More detailed plant availability by facility can be found in our 2012 Annual Report.
Improving reliability - Across the fleet, plant-by-plant
In 2012, we embarked upon a five-year journey to optimize fleet reliability through the development of our Asset Reliability Program to bring more effective maintenance and operational practices to our fleet.
The program started with the one-year Reliability Improvement Project, which involved reliability assessments by a core team at each of our facilities. There was an opportunity to share knowledge and success between our plants but still have each operation plot their own course to reach our common long-term goals.
The goal: To get the fleet’s maintenance processes all moving in the right direction and establish a rock-solid framework for continuous improvement.
The work: Evaluate the strength of our plant maintenance and reliability processes at each site as compared to recognized industry Best Practices, and identify gaps and create individual plant action plans to be the primary drivers of maintenance process improvements. Based on yearly assessment results, subsequent improvements will be implemented through both plant specific and fleet-wide initiatives.
The planned outcome: With more effective maintenance processes (like thorough job planning and the correct application of component maintenance strategies), freed-up resources can be redirected to avoid future failures. The premise: if you execute the basic maintenance processes better and better, asset reliability will follow. With improved asset reliability comes increased generating unit availability and a distinct competitive advantage.
The result: As of January, 2013, all generating facilities had completed their Reliability Practices Assessments. The assessment phase was transitioned into a living reliability program embedded in day-to-day practices at most plants. The individual plant reliability action plan developed from the assessment is now the base of each plant’s improvement activities. Workshops and sub-committee meetings will continue throughout 2013.
Routine maintenance led to a record-breaking engine swap at Clover Bar Energy Centre
During a planned routine maintenance at our Clover Bar Energy Centre, a cracked turbine blade was discovered on the high-pressure turbine, which required an engine swap to address the blade cracks. This maintenance identified early on what could have led to a much more costly problem.
Clover Bar 2 was back online within five days. It was completed three-and-a-half days sooner than scheduled. The Shutdown Safety Management Plan at the heart of Clover Bar Energy Centre’s revised and more formal safety processes meant this fast work was done with safety top of mind.
“Solid procedures and support from contractors are crucial,” CBEC Plant Manager Michael Taylor notes, “but without the cross-functional team effort we couldn’t have been as successful as we were, on all fronts. These people are incredible resources for our company – they really know their stuff. We’re very fortunate to have them on board.”
The success also shines a bright light on CBEC’s GE LMS100 turbines, an important consideration if the company runs these units in other facilities. “We swapped a lease engine in only four-and-a-half days,” Taylor continued. “Prior to this, the fastest this had been done was six days.”