Archive for October, 2011

Ampirical Solutions: Integrating 3-D Designs in the T&D Sector

The use of 3-Dimensional (3-D) modeling tools will greatly change the way we work. Design teams will now be able to see replicas of their final projects well before construction, says Matthew Saacks, President, Ampirical Solutions.

From a solution provider company at the upcoming marcus evans Transmission & Distribution Summit 2011, taking place in Wheeling, Illinois, November 2-4, Saacks discusses the benefits that pioneering design tools can yield. 

How can efficiency and quality be improved through innovative design tools?

Matthew Saacks: 3-D modeling tools are now being incorporated into the design process. To model the system components in a 3-D space and assemble the virtual project model. This allows a 360-degree view of all design layers, meaning that the project can now be seen as it progresses. This is much more detailed than a traditional set of 2-D prints.

In addition, the software provides an exact bill of materials needed to construct the facilities. There will no longer be a waste of unnecessary materials. The device can ensure that all of the clearances and design parameters were met.

Rather than having engineers travel to the site, the model can simply be pulled up and precise measurements can be taken. For existing facilities that were not designed using 3-D tools, terrestrial LIDAR scanning of installed infrastructure can  obtain the data points and import them into a 3-D modeling system, saving time and expenses for any future projects at that particular site.

The ability to have 3-D modeling software packages will help the industry stay on their feet by improving efficiency through reduced design lead times.  Moreover, the ability for these design tools to generate the bills of material on jobs leads to higher quality designs in the process.

How can T&D projects be completed in a timely manner and within budgets?

Matthew Saacks: There must be a clearly defined scope and room for adaptability. When not enough planning has been done beforehand, there is a risk of going over time and over budget.

Everyone affected by the project must be fully informed and have a chance to provide feedback before design takes place. This includes all stakeholders on a project, from transmission design to maintenance to possible third-party members like neighboring utilities. The customer service team must understand how customers will be impacted. If all parties invest sufficient effort in scoping, the project should be clearer on all fronts and project risk will be mitigated.

Is quality assurance a major issue in today’s environment?

Matthew Saacks: The majority of the workforce in this sector is close to retirement age. Many universities no longer offer power system programs, and increasing numbers of students are attracted to other sectors.

Finding quality design engineers with the necessary experience to meet reliability standards that utilities need, is proving to be difficult. Quality is more important than ever, because we cannot afford to do rework nor fall behind.

What is your outlook for the future?

Matthew Saacks: Several infrastructure components which were predicted to last 40 years have lasted even longer. As we continue to push the nation’s transmission system without having kept the pace with spending that was necessary, people are realizing that some significant portions of the grid are getting old and must be replaced.

In addition, the renewable energy standards enacted by most states, results in new facilities that have to be designed and built in order to move power from renewable generation sources to load centers.

The next 15 years will be crucial for the transmission and distribution industry. 

Contact: Stacey Melvin, Journalist, marcus evans, Summits Division

Tel: + 357 22 849 400
Email: press@marcusevanscy.com

About the Transmission & Distribution Summit 2011

This unique forum will take place at The Westin Chicago North Shore, Wheeling, Illinois, November 2-4, 2011. Offering much more than any conference, exhibition or trade show, this exclusive meeting will bring together esteemed industry thought leaders and solution providers to a highly focused and interactive networking event. The Summit includes presentations on grid modernization, increasing energy efficiency and protecting critical assets.

For more information please send an email to info@marcusevanscy.com or visit the event website

marcus evans group – environment/utilities/ energy sector portal

Complementing our summit format, the Energy Network – marcus evans Summits group delivers peer-to-peer information on strategic matters, professional trends and breakthrough innovations. 

Please note that the summit is a closed business event and the number of participants strictly limited.

About Ampirical Solutions

Ampirical Solutions, LLC is an electrical transmission and distribution engineering company that provides comprehensive customer support from project conception to design engineering, project management and construction.

www.ampirical.com

About marcus evans Summits

marcus evans Summits are high level business forums for the world’s leading decision-makers to meet, learn and discuss strategies and solutions. Held at exclusive locations around the world, these events provide attendees with a unique opportunity to individually tailor their schedules of keynote presentations, think tanks, seminars and one-on-one business meetings. For more information, please visit www.marcusevans.com 

All rights reserved. The above content may be republished or reproduced – kindly inform us by sending an email to press@marcusevanscy.com

TVA:
Balancing Costs Vs. Absolute Reliability of Power Plant Equipment

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

In power plant management, the idea is to catch failures before they occur, says Aaron Melda, General Manager, Paradise Generating Station, Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). However, if the budget for upgrades and new equipment is limited, power plant managers need to ask themselves: Are we putting our money in the right place at the right time?

The Chairman of the marcus evans Power Plant Management Summit 2011, in Wheeling, Illinois, October 17-19, Melda shares his thoughts on finding the balance between costs and the absolute reliability of plant equipment.

How do you keep the Paradise Generating Station equipment safe and reliable?
 
Aaron Melda: We take a number of steps. First: Apply a robust preventative maintenance program to identify the correct upkeep for all pieces of equipment that we are not planning to run to failure.

Second: Monitor, operators go on daily rounds, checking for trend information that is passed on to the engineering team to determine if any measures must be taken to ensure reliable operation of the plant.

Third: Learn, we have a strong corrective action program for when equipment does fail. We try to find the root cause of the problem and put corrective actions in place to prevent it from occurring again.

Most important: Plan, from a long-term viewpoint, we do long-range planning to identify how often major rebuilds and equipment replacement will be required to plan for the funding of these future needs.

How can companies in this industry stay competitive?

Aaron Melda: Staff should attend technology seminars, training sessions and benchmarking activities, to know the latest and greatest out there for proactive maintenance and operation. They should also look for new types of monitoring equipment and consider how they could be applied in their plant.

The idea is to catch failures before they occur. Many managers consider what needs to be rebuilt based on frequency, whereas we try to find a balance between the cost and the absolutely reliability of our equipment. We aim to identify failures through data and trending, to make sure we are putting our money in the right place at the right time.

What technologies can power plant managers take advantage of today to optimize their plants?

Aaron Melda: Wireless technology to monitor our equipment has been a real benefit to us, as it significantly reduced our costs. Running conduit/wiring between equipment is expensive. 

Ideally, we want to monitor all pieces of equipment, but in the past it would not have been economically feasible to monitor recycle pumps, heater drain pumps and some of the smaller equipment that can fail and cause reliability issues.

Wireless technology allows us to economically justify better and more continuous monitoring to prevent more failures.

Any final comments?

Aaron Melda: There are two critical derailers in this business: placing asset operation above employee safety and not having a long-range plan in place.

Employee safety has to be our first priority, environment the second, asset preservation the third and megawatts fourth. Maintaining this level of priority is absolutely critical.

Power plant managers should have a long-range plan and vision for the business. There is equipment that they look at once every ten years, but without a capital portfolio and budgetary commitments in place for a five to ten year period, it will be very difficult to go on a year-over-year cycle, trying to justify and improve performance.

Contact: Sarin Kouyoumdjian-Gurunlian, Press Manager, marcus evans, Summits Division

Tel: + 357 22 849 313
Email: press@marcusevanscy.com

About the Power Plant Management Summit 2011

This unique forum will take place at the Westin Chicago North Shore, Wheeling, Illinois, 17-19 October 2011. Offering much more than any conference, exhibition or trade show, this exclusive meeting will bring together esteemed industry thought leaders and solution providers to a highly focused and interactive networking event. The Summit includes presentations on optimizing plants, complying with environmental regulations and workforce management.

For more information please send an email to info@marcusevanscy.com or visit the event website

marcus evans group – environment/utilities/ energy sector portal

Complementing our summit format, the Energy Network – marcus evans Summits group delivers peer-to-peer information on strategic matters, professional trends and breakthrough innovations. Lend an ear to fellow experts and live news from our events on our LinkedIn and Twitter accounts!

               

Please note that the summit is a closed business event and the number of participants strictly limited.

About marcus evans Summits

marcus evans Summits are high level business forums for the world’s leading decision-makers to meet, learn and discuss strategies and solutions. Held at exclusive locations around the world, these events provide attendees with a unique opportunity to individually tailor their schedules of keynote presentations, think tanks, seminars and one-on-one business meetings. For more information, please visit www.marcusevans.com 

All rights reserved. The above content may be republished or reproduced – kindly inform us by sending an email to press@marcusevanscy.com