POWER September 2015 - 62

OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE
The utility uses the historian for electronic discharge
monitoring reporting, load forecasting,
heat rate analysis, and to build custom display
screens. The historian's display screen tool is
used for real-time visualization of operations,
including interactive coal-handling operator
screens. The historian solution is also integrated
with Avantis PRiSM, enabling advanced
pattern recognition and machine learning to
identify when equipment is not operating as
expected during all ambient, loading, and process
conditions.
In this application, the predictive analytics
software is currently used to monitor more
than 200 assets-including coal-fired units,
combined cycle units, biomass cogeneration,
and wind turbines-at a centralized monitoring
center. Assets like boiler feed pumps,
turbines, combustion fans, condensers, and
feedwater heaters, among many other pieces
of equipment, are monitored for mechanical
and performance degradation.
In one early warning notification, the predictive
analytics software first alerted personnel
of abnormal conditions in the Overall
Model Residual (an indicator of overall system
health) and alerted again on individual
vibration sensors. The plant staff was notified,
and vibration technicians inspected the issue.
Analysis of field data indicated fan support issues,
with similar fans experiencing the same
issue to a lesser degree. The utility was able to
continue running the equipment with increased
supervision and scheduled an inspection with
the fan manufacturer during the next planned
outage. The support system was corrected on
all fans during the planned outage.
With the early warning notification, this
utility was able to resolve the issue before
it substantially damaged other asset components
and avoided a forced outage while also
improving equipment performance. Other
considerable catches at this utility include a
water cooler lubrication system failure, a partially
plugged control valve, a critical component
sensor failure on a pulverizer, and a
wind turbine main bearing failure.
With deployment of the historian and predictive
analytics software, this utility has:
■ Developed a robust data archive and retrieval
architecture for reliable access to
real-time and historical data.
■ Created interactive display screens for improved
visibility into operations.
■ Developed accurate and standardized reports,
reducing the time to produce them.
■ Identified early indications of asset failure
while improving reliability and safety.
These results are not uncommon. By leveraging
predictive analytics and fault diagnostic
technology, Avantis PRiSM customers
have reported a 25% reduction in equipment
downtime, 25% reduction in operations and
maintenance costs, and payback on their investment
in three to six months.
Ongoing Operational Benefits
Using predictive analytics software, personnel
understand the actual and expected
performance for an asset's current ambient,
loading, and operating conditions. They
know where inefficiencies are and their impact
on financial performance and can use
this information to understand the effects of
performance deficiencies on current and future
operations. This information also helps
generators assess the risk and potential consequences
associated with each monitored
asset and can be used to better prioritize capital
and operational expenditures. ■
-Justin Thomas (justin.thomas@
schneider-electric.com) is a business
development manager for Wonderware
eDNA and Avantis PRiSM at Schneider
Electric.
The 2014 UDI Who's Who Directory covers more
than 4,500 U.S. and Canadian generating plants.
The directory provides:
* Nearly 8,100 plant management and support
contact names, titles, and primary job functions.
* Basic plant operating statistics for more than 1,500
power stations, including:
Generation (MWh)
Availability (%)
Heat rate
Capacity Factor (%)
* Power plant design characteristics
Choose which purchase option that best suits your needs:
* Hardcopy Book
* Enhanced Directory PDF (CD-ROM)
* Mailing List (CD-ROM), Enhanced Directory
PDF & Hardcopy Book
UDI Who's Who at
Electric Power Plants
For more detailed information and a list of all available data,
visit us online at UDIDATA.COM or contact the UDI Editorial
team at UDI@Platts.com.
62
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POWER September 2015

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