Best Practices

Plant Rowan, owned by Southern Company and operated by Southern Power, is a 985-MW generating complex in Salisbury, NC, that has a 2 × 1 combined cycle and three simple-cycle units. Plant manager is Chris Lane. Plant personnel identify, eliminate causes of compressor bleed valve failures Plant Rowan’s 7F compressor bleed valve (CBV) design—consisting of a vented-to-atmosphere, air-to-close/spring-to-open […]

Developing the next generation of multi-skill employees Elwood Energy started commercial operation in 1999. In 2012, prior to the plant’s first ownership change and exit from a PPA environment, the leadership team realized it would have to develop its next generation of employees. Few job candidates with suitable experience demonstrated sufficient promise to thrive in

High-energy-piping program simplifies inspection, recordkeeping Like any new facility, all of the programs and procedures needed to operate and maintain Woodbridge Energy Center had to be created from scratch. One, the High Energy Piping Program (HEPP), immediately stood out to the plant team as an area that could benefit greatly through customization and simplification. The

Effingham County Power, owned by The Carlyle Group and operated by Cogentrix Energy Power Management, is a 525-MW plant in Rincon, Ga, equipped with a 2 × 1 combined cycle. General manager is Bob Kulbacki. Reduce imbalance and variance charges with consistent plant operation Effingham County Power was awarded one of the eight Best of the Best

The 7F Users Group and CCJ are working together to expand the sharing of best practices and lessons learned among owner/operators of large frame engines. One of the organization’s objectives is to help its members better operate and maintain their plants, and a proactive best practices program supports this goal. The editors presented a summary

By Jason Makansi, principal, Pearl Street, a Tucson-based consultancy All of us can point to truly memorable events and periods in our careers. A 10-day period that began with a tour and deep dive of Los Angeles Department of Water & Power’s (Ladwp) Beacon storage facility in the Mojave desert and ended with the catastrophic

Overfiring during startup General Electric Speedtronic™ Mark I control systems were installed on gas turbines in the early 1970s, primarily on MS5001N and MS7001B engines. Fig 1 shows a typical Mark I panel being tested using a device known as the Speedtronic Calibrator. Note that the Calibrator has two ribbon connectors patched into designated locations

Air inlet systems—including filter houses, evaporative coolers, cooling-coil support structure, silencers, ductwork, etc—seldom get the respect they deserve. Properly maintained, they help assure maximum output and high availability of your gas turbines. Yet, they are almost an afterthought at many plants, the focus being primarily on rotating equipment. Annual inspection of the air inlet system

A recent webinar, posted here, will assist in ensuring environmental health and safety amidst the Covid-19 pandemic are being handled properly and with the utmost attention to detail. Groome Industrial Service Group has been in the industrial and commercial cleaning business for over 50 years and most known for their expertise in specialty cleaning of

The 7F Users Group and CCJ are working together to expand the sharing of best practices and lessons learned among owner/operators of large frame engines. One of the organization’s objectives is to help its members better operate and maintain their plants, and a proactive best practices program supports this goal. The editors presented a summary