A power supply company was looking to reduce losses from damaged seals and improve repair procedures. John Crane reviewed the plant’s seal installments, as well as in-house repair and stocking regimes. Their recommendations helped improve repair turnaround.
A German-based, power-generation company was looking for a way to mitigate losses from damaged seals on high-performance boilers and volume pumps. Chemical reactions not communicated in the original specification had compromised feedwater seals and flue gas desulphurization (FGD) feed seals failed due to metal erosion and lack of seal component flexibility.
This undiagnosed root cause and inconsistent repair procedures resulted in unplanned pump outages. Stocking problems and tracking difficulties created confusion and frustration among operators as well as procurement.
Critical supplier The power company’s lignite plant is a critical supplier of electricity in Germany and required a reliable way to manage and repair seals to improve seal mean time between repair (MTBR) and wanted a 24/7 stocking program that would integrate with their existing enterprise resource planning (ERP) system.
With a focus on seals in hot water/condensate circuits, cool water loops, waste water and FGD equipment, John Crane engineers reviewed the plant’s existing seal installments, as well as in-house repair and stocking procedures.
Recommendations John Crane’s recommendations included introducing new, more resilient components, a comprehensive stock rationalization program to bring order to existing repair and stocking systems, as well as training and maintenance support focused on pump operating parameters that enable enhanced pump reliability. Reliability support programs ensure high pump reliability and reduced maintenance costs for rotating equipment.
John Crane’s stock standardization program was linked to the plant’s ERP system, streamlining seal repair, stocking and tracking, delivering the right seal or component to the right equipment, increasing pump reliability and reducing costs. By introducing new, more resilient components, improved seal maintenance, repair and stocking initiatives, MTBR increased from 20 months to more than 40 months.
