PS-1 Report

1 | Harnessi ng Creati vi ty and I mpl anti ng I nnovati on i n a Power Pl ant
A REPORT
ON
HARNESSING CREATIVITY AND
IMPLANTING INNOVATION IN A POWER
PLANT

BY

D SATYA SAI HARSHA 2011B3A3430H

AT

VADINAR POWER COMPANY LIMITED (ESSAR POWER),
JAMNAGAR,

A PRACTICE SCHOOL STATION OF

BIRLA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY AND SCIENCE,
PILANI

(JULY, 2013)

A REPORT
ON
IMPLANTING INNOVATION IN A POWER
PLANT

BY

D SATYA SAI HARSHA 2011B3A3430H

PREPARED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE
PRACTICE SCHOOL-1 COURSE NO.
BITS C221/BITSC231/BITS C241/BITS GC221/BITS GC231

AT

VADINAR POWER COMPANY LIMITED (ESSAR POWER),
JAMNAGAR,

A PRACTICE SCHOOL STATION OF

PILANI

(JULY, 2013)


PILANI (RAJASTHAN),
PRACTICE SCHOOL DIVISION

STATION: VADINAR POWER COMPANY LIMITED (ESSAR POWER)
CENTER: Jamnagar
DURATION : From: 22
ND
May 2013 To: 13
TH
July 2013
TITLE OF THE PROJECT : Harnessing Creativity and Implanting Innovation in a
Power Plant.
ID No. Name of the Student Discipline
2011B3A3430H D SATYA SAI HARSHA M.Sc (Hons.) Economics
B.E (Hons.) EEE
NAME OF EXPERT: Mr. Snehal Pandya DESIGNATION: Joint General Manager
NAME OF PS FACULTY: Dr. Trilok Mathur
KEYWORDS: Innovation, Creativity, Boilers.
PROJECT AREA(S): Mechanical, Human Resource
ABSTRACT:
This report aims at giving basic understanding of how the processes of
innovation and creativity are an integral necessity of an organization. It also
explains how various structural variables and factors affect the aforementioned
processes.
Further, a detailed study on all innovations, changes and modifications that
took place at Phase-II (325 MW Plant) of Vadinar Power Company Limited (A
Captive Power Plant of Essar Oil, Jamnagar) is done.

Signature of the Student: Signature of PS Faculty:
Date: Date:


ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This report is a collective effort of many individuals and my gratitude to all of them
cannot be conveyed in a few sentences.
Firstly, I would like to thank Mr K.B. Makadia for his crucial role in development of
Practice School-1 program and also for presenting us an opportunity to work on a project at
Vadinar Power Company Limited.
I am hugely indebted to Mr Snehal Pandya, my mentor, and Mr. Sandeep Patel for
guiding me through this wonderful project and clearing my apprehensions and conceptual
roadblocks on the way to successfully completing this project.
I take this opportunity to thank Mr Indranil Ghosh and his team, for providing us with
professional training on the basic features and components of a Power Plant.
I also thank the Practice School Division for presenting us with such an opportunity to
gain professional work exposure. Special Thanks to Mr Trilok Mathur for being a constant
guide throughout this program.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
TITLE PAGE ....................................................................................................................................................... 1
COVER PAGE .................................................................................................................................................... 2
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................................................ 3
ACKNOWLEDGMENT ........................................................................................................................................ 4
TABLE OF CONTENTS ........................................................................................................................................ 5
HARNESSING CREATIVITY AND IMPLANTING INNOVATION ............................................................................. 6
CREATIVITY ......................................................................................................................................... 7
SUPPORTIVE AND OBSTRUCTIVE FEATURES FOR HARNESSING CREATIVITY ............................ 9
INNOVATION .................................................................................................................................... 10
INNNOVATION WITHIN THE ORGANIZATION ....................................................................... 10
INNOVATIONS AND MODIFICATIONS DONE AT VADINAR POWER COMPANY LIMITED ................................. 11
AN OVERVIEW OF VADINAR POWER COMPANY LIMITED ................................................................... 12
CASE ANALYSIS OF VARIOUS INNOVATIONS AND MODIFICATIONS AT VPCL ....................................... 14
CASE NUMBER 1.................................................................................................................. 16
CASE NUMBER 2.................................................................................................................. 16
CASE NUMBER 3.................................................................................................................. 16
CASE NUMBER 4.................................................................................................................. 16
CASE NUMBER 5.................................................................................................................. 16
CASE NUMBER 6.................................................................................................................. 16
CASE NUMBER 7.................................................................................................................. 16
CASE NUMBER 8.................................................................................................................. 16
CASE NUMBER 9.................................................................................................................. 16
CASE NUMBER 10 ................................................................................................................ 16
CASE NUMBER 11 ................................................................................................................ 16
CASE NUMBER 12 ................................................................................................................ 16
CASE NUMBER 13 ................................................................................................................ 16
CASE NUMBER 14 ................................................................................................................ 16
CASE NUMBER 15 ................................................................................................................ 16
CASE NUMBER 16 ................................................................................................................ 16
CASE NUMBER 17 ................................................................................................................ 16
CASE NUMBER 18 ................................................................................................................ 16
CASE NUMBER 19 ................................................................................................................ 16

TABLE OF CONTENTS
CASE NUMBER 20 ................................................................................................................ 16
REFERENCES ................................................................................................................................................... 16
GLOSSARY ...................................................................................................................................................... 16


IMPLANTING INNOVATION

Creativity and innovation are critical for an organisations success in maintaining its
competitive advantage and in surviving and this view of creativity is supported by a wealth
of research narrative and a huge market supply of creativity consultants, gurus and advisors.
But sometimes, the real challenge for any organisation may not be finding a way of getting
people to come up with ideas, but finding the best, most practical ways of implementing
those ideas.

Firstly though, it should be noted that although the collective term creativity and
innovation is routinely used, and the individual words creativity and innovation are often
used synonymously, the two words actually refer to two distinct activities in the organisation.

Creativity is about the generation and sharing of ideas and innovation is the
process whereby creative ideas are implemented. People who are creative and people who are
innovative may have very different perspectives.

For example, it may be that an innovative person does not have the good customer
intelligence to identify a new market potential, but does have sound, pragmatic expertise in
relevant applications that could be exploited to introduce incremental improvements to
products/services or to turn an idea into a new product/service.

There are a great many opportunities for organisations to find innovative solutions to
their ideas, such as joint working with other organisations that have appropriate technology
and capability.


Creativity

Numerous commentators have argued that enhancing the creative performance of an
organisations employees is essential to it achieving competitive advantage. When employees
perform creatively they suggest novel and useful products, ideas or procedures that provide
an organisation with important material for subsequent development and possible
implementation.

The Work Foundation sees significant benefits to be gained, both directly and
indirectly, by encouraging creativity in any organisation. New ideas, for example, can benefit
the organisation directly by leading to process improvements or into business areas that are
more profitable or cost effective.

An organisation may benefit indirectly from viewing feedback from the frontline as a
valuable source of ideas about what is happening, and what may be changing, in the
marketplace. Specific success indicators of initiatives, such as the number of staff suggestions
that have been put forward and implemented, may be used to evaluate that particular scheme
in the organisation.

However, a lack of suggestions could actually be linked to many factors, such as the
companys history of consultation, its acceptance of upward feedback or the level of trust
amongst staff. Wider indicators, such as employee perceptions of communication and culture,
are, therefore, important in any assessment of whether initiatives may succeed or fail.

Some of the environmental features of organisations that support or obstruct creativity
in the organisation will be explored further


Supportive and obstructive features for harnessing creativity

Creativity literature has revealed that there are several key indicators that can be
audited to establish how an organisation can improve its potential both for creative activity
and for the sharing of ideas. These are explored, in brief, in this section, and include:
Leadership and Strategic fit
Motivation and Reward
Organisational Design
Knowledge and Information Management
Capability

LEADERSHIP AND STRATEGIC FIT
One of the key features of an organisation successfully harnessing creativity is a clear
leadership strategy. Clear communication of the organisations mission and business goals is
essential if employees are to have an understanding of their role and engender ideas that fit
or to explore customer generated ideas further with them.

Where the direction is not clear, organisations may receive a high proportion of
inappropriate ideas. An effective communication strategy here involves ensuring
understanding of organisational goals, building general business knowledge, celebrating
creativity and recognising successes.

Supportive leadership behaviour involves senior managers showing demonstrable
commitment to ideas, while supportive managers promote and reward innovation, and
empower their teams.


MOTIVATION AND REWARD
In addition to a vision, leaders must offer staff an environment that is conducive to
building their commitment to working towards the organisations long term goals.

This includes giving staff time and space to be creative. Such an environment relies
on organisational commitment to positive industrial relations and on smart incentive and
appraisal systems that accurately reflect the desired behaviour.

The design of reward systems must, therefore, be carefully considered so as not to
encourage behaviour damaging to a creative environment.

An organisation needs to reward front line staff to demonstrate that it values their
particular relationship with the customer and their understanding of how products and
services are experienced. These staff should, therefore, have an incentive to be on the alert
for changes in buying behaviour or for customer concerns.

Reward systems that focus, for example, on achieving bottom line benefits, or are
individually focused, can thwart creativity and limit idea-generating discussions between
staff. Rewards only motivate behaviour if the rewards are valued, if they are closely linked to
successful performance and if employees believe that they are able to perform successfully.

Different types of professional groups value, and are motivated by, different rewards
or recognition. For example, some knowledge workers may value increased status or
recognition more than financial gain, while younger workers may want work style or
lifestyle benefits rather than increased remuneration.

If there is no incentive to devise and discuss new ideas, such activity will be perceived
as time wasted and inevitably, all staff time will be devoted to achieving those performance
targets that are rewarded or recognised.


ORGANIZATIONAL DESIGN
There is no specific organisational structure identified as being creative, and this is
unlikely to happen as organisational structures work best when they support the
organisations business strategy. That said, an inappropriate organisational structure could act
as a barrier to creativity, especially if it is bureaucratic and inflexible.

Structural change, include outsourcing, corporate restructuring, and making the firm
lean and mean, can also have a negative impact on the creativity process. Employee
experience of poorly communicated and managed change can result in fear and uncertainty.

The design of individual roles within the organisations overall structure should
provide challenge, stimulation, a level of freedom, an opportunity to exercise discretion, to
take initiative on a day-to-day basis, and to define elements of the role independently.

Complex roles and lateral career paths both feature in creative organisations. Team
building and team review activities should be in place to enable effective working and
communication within teams. Communication flow between teams can be encouraged
through various mechanisms such as cross functional team working, where virtual teams can
meet together.

Additionally, physical space can be designed to encourage group debate, though, for
example, the creation of a place where individuals can elaborate on and test new ideas with
peers before taking action. This can include open plan offices or relaxed areas away from the
main office where small groups can discuss ideas together.


KNOWLEDGE AND INFORMATION MANAGEMENT
Information systems should be in place that allows employees to store and share
information and knowledge. This way, an individual may find creative solutions to a problem
by looking at what is happening elsewhere in the organisation. They can also build on the
current intellectual capital and add to it by offering different perspectives.

Additionally, information systems should allow the company to be look beyond the
boundaries of the organisation, accessing and storing market intelligence and by establishing
a formal future watching process. Potential opportunities or problems needing suitable
solutions can then be identifiable.

An important barrier to creativity is idea ownership. One problem with idea
ownership is that staff can be less inclined to be creative if they are suspicious that their ideas
will be stolen by the company and they will receive no credit or reward, whilst conversely,
the employer is concerned that the employee will leave with their ideas

CAPABILITY
Its vital that organisations do all they can to have the right people in the right places.
This means starting with the right recruitment strategy, and hiring people with the potential
for creativity. It is a misconception to believe that training can make people more creative,
the organisation is better to recruit the right people with the right capability.

Often people enter the workplace untrained to think laterally or search for alternative
approaches to issues, and need to be encouraged to develop these skills. Support and
encouragement may be provided through, for example, personal development plans,
coaching, mentoring, learning groups, peer coaching or through the creation of other
opportunities for sharing of learning. Opportunities for networking and sharing knowledge
and ideas both internally and, as appropriate, externally, should be maximised by, for
example, building communities of practice.


Innovation

Many managers state that generating ideas isnt the problem, what actually poses the
main dilemma is translating those ideas into relevant business solutions, i.e. implanting
innovation in their organisation.

Prioritisation of investment for innovation requires central coordination and a good
understanding of the whole business direction. Where the innovation involves market
products, the pressure for innovation to be fast, good quality and low risk means that
organisations need to be careful when selecting which ideas they are going to pursue, as they
may need to invest significantly in development and testing.

To manage risk and uncertainty, some leaders have had to look to alternative
strategies, including pursuing licensing, joint ventures, strategic alliances or outsourcing, in
order to gain the innovations that they require and, as this business-to-business interaction is
growing, the speed, cost and quality of innovation in the external market are often better than
can be guaranteed in-house.

The open market can offer a lower risk strategy and a faster pace of innovation than
an in-house process. This is especially so for those organisations which are not currently very
innovative, where the option of buying innovative solutions when needed (rather than
investing in high risk in-house projects) is attractive. Of course, this demand for innovation
from the open market means that those organisations that pursue innovation as a core
competency or market product can make big financial gains from the solutions market. For
example, IBM and Disney make billions of dollars from selling innovation to other
companies.

It appears, therefore, that business success is not necessarily determined by how
innovation wealthy an organisation is. Instead, what is important is the organisations
ability to identify what innovation is needed and where it is able to purchase this
innovation in the most cost-effective way.


I nnovation within the Organisation (I n-house)
It is found that most of the factors pertinent to employee-led creativity also apply to
in-house innovation. However, a few alternative or additional processes should be considered
to support innovation in the organisation.

ADDITIONAL SUPPORTIVE AND OBSTRUCTIVE FEATURES
Constant liaison between the design (creative) and development (innovative)
functions and the front line is important, especially to ensure staff buy in to the
development process. Therefore good knowledge and information processes are needed to
support the link between the creative and innovative sections of the organisation.

Where there is a lack of shared knowledge, or where information processes actually
prevent information from being shared, an organisations innovation potential can be
restricted -resulting in limited or poor quality, innovation outputs that are not suitable for
certain needs.

Responsibility for decision-making and accountability for innovation need to be
placed high in the organisation, and senior managers must be prepared to provide resources
and ratify appropriate structures, whilst employee capability within the organisation must be
flexible and arranged to be adaptable to react quickly to new market conditions and customer
needs.

Decision-making criteria for selecting the innovation projects to be pursued should be
market-driven, and directed at the present rather than the future. These should also start
small, specific, simple and focused, while at the same time building on existing
organisational strengths. Identifying the necessary employee skills required, scoping likely
timescales, and costing an innovation project to be produced in-house are all processes that
are plagued with difficulty.


WORK PROCESSES
Project structures, rather than functional ones, are more likely to foster innovation.
Whilst innovation in some places may be organised as a separate process in the organisation,
or conducted by a specific department, there needs to be a joined-up approach across the
whole organisation. Integration between different disciplines is therefore vital, with a
strongly team-focused approach.

Innovation activities also need to be fully integrated into policies and practices. At the
same time, flexibility needs to be applied in rules and guidelines. Once an innovation project
is at the stage of further exploration and investment, systematic analysis and review should be
planned repeatedly into the project process.

A number of hard strategies need to be in place to provide structure and rigorous
thinking. Repeated evaluation means time and money can be spent efficiently. End user needs
are most likely to be met where processes are in place to gather, and listen to, customer
inputs. The processes in place need to be sensitive to, and flexible around, the speed of
change in the market.

BENEFITS AND WEAKNESSES OF INNOVATION WITHIN THE ORGANISATION
In-house innovation means that those who have ideas in the organisation can have
input into the development of their ideas. Where activities are in-house, there is less need for
broader strategic involvement and coordination. Innovation can occur at a local level.
Research suggests that where rigorous and staged processes are introduced, hard benefits
result.

However, one of the main stumbling blocks for organisations building an in-house
innovation capability is that there are commonly too few processes to support staff and
resourcing. Building the right culture can also be very difficult. Speed can also be an issue:
market changes can render knowledge and understanding of whats needed and how to do it
obsolete as fast as such knowledge and understanding can be mastered.


INNOVATIONS AND MODIFICATIONS
DONE AT
VADINAR POWER COMPANY LIMITED
An Overview of Vadinar Power Company Limited:

Vadinar Power Company Ltd is a captive power plant of Essar Oil Ltd at Jamnagar,
Gujarat. Recently VPCL has commissioned its coal based thermal power plant with
pulverized coal fired boilers and extraction cum condensing turbines. VPCL is also unique
because its the only power plant in the entire world to use all three types of firing in the
same power plant.
Collaborations with renowned foreign companies like Siemens Bruno, Yokogawa,
Mitsubishi etc. ensure that VPCL uses the state-of-the-art technology for power production.
Initially, VPCL was a 77MW oil fired plant catering to the steam and power needs of
the refinery. This plant could also be run on gas in case of an emergency situation in the oil
fired boiler or the oil fuel lines. The plant has 2 Turbines of 38.5MW capacity which provide
power and 3 boilers of 175TPH capacity for providing steam. These boilers are horizontally
fired boilers and use natural circulation providing latent heat. The commonly used fuels are
Light Diesel Oil (LDO), Heavy Furnace Oil (HFO).
As the need rose, VPCL was expanded to phase-1 (Gas-fired) and consecutively to
phase-2 (solid-fired). Phase-1 is a Gas Turbo Generator, which uses fuel like Natural Gas,
Naphtha etc. These GTGs work on the principle of Brayton cycle. The main purpose of
phase-1 is to switch load immediately without any time lag, in case of any tripping in other
plants. This plant has 2 GTG of 110MW capacity and 2 Heat Recovery Steam Generator of
315TPH capacity.
The plant was further expanded to a larger capacity plant, the Phase-2. Phase-2 is coal
cum oil fired plant. During start-up oil is used and coal is used after the plant becomes stable.
This plant is the current supplier to the refinery. The load goes onto the GTG in case of any
tripping in this plant. This plant has 2 STG of 110MW capacity and 1 STG of 92.8MW
capacity which function on the steam produced from 3 Boilers of 715TPH capacity. The
boilers are horizontal fired boilers and use assisted circulation owing to their higher capacity.

Another reason for switching to phase-2 was the rising price of Natural Gas.
Production using coal was approximately twice as cheap as producing using Gas. But the
start-up time for coal based plants are high, so the GTGs have been kept under shutdown but
have not been replaced. The phase-1 plant is not meant for continuous running but for smooth
transition of load from phase-2 to base plant when the phase-2 plant trips.
The start-up time of a GTG is only 15 seconds but running costs are high. So the plant
is run until the base plant comes into operation. In case of failure of all three, power is drawn
from the grid until either of the plant goes into running. This kind of fuel flexibility is also
unique to VPCL. Another advantage of the base plant is that it can run on refinery oil, which
is a by-product of refinery. This also proves advantageous as the running costs are low when
refinery oil is used, but efficiency is low.
Case Analysis of Various Innovations and Modifications at VPCL:
Since the inception of Phase-II at Vadinar Power Company Limited, the plant has
faced many technical roadblocks in its pursuit of maintaining consistency. To address these
issues, many creative ideas were put forward and corresponding modifications and
innovations have been done.
The Case Analysis of such innovations and modifications done at Phase-II of VPCL is
given below.
The analysis includes:
Identification of the Problem
Introduction to the Problem and its Consequences
The modifications or changes implemented to solve the problem
Current status of the problem in-analysis.


CASE NUMBER 1:
Problem I dentification:
BED ash hopper level, furnace flame and bottom un-burnt ash inspection was not
possible.
I ntroduction to the Problem and its Consequences
Bottom ash is part of the non-combustible residue of combustion in a furnace. In an
industrial context, it usually refers to coal combustion. When pulverized coal is burned in a
dry bottom boiler, approximately 80 per cent of the unburned material is captured from the
chimney as fly ash. The remaining 20 per cent is bottom ash, which is collected in a water-
filled hopper at the bottom of the furnace. In wet bottom boilers, bottom ash is kept in a
molten state and collected when it flows into the ash hopper below. The water in the ash
hopper immediately fractures the molten material into crystallized pellets. Hence inspection
of bottom ash is quite important.
Solution Done / Actions Taken
Peep Holes were arranged on both RHS and LHS of the boiler at 9 metre elevation, hence
making it easy for Inspection and taking further course actions.

Current Status
Peep Holes have been installed in both the boilers; this has led to an easy and safe monitoring
of BED ash hopper level and also the furnace flame.

CASE NUMBER 2:
Only Economiser filling was not possible after identifying economiser tube leakage.
Note: Economiser filling starts after boiler water wall fill up to 38 meters.
The economiser is a heat exchanger through which the feed-water is pumped. The
feed-water thus arrives in the boiler at a higher temperature than would be the case if no
economiser was fitted. Less energy is then required to raise the steam.
But, during start-up feed water starts filling the boiler from below. Hence, it would
take very long time for feed-water to reach the Economizer. There was no provision given to
test Economiser leakage, when the plant was running.
A separate line was erected from boiler filling header into the Economiser through its
drain.

Current Status
New lines were erected in both the boilers. During economiser tube leakage, only
Economizer filling is now possible in order to identify them.

CASE NUMBER 3:
There was no tapping point given to perform Boiler Hydro Static test in the initial
scheme.
In a large Thermal Power Plant there are about Ten Thousand tons of steel tubes, pipes,
drums and other vessels that contain the high pressure steam. More than Sixty Thousand weld
joints make the Boiler an integrated vessel to produce steam. Design calculations,
metallurgical inspections and manufacturing inspections assure the integrity of every part and
every weld joint. Hydrostatic Test is the last of the test to ensure completion, compliance
and safety before the boiler produces steam.
The test consists of filling the Boiler with water and pressurizing the water to at least one
and half times the maximum operating pressure for a short time. Every part is subject to more
than the maximum stress it will normally encounter. This is an endurance test; any weak link
fails during the test.

A permanent arrangement was made, in order to execute a Hydrostatic Test. A
tapping was taken from the valve of Intermittent Blow Down line.

Current Status
Without much modification, hydro-pump can now be used to execute Boiler
Hydrostatic Test during the annual shut down.


CASE NUMBER 4:
The Platen Super heater in Boiler No. 4 was failing repeatedly.
The Platen Super-heater is located just above the combustion zone at the top of the
furnace. Mainly it receives radiant heat from the furnace and the steam is further superheated.
There are hanging panels arranged in rows across the width of the furnace. Each panel is
connected with its own small inlet and outlet headers, which are in turn is connected to big
and long common headers, on both inlet and outlet sides.
Initially some metal coins were left inside the super-heater, which were left inside the
super-heater during erection. The presence the coins causes steam to accumulate at certain
points, thereby causing cavitation.
After studying the foreign materials found in the Platen Super Heater Inlet header and
the Primary Outlet and Secondary inlet header. All headers were inspected and foreign
materials were removed.

Current Status
Boiler is now running without super-heater tube failure.


CASE NUMBER 5:
Unsafe operation approaches used for operating Mill Service Water line (Fogging and
Swirling).
Pulveriser mills are cleaned during the Annual shut down. Firstly inert cleaning is
done to remove fumes and poisonous gases by using steam. After this water is pumped
through the Mill Service Water Line, which is used to clean the un-burnt coal and other
debris.
The mill service water line was modified and re-routed. The valve location was also
shifted to ground floor for easy, fast and safe operation.

Current Status
The valve operation is now done safely and also at a quicker pace.


CASE NUMBER 6:
Regular fires noticed in Mills air duct bellow.
The presence of combustible materials in the pulveriser is usually the largest
contributor to pulveriser fires. In most cases, pulveriser fires begin in the under bowl area of
the pulveriser that is a very hot environment with an abundance of air. Accumulations of
debris or coal anywhere in the pulveriser will increase the chance of a mill fire.
The pyrite removal chute should be inspected often to ensure rejected material is
removed from the under bowl area. Stoppage of pyrite chute flow can cause debris and-or
coal to back-up into the primary air ducting.
The location of mills air ducting valve was shifted from shut off damper i.e. bellow
out inlet to mill inlet duct. This is done so that coal dust and water do not accumulate on
mills inlet bellow.

Current Status
After relocation of air-ducting valve, bellow fires have been stopped.

CASE NUMBER 7:
Regular fires noticed in Mills air duct bellow.
The presence of combustible materials in the pulveriser is usually the largest
contributor to pulveriser fires. In most cases, pulveriser fires begin in the under bowl area of
the pulveriser that is a very hot environment with an abundance of air. Accumulations of
debris or coal anywhere in the pulveriser will increase the chance of a mill fire.
The pyrite removal chute should be inspected often to ensure rejected material is
removed from the under bowl area. Stoppage of pyrite chute flow can cause debris and-or
coal to back-up into the primary air ducting.
Special coverage was procured and installed within the bellow. This is done to reduce
the accumulations of debris or coal on the bellow, thus avoiding fires with the bellow

Current Status
After relocation of air-ducting valve, bellow fires have been stopped.

CASE NUMBER 8:
There was a leakage in yoke seal bellow of Mill 1C.
A bellow is a device constructed to furnish a strong blast of air. It has many
applications, in particular blowing on a fire to supply it with air.
Yoke seal bellow is used to protect the mill gear box by acting as a shock absorber. It
also gives allowance for mill expansion and contraction caused by fluctuations in
temperature.
The bellow leakage was rectified by applying special tools and ideas.

Current Status
Without much availability of material, mill bellow is repaired and mill is kept in
service.

CASE NUMBER 9:
Water drain was required for draining the water after Mill wash.
Pulveriser mills are cleaned during the Annual shut down. Firstly inert cleaning is
done to remove fumes and poisonous gases by using steam. After this water is used for
cleaning the mill, hence there is a requirement for drainage system.
Initially there was no provision given for the drainage of water after the wash.
The water used in Mill wash is diverted to a pit through cable trenches and also water
flushing system is arranged.

Current Status
The water after mill wash is now diverted to pit (Drainage System), which has
ensured a neatly maintained area and easy housekeeping.


CASE NUMBER 10:
There was no spare pump available for lube oil pump during its failure in Mill B of
Boiler no. 4.
The liquid lubricant is used to cool the system by being constantly circulated to and
from a cooler part of the system.
Lube oil pumping applications demand a pump that provides reliability and extended
service life with a minimum of maintenance. The typical Lube Oil pump must also be capable
of operation over a wide range of temperature and liquid viscosity conditions.
A spare lube oil pump from Boiler no. 5 was retro fitted at Mill B of Boiler no. 4. This
pump was henceforth used as a back-up.

Current Status
A spare pump is available in case of emergency. The mill has been continuously
available for operation.

CASE NUMBER 11:
There were abnormal sounds from Rotatory Air Pre-Heater and both the drives were
shifted outside.
The Rotating air pre heater consists of a central rotating-plate element installed within
a casing that is divided into two (bi-sector type), three (tri-sector type) or four (quad-
sector type) sectors containing seals around the element. The seals allow the element to rotate
through all the sectors, but keep gas leakage between sectors to a minimum while providing
separate gas air and flue gas paths through each sector.
After inspection it was found that one of the sector joints was found open. The same
was repaired as per procedure. In both the boilers each and every joint of all the Rotatory Air
Pre Heaters were inspected and defects in the joints were repaired as per procedure.

Current Status
All the Rotatory Air Pre-Heaters are working in good condition.

CASE NUMBER 12:
While in operation, the man-hole was inaccessible as it was not being fully opened
due to its interference with the platform beam.
Manholes are an oval access door into the boiler shell, used for maintenance and
cleaning. Manholes are sealed with a removable door from the inside. As they are oval, this
door may be turned and lifted out through the hole. Doors are clamped in place from the
outside with one or two bridge clamps spanning the hole and tightened down with a nut on a
stud.
Platform beam was shifted so that man-hole could be opened fully and is accessible
while the boiler is running.

Current Status
An activity such as bottom ash hopper chock-age removal / trimming is now possible
without stoppage, even while the plant is running.

CASE NUMBER 13:
There was no coal sampling arrangement given at coal feeder. Pipe is made up of SS.
Any hot work would have resulted in longer downtime and coal ignition because of heat.
Sampling of coal is an important part of the process control. Continuous measurement
of ash, moisture, kCal (BTU), Sulphur Fe, Ca, Na, and other element constituents of the coal
are to be reported.
Without any hot work or any extra opening made into SS pipe, special arrangement
for coal sampling with valve fitted into coal feeder through MOV pocking window.

Current Status
Coal sampling is now possible without any hot work or extra opening in SS coal pipe.
Samples can be obtained whenever required.


CASE NUMBER 14:
There was space constraint for the soot blower station and also spillage of condensate
from the station.
Soot is impure carbon particles resulting from the incomplete combustion
of hydrocarbons.
A soot blower is a system for removing the soot that is deposited on the furnace tubes
of a boiler during combustion. Steam is normally used as a medium for blowing away the
soot since capital cost of steam pressure reducing equipment and drain is less than the cost
of compressors, motors and control of air systems.
Soot blower drain station is shifted to 4 metres elevation from ground floor and extra
condensate is now diverted to IBD tank.

Current Status
The problem of space constraint is now solved. Ground floor is now clean and better
looking. Condensate spillage problem solved.

CASE NUMBER 15:
There was space constrained at 8 metres elevation on both LHS and RHS of boiler
during sky climber erection, dismantling, storage and chock-ages cleaning in bed ash hopper.
Preparation and assembly of sky climbers is required for the purpose of inspection or
repair of boiler pressure parts. Sufficient and skilled workers are deployed for erection and
safe operation making of Sky climber. Bottom ash is kept in a molten state and collected
when it flows into the ash hopper below. The water in the ash hopper immediately fractures
the molten material into crystallized pellets. Hence inspection of bottom ash is quite
important.
A new platform installed and modified at 8 meters elevation on both LHS and RHS.
There are also interconnecting platforms installed between LHS and RHS.

Current Status
Easy shifting and storage of sky climbers is possible well advance so as to save
shutdown time. Bed ash hopper chock-age removal is now easily possible. Movement from
LHS to RHS is possible, without the usage of staircase.

CASE NUMBER 16:
Boiler Drum, Boiler and second pass expansion scales were difficult to read.
The boiler expands and contracts with heating and cooling. Hence, expansion joints
are built into the refractory to allow for the thermal expansion and contraction. Expansion
scales are used to measure the magnitude of expansion.
All expansion scale were modified and installed at an easily approachable location.

Current Status
It is now possible to read all expansion scales are being read easily and with safer
approach.


CASE NUMBER 17:
Bend erosion on both front and rear sides of economiser
Water is supplied at the inlet manifold of Economiser, which after passing through the
tubes, goes into the Economiser outlet manifold. In the process water picks up heat from the
flue gas. Hot water then goes into the steam drum.
Erosion caused near the pipe bends in the economiser is termed as Bend Erosion.
Erosion of tubes by localised high flue gas velocity.
Crimped wire mesh was installed on both front and rear sides of economizer to
prevent erosion at bend. This doesnt allow localisation of high temperature flue gas. Thus,
greatly reducing the chances of bend erosion.
Current Status
This has reduced the chances of economiser bend erosion to a large extent.


CASE NUMBER 18:
Shear pin in all the Multi Louver Dampers used to get sheared, also damper flap used
to dislodge from the shaft
Multi Louver Damper is a damper, having multiple blades which are mechanically
linked so that they open or close simultaneously.
A shear pin is a safety device designed to shear in the case of a mechanical overload,
preventing other, more-expensive parts from being damaged. As a mechanical sacrificial part
All the MLD shafts to spigot. Shaft and flap welded and locked from both inside and
outside.

Current Status
Damper passing and flap dislodge problem is now solved and it is now fully
operational.

CASE NUMBER 19:
Discharge bellow leakages found in Primary Air fan 1B.
A bellow is a device constructed to furnish a strong blast of air. It has many
applications, in particular blowing on a fire to supply it with air.

It was not possible to patch the bellow from outside with any type of solution because
of special bellow material, hence patching was done inside by using extra joint sheet to arrest
leakages.

Current Status
Leakages are henceforth arrested and the PA fan is working in a satisfactory
condition.

CASE NUMBER 20:
Air-line connecting the view glass of the coal feeder was purging.
Coal dust is generally accumulated over the view glass. Hence air-line is used to clear
this accumulated coal-dust.
The purging air-line of the coal feeder view glass rubber hose was replaced with SS
flexible hose and a quick coupler was also provided for easy opening and closing of door.

Current Status
Air-line hose need not be replaced every time and is consistently available.


CONCLUSION
With stakeholder expectations and environmental factors changing fast, ideas for
adaptation and advantage are invaluable to organisations. Stakeholders are now multiplying
in number, and the demands that they place on an organisation may range from keeping up
with the needs of talented staff, and offering customers more choice and better service, to
boosting the bottom line for shareholders. At the same time, companies are also being placed
under greater pressure by numerous external changes in an increasingly competitive
marketplace, as is very well reported in business management discourse.

The need for Harnessing Creativity and Implanting Innovation at work-places is
now higher than ever. Respondents now see innovation as increasingly important to the future
of their companies, and that a growing number of organisations identify it as their most
dominant business strategy.

Vadinar Power Company Limited has done a brilliant job, in being able to implant in-
house innovations. The employees here have addressed various issues and identified solutions
to many problems, sometimes during erection of the plant itself. They have successfully
managed to channel creative ideas into useful outcomes. Hence being able to nurture and
stimulate creative thoughts and innovation.


REFERENCES
Websites Referred
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boiler_(power_generation)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermal_power_station
http://www.brighthubengineering.com/power-plants/
http://steamengineer.blogspot.in/steamengineer.blogspot.in
http://www.essarenergy.com/operations/power.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essar_Group
http://www.buffalopumps.com
http://www.spiraxsarco.com/resources.asp
http://www.innovativecombustion.com

Journals/Books Referred
Power Study Book (Published by Essar Power).
PoweritE (Published by Essar Power).
Glossary of Technical Terms (Published by ABB).
The STOCK Gravimetric Feeder (Published by TASME).
Leistritz Pumpen GMBH.
Preventive/Breakdown Maintenance of Complete Boiler Pressure
Part.


Glossary
Blow-down: Periodic venting of water from the boiler. This water contains the most
concentrated precursors for sludge build-up, so by venting it whilst still dissolved, the build-
up is reduced. When early marine boilers were fed with salt water, they would be blown-
down several times an hour.
Cladding: The layer of insulation and outer wrapping around a boiler shell, particularly that
of a steam locomotive. In early practice this was usually wooden strips held by brass bands.
Later and modern practice is to use asbestos insulation matting (or other, less hazardous,
fibres) covered with rolled steel sheets. The outer shape of the cladding is often a
simplification of the underlying boiler shell.
Damper: An adjustable flap controlling the air admitted beneath the fire-bed.

Down-comer: Large external pipes in many water-tube boilers, carrying unheated cold water
from the steam drum down to the water drum as part of the circulation path.

Hand-hole: A small manhole, too small for access but useful for inspection and washing
out the boiler.
Manhole: An oval access door into the boiler shell, used for maintenance and cleaning.
Manholes are sealed with a removable door from the inside.

Scale: Dissolved minerals from hard water that precipitate out in the steam space around
the water-level.

Steam drum: A cylindrical vessel mounted at a high point of a water-tube boiler, where dry
steam may separate above the water level, so that it may be drawn off without risk
of priming.
Water-wall: A furnace or other wall within a boiler enclosure that is composed of numerous
closely set water-tubes.

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1 | Harnessi ng Creati vi ty and I mpl anti ng I nnovati on i n a Power Pl ant

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