 7FA parts and fuel-nozzle lifetime, Jose Quinones, director of engineering.

  • 7FA fuel-nozzle end-cover insert life extension example and in-situ flow test, Pat Murphy, director.

  • 7FH2 generator field-winding shorted turn, ground-wall insulation findings, James Joyce, generator operations manager.

All four speakers will be in MD&A’s “booth” at the exclusive virtual vendor fair that follows this session where they will be available to answer your questions.