CONNECT Conversations  

Installation and Startup

Doug Plucknette | Contributing Host, RELIABILITY CONNECT

This discussion will center on the importance of fabrication/repairs, installation and startup practices.  It’s difficult to overstate the essential nature of the standards, procedures and practices in this area for the reliability of a given plant.

For example, a large chemical company reported that you’re 7-17 times more likely to introduce defects during startup than normal operation; a large oil refining company reported that incidents are 10 times more likely during startup; the chemical industry reported process safety incidents are 5 times more likely during startup; 56% of forced outages in power stations occur < 1 week after a maintenance shutdown; 92% of rotating machinery is reported to have defects at startup that result in premature failure.  All this suggests that most companies are not doing a good job repairing, installing, starting up and commissioning their processes.

Moreover this data is only reinforced when you review the RCM failure curves, in which some 67% of equipment across an array of industries follow the infant mortality failure curve, that is, most failures and defects occur during the initial period of operation, shortly after startup.

Given the data is overwhelming, companies need to pay much more attention to rigorous standards, procedures, and practices for installation and startup, including repairs and fabrication.  This will necessarily require quality build procedures, standards and procedures for balancing, alignment, lube oil, and of course strict adherence to detailed startup procedures, all this to minimize the risk of defects that shorten the life of the equipment, or cause outright failure at startup.

Creating Installation Standards – What are the expectations between the equipment owner and those tasked with installing the equipment?

Why your maintenance organization must be actively involved in overseeing installation of new assets.

  • Seeing equipment being installed, how it’s assembled greatly reduces the timeline the first time it needs to be disassembled for repair.
  • Are flanged connections true?
  • Are precision alignment techniques being used?
  • Are maintainability issues being considered?
  • Are torque wrenches being used?
  • Are the proper materials being used?
  • Is equipment being properly labeled?
  • Accessibility for operations and LOTO

Trip hazards and head knockers

Ron and Doug will be discussing all of this in this session.

We hope you enjoy this episode!

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About the Author

Doug Plucknette Contributing Host, RELIABILITY CONNECT

Doug Plucknette has been in the Field of Asset Management, Maintenance and Reliability for 38 years. In 1999 he founded Reliability Solutions Inc. As the founder of RCM Blitz™ and author of the book Reliability Centered Maintenance using RCM Blitz™, he has provided reliability training and consulting services to numerous companies around the world, large and small, including such Fortune 500 companies as Cargill, Whirlpool, Honda, Kraft-Heinz, Schlumberger, Corning, Invista, and Newmont Mining.
Doug has made key contributions to standard reliability measures for manufacturing, and reliability training programs worldwide. He has trained numerous client RCM Facilitators and performed RCM analyses on hundreds of pieces of manufacturing equipment.
Prior to his work as a consultant, Doug worked 19 years at Eastman Kodak Company in Rochester, NY in positions as a skilled tradesperson, lead person, Maintenance Supervisor, and Reliability Engineer.
Recognized as an Industry Expert, Doug has published over 50 articles, written two books, has been a featured speaker at dozens of conferences and Key Note Speaker for two Global Reliability Conferences.