Maximising asset uptime

Operation and maintenance of plant assets has always accounted for a significant proportion of corporate expenditure, with typically quoted figures ranging from 15-30%. In a climate where spend is necessarily closely scrutinised, an approach to asset management and maintenance that can help to drive down cost, keep assets earning, and optimise efficiency and productivity is of high value.

Given that the ultimate goal is to attain operational excellence and maximum return on investment through successful asset management, the underlying requirements can be summed up as: minimise capital asset investment; maximise productivity; optimise safety to minimise operating risk; and reduce operating cost. Effective and strategically-managed maintenance strategies can contribute hugely to attaining these goals.

Trying to deliver higher-performing plant, longer runs, reduced downtime, and compliance with environmental and legislative demands, all on a maintenance budget that's often shaved as far as possible, is no easy task. Maintenance is a route to reducing cost and increasing productivity, and is a significant element in successful asset management. As such it is a management issue, and needs to be viewed not in immediate cost terms, but from a broader, long-term value perspective.

Effective maintenance is no longer simply acting when a need arises, and monitoring between planned shutdowns. Given that performance of assets at full potential is critical (anything less than optimum productivity or more than minimal downtime can erode margins and profit dramatically) the need to avoid problems by preventing them, wherever possible, before they occur becomes evident. The benefits are clear and widely acknowledged. But achieving this with minimised budgets and personnel can be difficult.

Outsourcing has a role to play here. It may appear to be an additional cost. In fact, it's an investment, as long as the trap of outsourcing to a large number of sub-contractors is avoided. Success and optimum results are attained through long-term maintenance agreements with a single company, or limited number of companies, able to provide a comprehensive range of skills and technologies. By gaining an ongoing knowledge of the plant as a long-term partner to the operator, the contractor becomes able not just to undertake designated requirements, but to make a proactive contribution. As the contracted company takes on the responsibilities within its remit, it can monitor and recommend, as well as undertaking the work as and when required.

<b>Offshore agreement</b>

A case in point is BP's recent multi-million pound federal agreement appointing Furmanite to undertake all maintenance work for leak sealing and associated services on its UK onshore refining and processing facilities for the next five years.

The contract allows BP's onshore operations teams to gain unrestricted access to Furmanite's complete range of services, which are geared to maximising asset uptime. These include on-line leak sealing, pipeline intervention (hot tapping, line plugging, and pipe freezing), on-site machining, controlled bolting, and valve repair and testing. Plus, the Furmanite staff relieve the pressure on in-house maintenance teams by using their skills to extend BP's personnel resource, enabling in-house staff to focus on the broader picture rather than taking time to learn and undertake what are essentially expert skills.

Given that proven expertise levels and quality of workmanship are high, the benefits are great, and this type of partnering between operator and contractor delivers maximum value. Instances where efficiency is improved can all result once this type of longer-term, on-going knowledge of the plant, recognition of needs and understanding of plant policy is established. These have included the spotting of a potential problem, which can then be dealt with before it becomes an urgent, costly issue.

Leaks and emissions are also caught at early stages and sealed before they impact on efficiency or raise safety or environmental issues.

Examples where on-site presence and knowledge of plant has provided benefits are numerous. At BP's Coryton refinery, for example, modification work was required to the pipework on the refinery's large diameter dual flare system. Furmanite was able to recognise and understand the requirements, and developed a bespoke clamp design to overcome a problem created by a malfunctioning valve. This enabled the work to take place, without requiring any plant shutdown.

In another instance at a refinery where Furmanite has an on-going presence, hydrocarbon pipework needed to be cleaned to improve flow. Furmanite engineered a solution enabling this to be done with just a 12-18 hour shutdown as opposed to 5-6 days. Moreover, the solution, which involved line blocking and hot tapping to prevent flow between vessels while the flushing out is undertaken, provides the opportunity for repeated access into the line, so the cleaning regime can now be used again.

<b>On-site benefits</b>

Elsewhere, an on-site presence meant Furmanite technicians were able to identify and assess a leakage problem on a hydrocarbon line at a refinery and measure up at 5pm one evening, have drawings done overnight and a leak-sealing clamp fabricated, and the clamp delivered and fitted within 48 hours. In another example, early spotting and sealing of a leak on a 3-inch valve bonnet feed water line to the boiler house not only meant the leak was sealed, but also led to the poor condition of the flange bolts being identified and changed before any problem arose.

Further, when sheared studs needed to be removed from valves on a turbine, Furmanite technicians came up with a solution using its specialist metal disintegration techniques. This saved time, but also avoided potential damage to the threads in the valve body.

The examples are many, but the message is common: outsourcing maintenance requirements on a long-term basis allows a knowledge to be built up that enables a proactive contribution to be made and the optimum solution provided - in turn delivering a valuable return.

Strategies that allow a proactive maintenance approach rather than 'needs must', will add value to the bottom line. Long-term maintenance agreements can help achieve this — the knowledge and relationship that is allowed to build over the long term reaping rewards. Thus managed, effective maintenance can help to avoid wastage, meet environmental demands, improve safety, avoid disruption and maximise asset uptime.

Tony Nicholls is managing director of Furmanite International.