What are your reliability resolutions for 2012? What are you going to change in your process to ensure a reliable, available and profitable plant? I started this group as a result of my experience during 2009 to present strategies for a successful process plant. In a global economy the United States cannot compete in […]
The biggest challenge plants have for process instrumentation is level measurement. Pressure, temperature and flow all seem to be addressed well but level continues to be a problem. This post is a reprise of previous posts, but given the number of challenges involving level, I think it worth another look. While differential pressure (DP) […]
In his book The Law of Success Napoleon Hill presents a story of Charles Schwab and his success with the United States Steel Company. Charles started out as a laborer and always did more than asked to and did it with a great attitude. It was […]
Reliability in a process plant commonly focuses on rotating equipment rather than fixed equipment. Through vibration monitoring and lube oil analysis a predictive maintenance program is realized. However, there is quite a bit of fixedequipment, like a heat exchanger, […]
One of the strategies I recommend to improve process reliability is the use of product tiers. Manufacturers of instruments have various tiers which should be applied with a specifically defined strategy. I have presented these tiers as premium, core and conventional. Premium tier products should be used in critical applications which are […]
As previously discussed, the speed of radar changes in different media. While this has little impact in vacuum and light gas applications, it creates a tremendous difference in high density vapor and interface applications. Because the height, or distance, to the surface of a product is based on time of flight, a change in […]
Radar level measurement is considered the “best practice” technology within a process plant. However, there are still a number of challenges with it. Foam, agitation and condensing liquids are not the easiest to measure. As a result of improved radar technology, configuration and device settings allow them to be used in these applications. However, […]
For process control and instrumentation reliability, I have often discussed the strategies of product tiering, advanced diagnostics and best practices. Control valves can also benefit from these strategies. Previous posts have presented considerations for maintaining reliability of both the mechanical and instrument portion of a control valve. […]
Process Instrumentation is generally thought of as measurement device that receives a physical input and produces an electronic output. Pressure, temperature, level and flow transmitters fall into this category. However, there is instrumentation that does just the opposite: it receives an electronic input and produces a physical output. A
Control valves and pumps make up the “control element” category of the control loop. A control loop can only be reliable if the instrument, controller and control element are reliable. There is a considerable amount of information available on pump reliability. Most of it involves vibration and lubrication. Control […]
