N.K. Srivastava GM-R&M-Engg.Services NTPC- CC/Noida nksrivastava@ntpceoc.co.in JULY 2012 ARC- Transforming Industry and Infrastructure through New Processes and Technologies
Presentation Road Map Introduction Background Challenges Requirements Migration Strategy Technology solutions End user support Business Benefits Conclusion
Introduction As automation technology progresses at an incredible rate, systems around the world are challenged with the decision to upgrade to newer systems or keep maintaining older equipment. Both approaches can be costly for an operation, and plant managers need to consider multiple factors such as short-term vs. long-term payoff, uptime, cost, process performance and integration capabilities when deciding upon a course of action. Need to analyze the best approach to plant automation and system migration whether it is a complete overhaul of an aging system, a step-by-step modernization, or something in-between considering the benefits and results of technology migration, as well as possible future trends such as cyber security and wireless in this area. A Life cycle management offers flexibility in how the utilities manage their plant assets and predictability in how their choices are financed. This includes the freedom to choose when to modernize, how to fund the transition and how long to maintain current capabilities. In this way utilities can effectively extend equipment life while providing a secure path forward to the latest advanced control technology and functionality.
BACKGROUND: CONTROL SYSTEM : LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES Today electric power industry faces a tough environment, including pressures from cost escalation, concerns about climate change, and the need to increase the use of renewable energy. With global electricity consumption forecast to double over the coming decades, power executives must implement new strategies ensuring the reliability and availability of the bulk power system. Declining industry investments : Growing concerns about the future of an ageing workforce, coupled with inadequate investment in current infrastructure to operate and maintain plant systems. Need to find ways to improve process efficiency and extend asset life. Many facets of the current electrical power infrastructure need replacing, and much of what needs to be replaced is at the control-system layer. Increased operating demands : In a typical power generation facility, operators are working longer hours than ever before. Plus, utilities are forced to run their plants for much longer periods of time between turnarounds. Whereas earlier plants schedule outages every few years, they are now routinely pushed out to five or even seven years. As the objective is to maximize availability, power generation facilities must be more reliable than ever. Ensuring flexible, reliable operation with minimum forced outages, implementing innovative strategies that reduce emissions, and dealing with volatile power markets while achieving the lowest operating costs possibly the new industry norms.
Meeting business objectives Now, more than ever, power plants are challenged with maintaining process and resource performance at an optimum level, and protecting investments in older automation systems while moving to new technology. They also have to ensure that all environmental commitments are met. In some cases, legacy control systems can no longer meet corporate objectives that include enterprise-wide sharing of business information. Nor can they enlist advanced control capabilities that enable greater efficiency, lower costs, and improved regulatory compliance while responding to demands for higher reliability and service quality. Deciding when to modernize For Power plant Management, the critical issue for their automation is deciding when to jettison the old in favour of the new.however, obsolescence does not happen on a specific date but rather is a gradual process that starts when a vendor discontinues support for a product. At some point, when the spare parts become too expensive or too hard to find, obsolescence is inevitable and migration,must occur. Despite financial constraints, it is important that utilities view plant modernization as investment protection. Failure to invest in an existing automation platform through technology refresh or migration can hasten premature obsolescence. Updating equipment also enables plants to realize incremental value by providing infrastructure for new solutions such as ERP, MIS and wire less applications.
The requirements placed on plant automation systems are constantly changing. Early needs were to supervise and control process loops only. This has evolved to functions such as advanced control, integrated fire and safety, physical and cyber security, and interfacing with business systems. Now, users need to optimize their assets, adhere to environmental regulations, and document operational processes. All this puts greater requirements on modern process control systems. Optimizing plant performance- Today s utilities want solutions integrating plant process control and information systems with both plant and corporate business systems. A unified system reduces the problem of data exchange and synchronization and houses information in a central repository shared by all business applications. In addition, an integrated system architecture allows operators to connect to other systems and applications external to the plant in order to get the business-type data and information needed to maximize investments and deliver the most competitive end product the electrical output to the grid. Supporting open technology- Recent years have seen dramatic changes in hardware platforms, operating systems, network structures, and system infrastructures used in power plants. The net result has been a general trend toward open systems. The forces of deregulation and competition are also effecting changes in the organization of electric utilities forcing them to develop automation and information strategies competitive industries have been using for years. The emergence of open technologies in automation is evidenced by the increased acceptance of wireless network protocols.
Improving system security: In the utility industry, the advent of open architectures and standard protocols presents both new opportunities, and risks, for plant enterprises. On the one hand, the evolution from isolated proprietary applications to open technology has expanded business information availability, yet on the other hand, it has exposed the plant enterprise to electronic threats. Without an effective cyber security regimen, the fundamental mission of process control to ensure safe and reliable operations can be compromised by an ordinary cyber threat. Therefore, a comprehensive cyber security policy is an essential element of every process control and safety system implementation.
Migration Strategy Improving performance of Brown field plants through control system migration has become a strategic initiative for power industry. Typical Drivers for migration projects include impact of high downtime of existing control platforms, cost of maintaining obsolete equipment etc. Plant management must select the best migration strategy and technolgy solutions based on various critical factors, including control reliability, data configurability,network architectural support, plant standardization, and Safetyinstrumented systems( SIS) integration.
Migration Strategy ( contd.. ) Different Options for Migration strategy: Phased Migration: Allow system modernization in gradual steps, replacing the Human-Machine interface ( HMI) or particular unit. Once this is completed, the end user can take advantage of solutions improving operations and safety. The rest of the system can be replaced over several years. Complete Replacement : Allows entire system to be replaced all at once during a planned outage and ensure seamless integration of current control assets. System Upgrade : Allows an upgrade of critical system components at the end-user s pace. For example, new controllers to be added at any time and integrated with existing controllers. This approach permits migration of subsystems and function blocks to new controllers whenever the user decides. Choosing the best approach : When a migration project is identified, several critical areas define whether or not th work is successfully completed relative to scope,schedule,budget.the end users must clearly define the upgrade goals and objectives. Then they must decide the migration strategy.
CONTROL SYSTEM : LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES Migration Strategy ( contd.. ) PLANNING : Planning is the key to success of control system migration. As part of good engineering and management practices, following steps should be followed in migration planning: Determine the best time to Migrate. Determine the best Migration Path. Define the project through front end engineering. Use a proven approach with comprehensive checklist. Define intermediate and training plans. To ensure a successful technology migration, end users should plan for the change, Identify a critical time line, conduct regular meetings, engage those affected by the change, Identify the available resources, and plan for contingency resources if needed. The more upfront detailed planning performed, the lower the risks in the execution phase of a project.
CONTROL SYSTEM : LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES Technology Solutions In an increasingly demanding environment, utility operations are seeking an easy, low risk transition path to a modern control system. With an effective migration solution, utilities take advantage of existing automation investments while building a base for latest technologies. Unifying the plant Enterprise : Unifying people with process variables, business requirement, and asset management allows automation end users to transform process control beyond traditional DCS functionality. Competitive demands call for an automation system that focuses on plant personnel and makes most of their knowledge. By upgrading to a Process Knowledge system (PKS) improved operations, increased incident avoidance, better decision making and enhanced work flows can be achieved. It incorporates physical security, emergency shut down and fail safe controls. Process Knowledge system integrates data from different plant systems and facilitates knowledge sharing, allowing skilled work force to make quicker and more informed decisions. It also centralizes control room strategies.
Technology Solutions ( Contd..) Integrating New and Legacy Systems : By integrating new and legacy systems with in PKS architecture, controller data has the same look and feel- regardless of where the data originates. Merging multiple platforms into a single operator improves operator effectiveness and reduces training requirements. Plant personnel have seamless access to points,alarms, operator messages and history between servers, More, over they can access a single virtual data without duplicate configuration. Thanks to integrated control infrastructure, alarms and events are detected automatically and operators have system-wide acknowledgement.
CONTROL SYSTEM : LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES End User Support Apart from cost effective migration to current technology, power utilities need on going support from their control system suppliers in order to cope with changing business climate. Utilities must comply with new Engineering and regulatory standards putting pressure on CAPEX and OPEX, minimize vulnerabilities throughout their operations and improve reliability by mitigating the effects of incidents and abnormal situations. Reducing Security Risks : The transformation from proprietary tom open control platforms, coupled with the connectivity between open systems and enterprise networks, has introduced unprecedented vulnerabilities in the automation architecture used to operate and manage power installations. A successful control system migration strategy should incorporate security solutions at all levels of operation. It is important to keep control systems and networks current with security updates, security procedures, documented best practices, regular assessments, and testing.
CONTROL SYSTEM : LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES End User Support ( Contd..) Extending Asset Life : Control system migration doesn t end with a single modernization project-power plants need a cost effective way of maintaining up to date process automation functionality, extending the life of asset investments, and minimizing risks associated with system upgrades. The control system supplier should offer multiyear support agreements that guarantee parts availability and support until a modernization occurs, according to site operating plans. Such agreements result in predictability by providing locked in pricing on spare parts, support contracts and migration/upgrade kits., Reduced risks and increased reliability via guaranteed maintenance and long term protection from equipment obsolescence. Improving Operator effectiveness : Need to train employees and prepare them for the rigors of plant processes. Automation suppliers have developed dynamic training simulators to support improved performance throughout the life cycle of a plant. Simulator technolgy duplicates the control room environment as much as possible and replicates plant processes to increase operator proficiency and build the confidence of new personnel entering the facility. It can also be used to simulate and test a variety of advanced control strategies, decreasing risk and down time etc.
Business Benefits Technology migration can help power industry operations implement a state of the art control system architecture significantly improving their performance and business results. An approach based on phased migration, or system upgradation delivers modern control technology without having to replace an entire legacy hardware and software system and run the risk of losing valuable intellectual property. A well executed modernization plan improves plant operation by seamlessly integrating new and existing automation systems. By incorporating existing data, events, and operator messages into the control architecture and providing a common operator interface, the legacy system appears as extension of the new system.
Maximizing ROI : CONTROL SYSTEM : LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES Business Benefits ( Contd..) Life cycle Solution right from managing existing parts or infrastructure, to upgrading hardware and software, the right migration solution can maximize an end user s ROI while enabling them to maintain predictable year over-year expenditures: Life cycle Solution right from managing existing parts or infrastructure, to upgrading hardware and software, the right migration solution can maximize an end user s ROI while enabling them to maintain predictable year over-year expenditures: The specific benefits of Life cycle solution of Control system migration include : Increases protection of asset investment. Reduced Modernization risks. Increased plant Reliability. Improved process performance. Improved operator effectiveness. Fewer unscheduled shutdowns. Improved human interface functionality. Increased savings on wiring and I/O. Reduced service and implementation costs..
CONTROL SYSTEM : LIFE CYCLE MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES CONCLUSION: Life time solutions for Control system migration projects, although challenging, have the potential to deliver great value to power plants. The process used to arrive at migration timing and scope has considerable influence on whether that value is actually achieved. The most critical consideration is planning. The upfront detailed planning performed, the lower risks in the execution phase of a project. Life cycle management consisting of a structured, organized approach to system migration enhances the benefits of technology upgrades and preserves the rich intellectual property contained in the legacy systems. Migration also ensures seamless integration of new technology and continuous life cycle support for existing assets. Above all, it puts the end-user in charge of the plant modernization strategy allowing them to determine component investments, and how much longer to maintain current capabilities.