The Importance of Operator Driven Reliability (ODR) in

Process Manufacturing Facilities

By: Brent Davis, RCM Reliability Specialist, Pinnacle Advanced Reliability
Technologies

Plant operators play a critical role

within process manufacturing facilities. These team members oversee
the equipment, assets and personnel necessary to run a successful
chemical, petrochemical or refining facility. Operators maintain and
record readings and measurements of process control instrumentation
and equipment to ensure an optimal level of performance and
production, while also scheduling and coordinating maintenance efforts
as necessary. Ultimately, an operators goal is to improve the plants
product quality, efficiency and safety, while complying with applicable
regulatory requirements.

Recognizing the impact of proper operator driven reliability (ODR) on the

overall operation of a facility cannot be understated. Experienced and/or
properly trained operators are able to assess and manage the reliability
aspects of assets and systems. On the other hand, inexperienced and
improperly trained operators typically struggle to manage plant
performance. Degradation of asset reliability, due to gaps in leadership
support, technology utilization and employee competency, typically
leads to significant, undesirable economic, safety and environmental
consequences.

Operators: Undervalued and Undertrained

In some facilities, the potential impact that the operations department
has on the health of plant equipment is minimized, due to a lack of
understanding of the value of operators duties. For instance, in some
cases, operators are simply appointed as valve turners or meter
readers. Facilities that do not enforce stringent training programs
requiring operators to thoroughly understand aspects of the equipment
to which they are assigned, the chemistry behind what they are doing
and how external forces can impact the facilitys processes, are far more
likely to fail at optimizing and maximizing efficiency. As a result, overall
performance of the plant will be negatively impacted. At these facilities,
the operators are not encouraged or required to understand the complex
processes that they are assigned in order to maintain and control the
equipment or assets. This practice results in process inefficiency,
downtime and a higher risk for safety issues.

Operations departments must ensure that their personnel are trained to

quickly troubleshoot and correct problems before they get out of hand.
For example, if an issue requires the operator to call out someone else
to initiate corrective tasks, the chances of a quick resolution are slim if
the operator is not trained or otherwise guided to be able to quickly
identify these situations, and take effective and timely action.

Operators Provide the First Line of Defense

Operators are the eyes and the ears of a process plant. Therefore,
operators are optimally positioned to resolve issues before they escalate
and become catastrophic. As part of operator driven reliability, operators
should be able to detect equipment and process abnormalities, as
operators not only control the process, but also provide the primary
surveillance on equipment operability. For example, when performing
Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) studies, operations personnel
are usually assigned the bulk of risk mitigation tasks, due to the fact that
they observe the equipment on a daily basis and, will most likely be the
first to recognize an early problem before a catastrophic failure occurs.
Well-trained operations personnel have the ability to operate safer,
better and faster, and are therefore of significant value to the facility.

In addition to process training, it is also vital that facilities provide

mechanical and fundamental instrument & electrical (I&E) training
relevant to the operators assigned area. This training enables operators
to fully understand the inner workings of their equipment. With this
knowledge, they will better recognize changes in sound, temperature,
vibration, output and other variables, which can facilitate the early
detection of degradation and pending failure, and initiate proactive
intervention. Operators can also better control or eliminate external,
often random failure causes (e.g. oil condition, operating envelopes,
etc.) which can significantly increase overall equipment availability and
economic life.

Early detection via focused operator surveillance (e.g. excessive

vibration, overheating, etc.), can help minimize repair costs and allow
intervention to reduce or avoid such production losses. For example,
after initiating weekly handheld vibration readings by operators in one
facility, an operator found a reading out of range, which triggered the
immediate response of contacting the rotating equipment team. After
further assessing the equipment condition, the rotating equipment team
determined that the pump should be switched out with the standby
pump as soon as possible. By switching out the equipment, the facility
was able to avoid an estimated $750,000 loss, including seven days of
downtime to perform a repair.

Additionally, console operators possess the ability to optimize processes

while monitoring multiple variables on the Process Control System (e.g.
DCS, PLC, SCADA). The console operator is expected to maximize
efficiency and output, often working with the outside operators to
achieve these goals (i.e. comparing operating points with outside local
indicators to verify accuracy, comparing lab sample results to real time
GC analyzer sample measurements and making outside equipment
adjustments, etc.).

The console operator has the ability to trend data that will help identify
any degradation of equipment performance. Signs of degradation can be
identified through control valve positions, feed flow rates, product flow
output rates, temperatures, pressures and verifying product composition
to meet required specifications through field analyzers, to name a few
signs.

The Importance of Operator Driven Reliability

Properly trained operations personnel provide the first step in efficiently

optimizing performance of a process facility. Properly focused and
structured operator rounds serve as the basis for operator driven
reliability practices, providing significant benefits, including:

Avoidance of downtime and catastrophic failures through early

detection;
Minimization and/or removal of external, often random failure
causes;
Assurance that all operators perform at a consistent level; and
Improved process reliability and increased plant availability.
The impact of most equipment failures can be minimized when operators
know their equipment and understand what normal and abnormal
looks like. This holistic approach can help minimize repair costs, reduce
down time, mitigate or eliminate safety hazards, and even extend
equipment life. Operator surveillance should be developed via a defined
reliability process, such as RCM, which will assure each activity directly
adds value, and is justified.

Click here to learn more about PinnacleARTs Operator Rounds service.

About the Author

Brent Davis

Brent Davis serves as RCM Reliability Specialist

for Pinnacle Advanced Reliability Technologies (PinnacleART). In this role,
Brent ensures clients receive cost-effective solutions that improve
facility performance. With more than 30 years of experience in the oil
and gas industry, Brent has held operations, instrumentation,
management, technical, and consulting positions. His experience in the
industry includes on and offshore production, refining and petrochemical.
Brent specializes in reliability enhancement tools and resources that
provide the highest return-on-investment.

Before joining PinnacleART, Brent was an instrument technician with

Lone Star Gas; an instrumentation maintenance contractor for the
refining, chemical and petrochemical industry; and an instrument
technician and a production coordinator at ARCO Chemical. As
production coordinator, Brent oversaw the day to day operations,
production, maintenance and strategic planning of turnarounds. Brents
prior experience has equipped him to become a lead analyst on
PinnacleARTs Reliability-Centered Maintenance (RCM) projects for major
clients in the U.S. and abroad.