We have partnered with Adler and Allan Ltd to clean a critical asset at one of the UK’s key power stations without the need for a plant shutdown. A first for the site, reducing risks and costs whilst also driving up efficiency for the end user.

Using a bespoke robot, we were able to remove sediment and organic matter from the base of one of the plant’s large process tanks. Usually, this task would have required the tank to be drained and taken offline. This costly operation can cause the operations staff at the plant many hours of work to ensure that suitable risk and contingency planning is in place. On top of that, the tank would also require draining with the resulting water being disposed of.

Traditional methods would require staff to enter the confined space and manually clean out the base of the tank using squeegees and hoses, but the resource requirement associated to normal way of working does not stop there, the tank would then require refilling and testing prior to the associated processes being re-started, this can often require a number of days of stabilisation before the plant is back up to full production.

The whole operation was completed in 3 days from start to finish and this compares to around 10 days using the old model. In addition, the plant was able to operate at full capacity throughout the works ensuring that the grid was kept supplied with electricity.

Gwynn Tiberio, Operations Manager is pleased with the project and is looking forward to many more, “This project has seen three of our key service areas working together, back in August, we carried out an initial Robotic inspection, this allowed us to quantify both the type and volume of sediment within the tank, it also allowed us to plan a safe route around the tank and agree on the equipment that would be required to transport the robot in and out of the asset.”

“We were also able to assess the condition of the tank prior to the works which showed that no remedial works were required. In comparison using traditional methods repair works are often only spotted once the task is drained and the reactive nature of these repair works cause unplanned and expensive changes to the site operations, often extending the duration of the outage and putting other parts of the plant under unnecessary stress.”

Paul Henderson, Business Development Director said, “Over the past few years the minimisation of liquid waste leaving site has been a key driver in Industry, using the data captured at the initial inspection we were also able to agree on the level of onsite waste treatment required, this third aspect of the work allowed the nuisance sediment to be separated from the useful water which was then returned to the system.”

Adler & Allan Ltd offer a range of engineering services to the Power, Oil and Gas sector and therefore the fit between the two companies has been mutually beneficial, Leigh Arthurson, Business Development Manager at A&A hopes this relationship can be extended onto other sites, “This is the first time we have partnered Panton McLeod on such a project, it has been a great learning experience for us and we hope to be able to work together again soon to support our clients.”

“Combining our Industry experience and contacts with Panton McLeod specific skill set we look forward to working together again.”

For more information, contact the team on 01896 663 330 or email info@pantonmcleod.co.uk

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