THE PROCESS PLANT PROJECT ENGINEER py P.M.WATERMEYER REV.3 APRIL 2000 copyrignt @ 2000 P.n.watermeyer= a THE PROCESS PLANT PROJECT ENGINEER CONTENTS 2. INTRODUCTION 2) A PROCESS PLANT 31 THE PROJECT ENVIRONMENT 4. THE PROJECT AND ITS MANAGEMENT: @ BRIEF OVERVIEW 5. THE ENGINEERING WORK’ 6. COMMERCE AND BUSINESS 7. Economic aspects 8. STUDIES AND PROPOSALS 3. SPECIFICATION, SELECTION AND PURCHASE 10. PLANT LAYOUT AND MODELLING 121 FLUIDS HANDLING, PIPING AND DUCTING 12! BULK SOLIDS HANDLING 18. SLURRIES AND THO-PHASE TRANSPORT 14. HYDRAULIC DESIGN AND PLANT DRAINAGE 13. THE ENGINEERING DISCIPLINES. 16) DETAIL DESIGN AND DRAFTING 17, CONSTRUCTION 38. COnelSSIONING 19. HORE ON MANAGEMENT 20. KEY ISSUES ‘APPENDICES: 1 JARGON 21 THE ENGINEER 3! EXPERIENCE, 3. DESIGN cRiTeRIA 5. COMPRESSING ENGINEERING SCHEDULES 6. VALUE ENGINEERING4s INTRODUCTION Between the technologies anc skills which are needed for the Gesign and construction of industrial provecta, and the ef fect ive Performance of engineering work in a project environaent, lies @ discipline of practacal application which connects the tye: This 1s not Just an addition of project management techniques to engineering practice. It is an integral two-way connection Between engineering and project execution work, It shapes the vay an which engineering werk is done in order to meet the needs of the prosect, and if guides the output of the engineering work into sta practical. application: The art of making this effective link is the discipline of Project Engineering. As for any sther discipline, its performance 18 Based on the classification of knowledge and understandings factiitated by the identification of individual performance areas. The identification of distinct issues makes it possible for the discipline to be methocically learnt, for its practice fo be improved, and for its application to be evaluated as for any other professional works ‘The “eistinet issues” which are described and discussed in these pages are present in most engineering projects. Remarkably, many institutions and organisations engaged in engineering vork Go not have 2 system of focus on the issues, they are part of Ghat is informally learnt as” “practical” or “on-the-job” Gxperience. This is a rather inefficient vay of going about sch Tearning, since many engineers simply miss the significance of sone aspects of what they are eoing, and consequently are blinced tov whole areas of choice and lateral thinwing wnich can be ‘Sone organisations engaged in project work have very detaiied working procedures unich cover all aspects of the relationship engineers vecones simply the explanation and Learning of the procedures. While this may be an efficient way to make new Engineers productive, st generally stifles their development, ond in tne long term causes the organisation itself to become over= rigid and uncompetitive. It ss far better for the operational Drocedures to be seen to be the product of a higher project engineering methodology, which is derived from the cenonstrable: Togic of the business and the understanding of its experienced practitioners. If the logic 1s clear and the experience if validy Ehe procedures will be respected az a bass and modified when sensibly required, without ever becoming the master of initiatiwe or the Slave of sloppy and dangerous practice. This book is specifically addressee to the engineering of process plants. Much of the content is also applicable to other types of engineering project, c.g. power plant and general factory construction, especially where multi-disespiinary, engineering skills are’ involved. On the other hand, parts of the process plant industry (e.g. the hydrocarton processing or fuclear industries) may argue that their industry s2 too distinct in its characteristics to be usefully grouped with process plant a5 a whole. There vill aluays be specific additional areas of Sephasis for ‘such plant, capecially arising from inherent hararcs. However, it is thé author's contention that most of te 2contents of this book are relevant to most of the process plant Gesign and construction industry, "and indeed) nave wicer bpplication. In keeping with the objective outlined above, we will not Eechnicat Subjects are not mentioned at all. The intention is to focus on those technical” aspects which typically have an important influence on the configuration of the plant as a uholey Gn the interface between the various disciplines involves, and the vay in which work is done: the issues that are central to the Conordination of the overall engineering effort. This book is not intended as a project management manual, nor does it seek to cover the many aspects requires for the overall management of projects, expecially large ones. Conversely hovever, prospective process plant project managers, who have only general management training, need to understand the subjects Dealt with in this text if they are to perform effectively; because it is the underlying thvead of engineering information Sevelopment and transfer wnich determines so much of the course oF the projects, from design through procurement, construction End commissioning. ind many of the masor issues influencing the acceptable completion of the project, or even its implementation in the first place, often hinge eround engineering "Judgement Gecisions onien nave to be made in real tine, without complete information. The understanding of how fo vork with hard sna soft Information i2 one of the important challenges unich needs to 5° Understood in order to function effectively in this environment; stall levels of management. In the following pages, we will not restrict our attention to looking inwards at the project, but also outwards at the project Gnvironaent and the basic conpercial and economic relationships linia" Unten’projscr engineers nave te operates It is toa orten The case that project engineers become specialised technocrats those lives are actually manipulates by others, who by secing the WNaer picture, are able to strategise their way into dominant Telationships without making much of a real contribution to the project work: Anyone doubting such a statement need only Look at fhe graffiti to be found around many provect offices, typically including such moans ast HISTORY OF @ PROJECTS STAGE 1: ENTHUSTASH STAGE 2: DISTLLUSIONMENT STAGE 3: PANIC STAGE $1 SEARCH FOR THE GUILTY STAGE St PUNISHMENT OF THE INNOCENT STAGE 6: REWARD FOR THE NON-PARTICIPATORS: There are many variations on this type of lament, and also these directed at poor project definition: WHAT THE CLIENT SPECIFIED NHR? ENGINEERING DESIGNED Wun? CONSTRUCTION. BUILT WHAT THE CLIENT REALLY WANTEDThe fact that such graffiti is 0 commen reflects 20 unacceptable degree of cynicism, in a profession which should have every reason to have 2 good self-esteem. The origin of the Cyaseiam is mainly that engineers t00 often valk blindly into, Sr fine thensel ves manipulates into, unacceptable situationa: The ability to manage relationships which impact on the project wore fs az ensential to success az vechnical skille, We will therefore be acdvessing, frequentiy ane at length, subjects such as target= setting, negotiation ‘practice, and the structuring of Felationships, because st te from euch matters that project wore ie made to be a satistying profession or an endless succession The general format of the book 1s to provide an introduction to Various topics, focus on the issues of judgement which often arine, and cevelap 2 check-list of relevant aspects which may feed to be audvessed inva specific application. where formule: or application criteria have beer put forward, hese ave intended to aesist the project engineer to develop a "sense of smell” at to Unether 3 design or propasal is basically sound oF unsound the text stops well short of actual application technology. There is a reason for structuring the book in this fashion. There have Been over the years, ang continue to be, far too many poorly executed projects,” especially large progects Gnbseying non-standard features Of technology, construction or Envirennent. “Poorly executed" may imply. that the project Sbjectives vere not met, or it may be that the objectives were ingufficiently ambitious, that opportunities vere needlessly lost, with the devel result of a process plant that in the long run isnot a competitive enterprise, In either case, one of the Way in whicn the project as eet up. There ave tuo extremes in the format of overall prodect goals ang specifications, The firat is ta condense the essence of the Venture’s objectives into as Brief a statement. ae possibley Yolloving critical process of discayding those elements wnichy on analysis, are seen to be intermediate to the final products part of the means rather than the end. All subsequent development SF the prosect specifications and the project implementation Plans is arrived at by analysis of efficacy and value, and of the ‘The second exivene is to utilise # vide-ranging data-base of specifications and procedures derived from previous experience, fend throw then all together in a catch-all which should ensure that if anytning goes rong with the execution of the project, sone part of thous requirements must have been violated. it will be pousibie ta blane someone, or better, arrest the progress of practice which may be considered to pe incorrect or undesirable, Te should be evident that the approach of the first extrene ss aimed primarily at establishing a venture that will be competitive in the tong runy whereas the second is defensive in cutieok. Either approach may be appropriate in given Circumstances, or more usually, @ balanced combination of Both The real potential tragedy Ines in not giving preperconsideration to what is appropriate, and the most common failure here is that of large organisations, particularly those with = record of success and prosperity, taking too defensive a position 25 s result of organisational inertia, and thereby orchestrating Eneir ‘oun obsolescence. In medical analopy, the outcone of the project may be that “the operation wa successful; but the patient 1s dead.” The need to analyse activities in all their aspects, and customise the best approach for the particular. circunstances before plunging into the task, extends into the more complex project activities, and is surely one of the major areas uhere Sn engineer can add value far in excess of the scale of inputs This is not therefore, a book of rules. It sims to assist the engineer to customise an appropriate set of rules for one proJect ata time, by 2 process of analysis. In conclusion, the format of this book is intended to assist engineers to explore their objectives, and their latitude for Section, and then ensure that their work is conducted in the most appropriate fashions To. do this. effectively requires an Understanding of the underlying strategies and value-systens, whose mastery differentiator the leaders in this field trom those Gho are likely to be Limited to the performance of tasks directed by" ctners. “these insights can only oe gained. by first Understanding the practicalities and detasit of project work, the Common problems, solutions and compromises. From this base it is Possible to advance to the type of thinking necessary for Success, without paying too such attention to procedures, farts or formulae hich are inevitably obsolescent. AIf there remains any doubt about the intentions of this book, refer te Appendix 2, “The Engineer”. s2: @ PROCESS PLANT A process plant is a classification of factory, which transforas materials in bulk, The feedstock and products may be transported in discrete quantities such as tyuckioads, bags, or unair containers of precious substances, but they are recognised by" their bulk properties. Examples of process plants ave oll refineries, metallurgical extraction planss, coal ashing planes, fertilizer’ factories. The products are commodities rather that The plant consists of a number of the following: = "Process equipment” itens (alse referred to se “mechanical equipment") “in which material is transformed physicelly or chemically, e.g. crushers, reactors, screens, ‘heaters. “he Process equipment is required to effect the’ physical and Chemical changes and separations necessary to produce the wesired products, and also to deal” with any unwaneed by-products ineluaing vaste, spillage, dust and anche. "Materials transport and handling devices, by which the processed materials and effluents are transferred between the Process equipment items, in and out of the plant and. any intermediate storage, and by which solid products and vastes are handled. aM raterials storage facilities where required to provide balancing capacity for feedstock, products, or between process stages. wisProcess utilities” Cor simply "utilities"? which are systems to provide and reticulate fluids such as compressed air, teem water, nitrogen, vhich may Be required at various parts of the Plant’ for purpoves such as powering pneumatic actuators, hestirgy Cooling, providing inert ‘blanketing etc. (Systens, to provide process reagents and catalysts may be inciuded as utilities, oF SS part of the process.) Selectric power reticulation for driving process machinery, tor performing process functions such as electrclysis, for light ing, for powering of instrumentation and centrels, and ss a general utiiity, "instrumentation to provide information on the state of the process and the plant, and, usually closely integrated to the Instrumentation, control systems. -"Structures (made of various materials including steet end Eoncrete); which support the plant and equipment in the required Configuration, enclose the plant if needed, and provide access for operation’ and maintenance. = Foundations, which support the structures and some plant itens Girectly, and various civil works for plant access, enclosure, product storage anc draines STMplant’ buildings suchas control rooms, substations, Tsboratories, operation and maintenance facilities and administration offices. In addition there are inevitably “offsite” facilities such as access roads, bulk pouer and water supplies, security Installatsons, offices not directly associated with’ the plant, Employee housing; these are not considered to be part of tae process planta 2a A process plant is fundamentally represented by a process Howsneet. This sets out all the process stages essentially discrete pieces of process equipment) and material storage points, and. the material” flout between them and. gives Corresponding information on the flourates and” materiel Conditions (chemical and physical). This information is usually 1) The mass balance case, in uhich the sass flows will balance algebraically. 2)" A maxioum case, corresponding to individual equipment or material transport maxima for Gesign purpoues Cenese flows are Unlikely to balance), ang 3) Sonetimes, by cases for other plant operating conditions. For thermal processes, the nas balance may be supplencs by a heat and/or energy balances The process floushests represent the process rather than che details of the plant. The latter are shown in "P & 1" “diagrams Which depict all plant equipment itens including their erive motors, ail pipelines ang valves including their sizes, and all Snetruments and control loops. Utility “Tlowsheets and diagrans are often presented separately. Plants sey operate by batch production, in hich the plant processes a quantum of feed per cycle, and stops at the end of each cycle for removal of the product and replacenent af ine feed. Alternatively plants may operate continuously, 24 hours per day, without stoppingy and there are hybrid plants, or hybria Unit operations within plants, which are described as seni= Continuous, in that the internal operation is cyclical but the Eycles follow continuously one after the other with Tittle operator intervention~ The critical performance factors for a process plant, the factors unich Getermine ite fitness for purpose and its effectiveness (and against which its cesigners’ performance is measures) includ 1) Feedstock transformation as specs fiedy product characteristics should be within © specified range corresponding to, feedstock Characteristics within a specifies rangey and capacity (throughput) should be within the range required for teed and for product. From the feed and product capacity may be derived the recovery, or yield of product per unit feed) alternatively, the recovery’ and ‘input or ‘cutput may be stated, and the cutput or Pipeline and Instrumentation, although sonetines descr ited a5 Process and Instrumentation; but P LI has becone an accepted International multilingual expression. Sone engineers use Mechanical” Flow Diagrams", which do not show” much instrumentation, and “Control’ and. Instrumentation Diagrar Unich focus a5 the name implies, and no doubt such presentation 1s appropriate for certain applicatiensy but Puls Usually, sufficeinput respectively msy be derived.? 2) Cost of production, offen expressed per unit of feed or Broduct. The cost components include capital amortisation, plant Sperators’ salaries, maintenance materials and Iabour, purchased Utilities and process reagents, insurance, etc. There may also be fess payable to process technology licensors, The capital cost component is often quoted separately as a stand-slone criterion. Plant reliability and availability. Reliability is tne predictability of plant ‘operation as planned, whereas Svailabil ity is the proportion of time for which the plant is in condition whereby operation (eo acceptable standards) ia Dutages. for maintenance, eng. one three-week shutdown per” 2-year Cycle, or because of shutcouns caused by lack of veliability, oF Cand Invariably to sone degree) both. 4) Safety of construction and operation. This is assessed at the design stage by formalised Nazard analyeit for the process anc by hazard and operability thazep) study of the plant design; it 1g assessed during construction and operation by audit of the Aresence and. efficacy of variour safety features ang Eonstructsonal and operational practices; and it is reported historically ay accident and lose statistics. 5) Environmental impact, ond its acceptability in legal, social and conservational terms. Eh the plant life. Plant maintenance practices and costs are presused for the purgoses of economic analysis, and hopefully in practice, to be such as to Keep the plant operational witvin Specified performance level over the intended Isfe of the plat. Factors (3) to (6) clearly have an effect ony and their economic impact should be included in, the cost of ‘product ian. Houover they are important design and evaluat ion factors on their foun, and may also have an effect on product marketability, or in Sone cases, whether the plant is permitted to operate at’ all. ne "time taken to Guile and commission the plant, and get st into’ full commercial operation, is equally” a factor which Significantly impacts on the ‘planned. and actual cost of broduction over the plant life. [t may also have an important Erfect on the marketing and hence economic value of the product THE PROCESSED MATERIALS AND THE PROCESS For the purpose of classitying types of plant in order to observe sone of the principal features of each type, the first She most important feature is the nature of the materials to be Processed. These may be principally classified as fluids or Sotiss, high or low specific value, hazardous or non-hazardous, Gna minerals or vegetsbler (sth an important sub-group, foods) or vater. Of course there sre conbinattons of these groups, such G5 in processes uhich begin with a predominantly solic phase ang Ghd in fluid phase; there are materiale such as methanol which hay be of mineral or vegetable origin, and hopefully not regarded For some plants, there may also be a specification Linking the feedstock or product specification Cor grade? te the capacity and/or the recovery= =a om = as a food; and there are feedstock sources such as animals. Fany materials and processes such as pharmaceuticals will not be Sderessed specifically in this Bock, being too specialised in nature, and the reader interested in such processes vill have to Grau his oun conclusions as to the relevance of these contents, Processes say be classified accoring to the complexity, the severity of the associated physical” conditions Cineluding Bressure, tenperature, and corrosivity - clearly in conjunction Chth the processed material characteriatice and towicity, these inpact on the degree ef hazard), on unether there ie a continuous or batch process, and in particular on the state of evolutior of the technology ‘employed. Sone processes have very critical product specifications, especially as regards the pereissibilsty SF contaminants, and "an understanding of how to manage the Production process accordingly is essential to success in Sosigning ane butiding such a plant- Sone processes are simple enough in concept and easily managed in practice, ang the requirements for Duilding the correspanding plant are too obvious to need auch elaboration. However in General, the plant design needs to embody much more information Ehan is’ contained in the flousheets and the PEI diagrams, The actual additional information required is peculiar to each process; and it should be understood that no list of such Information neadings can be comprehensive. For instance, if i sonetiaes found that @ relatively small equipment detail, such as a sealing Gevice, or a feature that aveide the accumulation SF product build-up, 2s critical to the operation of a vhole plant, and iz central to the initial development of the process ass Commercial enterprise. The fallowing are. some general process information requirenents, in addition to the flousheets and PLI diagrams, for Gesigning a plant: I" Gava’ “sheets | for each item of equipment (including instruments), detailing the performance. requirements, the environment "CGncluding the range of process materials ang Physical. conditions encountered, with’ emphasis on haraful Eonditions such as ‘corrosion,abrasion ‘or vibration); the atorials of construction, and any special design features Pequired. 2) General specifications for the plant and its components, enbodying the particular requirenents for the process, such aS Corrosion resistance, hazare containnent, or features to promate Feliability, and including material and valve specifications for piping systems and specific instrumentation details. Sy’ a uoscription of the method of plant operation, including Start-up, shut-down, management of predictable plant operational problems, and emergency shut-coun if applicable. 5)A description of the hazards inherent in the process and plant operation, and the safety features and precautions to be caren oovercéme them. This may include the classification of hazardous areas. 5) A narrative supplementing the PkI diagrams to describe che nethod of contraliing. the process anc. the plant, and :he Tastrumentation and control system architecture, usually known as the "control philosophy” 6) Usually, a basic layout Of the plant. This becomes essential °if sone of the Layout features, e.9- minimisation of certain materials transport routes or maintenance of minimum clearances Ground certain equipsent, ave critical to plant operation or Eatery. ‘THE PROCESS DESIGN/DETAIL DESIGN INTERFACE Guite commonly, the information described above is collectively referred to as the "process package”. It may indeed be presented as such (for a suitable fee!), appropriately bounce and cecorated. He will discuss later the various facets of work Organisation which determine how work is packaged and how the Process technolagy input can relate to the balance of engineering Corky but for the moment, it should be appreciated that the Shoiheering of the plant can De separated into two parts. The Tiree part. is the process tachnolesy which would De applicable toa plant built on any site and in general utilising any Combination of appropriate equipment vendors, and the second part Se the comicte engineer ing design of the plant, incorporating actual proprietary equipaent cesigns, locelly available Construction materials, local design practices and regulations; CGctomised design features required by the particular client and his oseration and maintenance staff, and layout and other design Jestures necessary for the plant site. The second part is often referred te as the “detailed engineering". ‘There is an aves of potential overlap betuoen the twa; in particular, the process Package can De expanded to 2 "basic engineering” package, unich {neludes the estence of detailed engineering (suchas well~ Geveloped plant layouts and equipment lists) as uell as the process package. Te needs te be understood that it is difficult te include all the required knowledge of @ particular type of process inte 3 Complex processes or nevly-developed processes. In practice when the process technology provider Cor Licensor? is separate from the detailed engineering organisation, if 1s necessary to havi ost of the important design details reviewed ane approved by the Technology pravider to ensure that the process requirements have been correctly interpreted. Further process technology input is Siso sesdec in the preperation of detailed plant operation fenual= and plant commissioning, an sometimes ante the plant Athis is an over-sinplification. In practice, the process design package usually han to be customised to take into account [Scat factors which affect the process, such as anbient (Spditions, feecstock anc reagent variations, and properties of avatlapie utilities. 10Se THE PROJECT ENVIRONMENT THE INDUSTRY AND THE CLIENT The industry" which is our subject is the industry of designing and building process plant. This, is coviously peripheral to another industry, unich is that of urilising process plant in order to convert feedstock ta more valusDle Products, the" client” incustry. We will begin by discussing some Characteristics of the client industry, before going. en to Giscuss the industry whose purpose is to satisfy the elient’s Reeds for new plant, for plant upgrades and for associated Services. And Jn general up will discuss projects tor the provision of complete process units rather than other types of Proyect and work, which are essentially similar to; or a fragmentation of, ‘the work of building a Complete new unit or Combinations of units. Duy aim here is to identity some of the aspects of the industrial envirenment which have a major influence on the vay that project work i= dene. In the process plant industry, even for superficially simitar applications, there are many plant design variations and client Sapectations to be considered, The first design rule t= possibly fo take nothing for granted about the needs of the client or the market, but to methodically examine the requirements for each project or prospective project, starting with as much lateral Mision as possible. Considering the characteristice of the client and of the plant we will note in particular the following aspects: feedstock, Product and process (classified az discussed in the previous Chapter), scale of operation, plant ouners’ and operators! Behaviour, Tinancial and strategie influences, and environmental considerations. Several of these parameters appear in fact to be interdependent, but they all need to be taken inte account a part of the exercise Of understanding what differentiating Dractices and expectations are associated with a particular field Sf project work. The generalisations that can be made are Slidetrative of attitudes and Behaviour, and of course there are plenty of exceptions. The hydrocarbon precessing industry deals with feedstock and product which are_minerals of moderate unit value, moderately hazardous (mainty due to fire and explosion risk) and are aleost invariably processed in the fluid state. The behaviour of the industry seens to be influenced mainly by the vast quantities of materials and finance involved, and the inelastic market demand. Economies of scale for Doth product ion and distribution have led fo an industry doninatec by very large, vertically-inteprated global companies, and the process industry within this framevark has tended to be organized accordingly, with highly standardised Views on how a plant should be designed and how a project shoula be structured. From the American Petroleum Institute, there is 3 formidable body of standards and standard practices, and nost Rational standards institutes have many relevant standards ang practices of their oun.the typical hydrocarbon processing client therefore expects: 2 highly standarcised approach to design) with. emphasis on Thoraughness ang use of the most experienced equipment venders, Father. than any. innovation. This. design approach greatly Jacilitates the management of projects in a well organised way, Well controlled from start to finish, even unen there ave very Tignt time schedules. (The less organised project teams ave still capable of making a mess of the Job!) The metallurgical industry does not enjoy a similar degree of standardisation. The processed materials are rocks of varied form fang substance at the front end of the plant, and the provucts are Miso telids. There are many very different typer of ore to be handled, and a wide variety of processes and products. Solid= Phase materials transportation means that plants and their Tayoute tend to be customised, vith scope for innovative solutions. Most ores are mainly waste which would be expensive {Olchip, sovst lesst the front end of the plant har to be sult at ‘the mine, and be designed to suit the topography. The processed materials are for the most part relatively non= Rarerdous; uhen sein the case of the platinum industry, highly Tonic processes are necossary for the refining of the preduct, the refinery 12 built and operated as a separate entity from ene Concentrater and smelter, requiring a different approach. For the mavority ef low-inherent-hazard processes, the lesser” inherent Pinks facilitate innovation without compromising safety. (The less careful project teams are still capable of designing « Sangerous plant!) ‘Tne characteristics of the chemical plant industry tend to lie between those of hydrocarbon processing and metallurgical extraction, being more similar to hydrocarbon processing plant Ghen the feedstock is fluid and hazardous, anc more similar 0 Imetallurgical plant when the feedstock” is solié and non= There are of course any types of plant which process materials unich are toxic, such ss poisonous of radiowsctive Substances and corrosive fluicsy such types of plant invariably Rave a technology of their oun, developed and proven to be Rdequate for. the hazards involved, and any devietion from GSteblishes plant ‘designs ‘or standard. operating practices Fequires careful consideration, and possibly third-party or Feguiatory examination and approval Plants for processing water, either to produce potable water or to treat effluent, generally involve neither hazara nor fhe transport of solide other than sewage or minor detritus in Slurry form (the most transportable slurry of ail) The main Snphasis when builging such plants 4s on reducing capital costs {ova minimum, while remaining (just) within whatever standards Of product quality and construction are specified. Innovation, Sy fechnology advance chovever minor), by structural optimisation of by contracting method, 18 ats premium vith miniaal down-side Dotential (out some contractors still lose their shirts!) Pouer plants, for the generation of electricity, ave not normally ‘includes under the definition of process plant. Certainly, uhen the prine mover ss a diesel engine, water turbine Gr gas turbine, the plant's characteristics more closely resemole Ghose of a single piece of equipsent than @ process units 12However, major coal-fired power station, and the project to ball if, nave much in common vith process plant worky ‘the system fe bust aroune a flousheet with many participating items of Eguipment anc connect ing pipework ang materials handling ceviees. In tnis case, the mot important differentiating character istic is that the procuct the kuh ~ is of relatively low ingividual Value, is required in mausive and predictable quantities over the Future life of the plant, and cannot economically be stored. As 2 consequence, there is a major emphasis on overall energy Gtiicieney and the factors unich contrinute tovards it, and Usually a willingness to pay more in capital to achieve this goal; capital is relatively cheaply available for the perceived {Oo tusks involved, These factors also contribute to relative Willingness to accept longer project completion schedules, Provides tnat some cost reduction 1s thereby obtained, and also Sesuning that generation capacity growth keeps up vith the The comments above are of course highly superficial in relation to industries which have developed technologies that people spend their careers in acquiring. Our purpose here is not to discuss technology, but its project application, and the main point to be mace sc that each type of plant. industry has Geveloped in 2 way that has been driven ‘by characteristics related to the nature of the process and processed materials; and the scale of operation. The consequences of this development are not restrictea to technology, uhich may be presented in a package, but extend to the attitudes and general Sehaviour of the People. involvec in the client industry, an particular, their Bttitudes to innovation, work stanards, and cost reduction: These attitudes need to be understood for successful project Works If also needs ‘to be understood that there are many Shonaiies, “e.g. petroleum companies that have acquired mining interests, ang attempt to organise metallurgical plant projects With the ‘sane attitudes aa for hydrocarbon processing plant, Sften to the detriment of the project and the contractors involved. THE CLIENT AND THE PROJECT MANAGEMENT The relationship between the client and the project manager and project team iz likely to have a major influence on the way in ehich the progect is managed. The provect manager may be a senior executive within the client organisation, and he aay have total authority to fulfil the niseion up to the point of hangover to an operating entity. Or he may be a relatively junior menber of a Large organisation, Gith Timited authority to co-ordinate the work of specsalict Gepartments. The process plant ovner may directly employ the Broject manager and team, or the ouney may buy @ turnkey plant for a lump sum from an independent contractor, or ne may employ a company as managing contractor, heades by a project managery fovdeeign the plant ang manage ifs construction. And of course there are many variations and combinations between these cases. Th “order” to make progress with the analysis of the relationship between the client and the project manager, let us 13consider two extremes, the turnkey plant option and in-neuse management by a senior’ executive of the cuner's organization. For @ turnkey plant to be built, there has to be firs! a process of plant “specification and competitive bidding, to Establish who is the contractor, unat will be Gelivered, wheny and at what price™. Thus at the outset of the turnkey plant prosect, the project objectives ought to have been clearly sot Sut; with litte room for cost increase to the client, or for Uncertainty about the scope cf supply. In the case of in-house managenent, and especially so when the responsible executive is very senior in the company hisrarchy, he can be expected to ensure that the project will we seen te oe Successful, and in particular, to be completed within the authorised’ budget. There are many ways for the executive to do Thin; including the setting of targets unich are easy to meet, without the protien of competition. As corporate financial Controls normally require a fixed project budget, one of the ethods more often employed to ensure the financial success of The project is to allow some flewinility in the scope of work. For instance, to decide only when the provect is at an advanced Stage and cost trends are clear; on whether to provide # fully~ Equipped plant maintenance workshop, or whether to save the Sssociated capital cost increase and rely on external contract maintenance; in other words, to shift the cose of this service from capital cost to operating cost: Similar scope variations sre possibie with many nice-to-nave itens, such as standby equipment Or meintenancesaving features. If these practices are permitted, the cout estimate and cost budget for the plant become sinsly self-fulfilling prophesies, and the pressures of budget Compliance are not nearly 2s great as in a turnkey environment. Aspects of such management practices are likely to appear in all vertical relationships in the project hierarchy, from the Chie? Executive of the corporation that oun the plant doun Through the project team and suy-contractars; 2 responsisie party tends to held those reporting or subcontracting to him accountable in detail, uhile attempting to preserve the maxioun OF flexsbilsty of performance target for himsel © In the following pages we will’ in general assume that there ss 2 competitive envirennent, and that projects have. to be Completed in accordance with technical and scope specifications, oh time and within budget. Those project practitioners uno Operate in less demanding circumstances should quietly enjoy their good fortune. ‘THE PROCESS PLANT PROJECT INDUSTRY: THE "INDIRECT COST" OF A PLANT there are a number of variations to this theme, which will be explored in Chapter 6, Commerce and business. This aspect of human nature bedevils the use of per foraance statistics for purposes of project risk anelysis and setting of Contingency allovances for project budget and schedule. The Subject 1s further discussed In Chapter @, Studies and Proposais.0] q A process plant project embraces several distinct types of work, which are customarily carried out by different industrial Groupings. Work’ components include the underlying process Eechnology, briefly adcressed in the previous chapter; the design ano manufacture of plant equipment itensy the manufacture of oule Components such as structural steel, pipes and electric cabier structural steelwork, piping and vostel fabrication in accordance with proJectcspecific drawings; and site construction to Bring The componente together into a vorking plants These ineivicuss prosect components have to be conceptualised, Initiated, cor ordinated and manages by s progect engineering and nanagenert effort, which is the subject of this books To understand those facets of the plant design ard construction industry, which sost affect the fives of people ore Besign and manage such works, it is illuminating te seart ty asking the guestion "why do Ue need auch pecple at allo" The Question can usefully be answered by dividing their work into tee Perts. There is a minimum engineering and management portion Without which the project cannot be executed av sil. This work Will be more in plants of original design, and less where Previous ‘designs Can be utilised, but the work cannet oe Gispensed with altogetner, otherwise there will be ro. Snstructions to purchase or build, no basis to set out the site, no plant. configuration. This part of the engineering and management work is almost iike any of the plant” physical components, an indispensable part of the plant. The remaining engineering snd managenent work snpute. ave characterised by “added value", that 1s to vay that their execution and cost nave 0 be Justified by comparison to the added benelits or reduces overall costs arising from each item of work. as an exanple, it is possisie to get the plant constructed by at"thatever hourly rates may be agreed by nagetiarion. Bue st Te Usually more effective to spend money on the engineering and anagenent work of drawing up a specification ana contract for the work, ane soliciting competitive bide, thereby paining the services of a better-divected and less’ costly construction Company. The incremental enginesring and management costs are lover than the value of the resulting benefites We “will examine the quantitative relationship between engineering and management work (proacly destrised as indirect costs) and hardware and construction costs (direct costs), at later “Stagor; the present discussion is restricted ‘to Qualitative aspects. The division of project costs into direct and indirect components is widely practised, vith very important implications, but often 1ittle understacd. hat sews te escape many, is that it is a purely artificial distinction. There ave clients une value the outputs which incur direct costs — in particular, harduare ~ far more than the outputs unich incur indirect costs, ‘because the Girect cost items are tangible. In the value system Of these clients, a project with a lou ratio Of indirect costs is evidence of efficiency and good value for vchapter 7, “Economic aspects”. 1smoney. Tn fact, if any single item of “direct cost” is examined, TP'ean Ge seen itsel? to be separable into = direct and indirect Cost component. For instance, a contract to provide pipework nay Se'tecn ao a single direct cost item. fis far as the contractor Te ‘concerned, however, there are direct costs such as the materials purchased ang the Labour hired for the Joo, snd Jndirects such os the costs of his oun detailed engineering for the job and his own contract management end overheads. In the Else of a piece of equipment such as a mill, the supplier's costs hay be broken down inte the directs of ‘Labeury material and Component costs on the one Nand, and the indirects of customised Engineering, Seles, factory overheads and order management costs Envthe other. the Mdivect- costs can be further broken down, by Shvestigaving sub-contractors and) component suppliers, ad By carrying out such further breakdoun, it is easy to reduce the average plant project direct cost proportion to below 59%, with scope fer even further reduction for those interested in Tuttle intellectual exercises. Defining wnat may be classed as an indirect cost is not Just a question of terminology: tne actual vork performance of many Indirect cost item may Be noved Detween the project engineering And. management team and the contractor, gepending on how the SGneractor's workscope is defined, In garticular, this can be Gone by either purchasing large all-inclusive packages, or many Not only can what is classified as engineering and managenent work be fairly arbitrarily moved betueen the reported indirect Gnu irect cout components, but the performance of the work may fase an inherent reduction of the amount of work reported as Girect costs For instance, more cost-effective plant design may fake certain pieces of equipment redundant, leading to reduced Sort ucctor. “The “feverse pracess, of performing sub-standara Engineering and management wark and causing an increase of direct eOstsy ie algo a frequent occurrence! For nany clients, and indeed for many prosect practitioners, the probiess of distinction between indirect and direct costs Giscussed above are academic ang irrelevant. To these people, the Understanding of what vork ia to be done for a given progect, and how it is to be done, t= clear and unvarying. Any quest iening on how the work can be broken down between direct and indirect, and Unst constitutes an appropriate proportion of indirect costa, is Tikety to be taken ax an attenpt to disguise inefficiency. We know that 18% indivects is the right figure for this type of plant!) The issues surrounding indirect cost ratio vill be urther debated at some length in the later pages, as they have in'Unportant influence on how work is done. We will hope to Convince ine reader that the reality is not as simple as the 16~ perceenters woule have ity and that those who are prepared to ECknowiedge “snd study the reality have scope for better performance than their more ayopic competitors. However ve will defer further discussion of this subject, because we are starting from teo fluid a concept of how prosect Cork should be done, We are going to proceed to a brief Gescription of how provect work i typically done ~ very briefly 16in the case of project management as a vhole, vith a little nore Gepth unen we address engineering ~ so thet we a have a defined base from which to works‘THE PROJECT AND ITS HANAGCHENT: A BRIEF OVERVIEW The purpose of this chapter is to look briefly at all the conponents of & process plant construction project and sts management, before focusing on the engineering ‘work~ THE pRosecT Wie shall define a process plant project as: the execution of 2 plan to build or modify a process plant, within stated parameters of vorkscope, plant performance, cost and tine. This fz not a universally accepted definition, but it does focus on the work with which the project engineer 1s principally engaged. Pre-project work will be described ss a stucy or proposal. Some project practitioners refer to the concept of a “prosect lifecyele", snigh includes the initiation of 8 progecty if technical and economic evaluation, funding and” authorisation, Gesign and construction, plant operation, maintenance and further Uevelopnent, ane finally plant Gecomsizetoning. He would rather Eall this a "plant lifecycle", but the difference is mainly Semantic; the various stages’ all have to. be taken” into Consideration when designing and building the plant, vhich is cur main concern and regarded here as being “the project". Following on fron the lifecycle concept, there 1s no clearcut requirement on where wo should begin our cescription of project “ork. ‘The design sf the plant epends inter ala on how st vill be operates, the operation on how st was designed} the cost of the plant dopencs on how it is designed, the design depends on how mich money is available to build it; the feasibility study has to anticipate the project outcome, the project is initisted With parameters set by the study. Because cur focus is on the Gesign and construction of the plant, we shall give minisal (O, ‘These aspects are given more detailed review in Chanter 8, ‘Stuaies ang Proposals. A project may be @ major new enterprise such as an oft refinery, or a small modification to an existing plant. For the Tatter case, it is evident that the desired objective can be achieved quickly and informally without elaborate procedures. As fhe cise and complexity increases, the need for = more formal Sberoach becones apparent for many reazons. More people are Givalved, more interacting components have to be coordinated, and the investors demand more cetailed reporting. The size of Project at which more formalised procedures become necessary Bepends very much on the ability and skills of the project Banager and the demands of the client. In general we will be Rddressing the needs of the large project, on the basis that Gngineers) uno. are experienced in’ the bigger picture will Understand what shortcuts and simplifications are reasonable on smaller projects. Pre-project work starts with an idea or concept which the client has decided to develop. The design and visualisation of the final process plant progresses in cycles of increasing definition. Initially 2 study is made, in nich the concept is fechnically developed, optimised anc analycec az a Susinece proposition; the analysis includes considerations of technical 18m2 oo = = oa and commercial risk, capital and operational cost, product value ane return on investment. A report. is pregaredy if the Conclusions ave acceptable to the client, he may authorise the plementation of the project. Alternatively, ne may author ise nore funds for further conceptual development, or of course, Shandon the concept. Authorisation of the implementation af tne project invariably iepligs the expectation of a plant unich will Perform within specified limits, and be built in accordance with Certain standards, within a promised budget ane schedule. There is clearly a miniaum amount of pre-project engineering work necessary to achieve the required degree of technical Gefinition, costing and schedule analysis required for Authorisation. Prior to the decision to implement the prosects there is a natural reluctance te spend any more funds than are absolutely necessary to conplete the feasivility stugy, am there may be no project. This reluctance is tempered by she need for Securacy; evidently, the further that the engineering of the Blant is developed, the greater the confidence in the accuracy Sr the study report. In addition, if the client iz confident that the stugy vill lead to a project’ without much further conceptual Gesign development, he may be willing to commit more funds prior fo final authorisation, in order to expedite the projects In the review on Engineering work unich follows in the rext chapter, for most activities ue will approach the project vork a2 though there vere no preceding study, so that nothing is lett Gut. In practice, @ project invariably commences with a process Sf asseably and critical scrutiny of the preceding document ation: Tt the project team doubts the viability of the commitments nade in the study, there may be sone “debate and compromite” (this may. be an understatenent') STARTING THE PROJECT We have established that a project commences with defined goals and a defined and accepted concept for achieving them. A Brosect (as defined here) is not a process of innovation; thi Gnnovative work necessarily precedes the project, enabling the Gesigne therefrom to be evaluated and costed. If it 12 found at the prosect conmencenent that the conceptual design is incomplete or unsatisfactory, thet innovation ts needed, or that plans or Sctinates are questionable, then tt is important te complete or Foctify this work in an snstial pagel ine-development phase, unich on completion will permit the establishment of s detailed master~ plan of all project activities and cout clenents, 10 be used as Ene gasis of schedule and cost management. Kithout a fully= developed baseline built on approved conceptual designs, the project manager can do no better to manage the project than s tean can play competitive football without designated field markings and goalse. sTo be more accurate, it is not possible for the type of project work ‘envisaged here, where a defined amount of work i= Fequired to be performed for a pre-determined cost. It is of Course possible to carry out elastic-scope/defines-cost vork without ‘much of a Baseline.Opportunities for improvenent by innovation or chang:ng concepts may emerge during the project work, and if changes are fade as a result, they nave to be very carefully controlled if Chaos is to be averted, though it is seldom scceptable to ignore Such opportunities on principle. But these are exceptions; the Sbscctive for provect work 1s to achieve the targets set out in Savances In proportion to the scale and complexity of the proscct, and therefore the number of different entities whose Cork has to be comordinated, if the need for detailed planning Gne“controt of the vork done. This is succinctly expressed by mer ican engineers ae PLAN THE HORK THEN WORK THE PLAN. Plan ts used here in the videst sense, eabracing not just the development. of activity sequences and durations, but the full Evaluation of objectives and circumstances, potential problens, Sptions end methoe available Defore undertaking any task. The Bian must be verifiee to mest the project requirements before Commencing the planned activities. So we start the project vith the preparation of a master pian Which “is Verified to meet the project requirements, and is preferably formally approved by the client; that is, unless the Piient’s exact requirenents are already set out in'a contract, Ss foro turnkey plant, in which cage the plan should be checked Sgeinat the project specification. ‘The plan snelugest 1) “Aciear definition of the project’s end-product and of how its “acceptability is decided: the physical plant and its performence,, conatvuction specifications and facilities; Escuments required to operate and maintain the plant; closeout Une training. Also a statement of any other client requirements {O'be mee in the course of achieving the end-product, such as she format ane. content. of construction documentation, progress feperts, miatucury md t1ient approvals bo be ebtsingd, mininus [Stal content to be utilised, environmental restrictions en Construction work, and quality management standards. The end~ product and incidental raquirenents are collectively referred to G5 the project Scop 2) “Organisation of tne prosect team roles by allocation of Individual responsibility, enguring that the complete scope is Sy For each team menber or discipline, preparation of an Sperating ian outlining how the individual part of the proJect ope will be achieved. Arising from these plans, an integrated pian and a Breakdoun of the project work into defined packages Eurticiently small for managenent purposes (discussed below). Sythe provect budget, broken doun into elements identical to Sr compatioie with the work breakdown structure S) ‘he project tine-schedule, in similar detail. The development Of this schedule requires the development of the werk breakdown Structure into s network of sequenced activities. 2)'" system for controlling the project; that is, the means to Be employed for seasuring the technical quality of the product Geveloprent, for measuring the cost and cost projections, and for Seasuring progress, and comparing these with the planned values fo alert managenent of need for corrective action. Usually the Control systen will dictate the format and element size of the 20= = = 2 =p =a vork breakdoun structure, Sudget and tine schedule. Clearly, the (Sntret system and work element breakdoun ust facilitate progress reporting within a sufficiently short period to allow Corrective accion within an acceptable period, usually 8 week or foot Sp resource plan, identifying the human and other resources Tiquires for the project, their source, timing and cost, [Shpat ible with the project budget and schedule. The will not elaborate further on the planning process, because this will be further ceveloped in the discussion of the engineering work wnich follows. MaNAGING THE PROJECT The project team organisation referred to in item 2 of the plan; varies according ta the size, complexity and scope of the Brodéets Snell projects ave best handled by a Small team of all— Pounders working full-time, rather then a multitude of part-time Specialists; ieee communication and better teamwork more than [Cepensate for any lack of wore spectalised skills, which can be Gbrained from a consultant if needed. Large projects can employ Specialists to perform a single discipline of activities Toli-time basis. Ue will discuss the breakdoun and perfor St the work by Siscigiine, according. to the. customary Grganisation of a large project. This is not intended to imply Ghat’ a single. individual could not or should not perform a multiplicity ef discipline funetsone. The pain groups of operational activities are Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning. Engineer ing sneludes the design of the plant, specificstion of its component parts for procurement, preparation of technical Sacumentation to guide ‘and facilitate construc! ong Broduction of all other technical documentation ni Engineers alzo fellow up on their work by provision of technical Suicences ensuring that the plant ss procured, manufactures and Erected according to the design requirenents. Procuresent. includes the work of finding suppliers or contractors willing and able to provide the goods and services Fequired for the project, preparing conmercial bid documents in Collaboration with the ‘engineers uno prepare the techrical Specifications, getting competitive offers, managing the preci Srrueciaing on the beat offer for wach big, and carrying out Regot lations to finalise purchase agreements or contracts. The [esponsibility of Procurement then extends to include followup letivities required to manage the performance and administr: Sf orders and contractes performance surveillance and expediting, {nspectiony correspondence and records sanagenent, management of delivery to site, paynent management, isputes resolution, and order or contract close-out. Construction includes ali the vork needed to build the glant on sites This can be organized in a variety of ways; 2 typical Porge prosect scenario is to appoint a construction. managenent tesn led by a resident construction manager (RCM, and appoint one or more contractors to carry out the vork. The various forms St contract and their implications will be addressed later. By Ghatever means the work is performed and the contractual 2arrangenents are organised, the issues vnich have to be addressed fhciuder work planning, co-ordination and expediting; materials management; Labour management and labour relations; safety Management; echnical information flow and technical’ problem Peselution} work quality contrel and “acceptance; contract SGministrations record-keeping; financial management, and final Randover and clote-eut- ‘Sonmissioning 12 the work of putting the completed plant into operation: To co this safely, the commissioning engineers mst Tiree check that the plant has been properly constructed and is fully functionals The work also includes operational planning and Erainingy petting ready all the resources needed to bring the plant into operation and to maintain ity performance testing and Chatever formal ities may have been agreed to complete the capital Shvestment seage and proceed to the operating Tife of the plant. Finaily, the work of the prodect needs Management, including strategic, “direction and co-ordination of all disciplines; moniter ing of progress and expenditure compared vith schedule ang Bagget, and anitiation of corrective action; on-going review and budge Sr eeennical acceptability and conformance to the approved work scopes financial accounting and expenditure control} change (Sntret; and relationship managesent (including the issue of Fopores) with the client and external entities. On a large prosect, the Project Manager will be supported in this work By E’provect contrals team including Cost Engineers and Planners Gata “schecuiers), Financial Accountants, and a Secretariat Ghargeo with overall document contrel. 2A St THE ENGINEERING WORK PLANNING THE ENGINEERING WORK The stages of prosect engineering may be described as: (2) Define the objectives, ive. the end product of the project. (2) Decide now the objectives vill be achieved, what methods vill be employed. (2 Pian in cetail each item of work work package") and schedule the performance of the packages ins logical sequence. (4) Do the engineering work ans check that it is corrects (S) Ensure that the engineering designs and specifications are acceptably implenented in plant procurenent, manufacture and construct ion. CE) Connizsicn the plant and finalise all technical documentation needed for operation and maintenance. Ttens (1), (2) and (3) define the engineering scope of vork in progressively Increasing detail. Item (@)y the detailed Blansing, cannot be completed until the conceptual design of the Plant has been finalised. Thus, unless the project starts vith 2 finalised conceptual design, there will be sone overlap betveen fhe plansing stage and the following stagey engineering vork Invariably comences before the plan is final ises: In the following narrative, ‘as was stated when discussing project initiation, we will address some activities az new Subjects, although in practice some cr all of the work may have been carried out curing the study vhich precedes the prosects Definition of the project objectives starts with. the Sevelopnent of 2 clear understanding of the performance of the plant (hat must the plant produce, and from unat input Fesources, when and how?3, an understanding of the processe: by Ghich the plant’ will” function, an understanding of all the OF function of the plant, and of any other specific requirements Sf the client. To make cure that this "clear understanding” 1, Correct, is comprehensive, and describes ewactly "uha the Customer wants", tne obvious procedure is to urite it doun as Concisely as possible, review it thoroughly with the plant ouner and operator, and get it formally approved Before proceeding sith Sesign work. Ih addition to the essential requirements mentioned in the previous paragraph, the engineer is confronted with choices of nothodology during’ the design development, for instance which design codes to use, if thin has not been specified by the Elient. The potential impact of choice of methods and codes must be considered. Often, there is little to differentiate betucen the possibilities other than the engineer's familiarity, but a choiee aust be made: a design based on a hotch-potch of codes is 2 recipe for disaster. Because the procedure of developing this “clear understanding” and choice of design methodology determines the entire design and Construction of the plant, it is obviously of prime importance and deserves corresponding priority and effort. ‘There are two products of design. There ss che Process Plant that will Se built, but preceding that is # collection of Grawings, models, specifications ete nich define the plant forpurposes of construction. The performance and constructional Standards uhich define the plant with " clear understanding” and the design methocs to be employed will be termed the "plant Cor project) design criteria”, anc the documents and models produced fo facilitate purchase and construction (in accorgance with the plant design criteria) will be termed the "design documentation". For the development of the design criteria, tuo scenarion need to be considered (there are many hybrids in practice)- Firstly, the client may not know in detail wnat he uants, or ne may wow that iz requires but not have fully thought it out and written it doun. For this first case it is the project engineer's Jot to estasiian the design criteria in conjunction with the client, Benerally by a process of revieuing the choices available and Saking recomendations, and to get the client's approval. If he Goes not de a thorough Job of shiz, he risks at least wastes effort and delay in the Gesign process, when fully-developed Gesigns are rejected on conceptual grounds, or at worst a final plant which is not uhst the client wanted. In the second scenario, the client what he wants sn 2 detailed specification. This is a pre-requisite for purchasing 2 plant on 2 lump-sum basis; without » detailed specification, the price ts meaningless. However the project engineer must still carefully review the scope definition before commencing the Gesign process, clarify any ambiguities, and where choices exist, try to resolve them or at least define the basis on unich the choice vill be made, before expending detail design manhours. A detailed checklist for the plant design criteria can run to So pages or more and varios with the type of process; most Organisations that deal with plant construction er design have their oun checklist. The essentials of a checklist (a checklist checklist!) have been included as Appendix 4. Before moving on from the design criteria to the detailed managenent systems and procedures vhich need to be in existence. Those are simply standsrcised methods ‘of vorking, unich are indispensable ina team operat ion to pronote efficiency and avoid Gnizsion y duplication and confusion. The following are part of the basic’ framework: 1)" Document control system, including standard practices for husbering sll papers and drawings, filing, approval hierarchy, Gistripution control, revision control, and archiving. 2) Procuresent interface, How will Engineering co-ordinate with the Procurement function? Or will procurement simply be the Tespenaibility of the engineers? The ansuer to the questions Uetormines the scope and format of much of the engineering work. Agreed systems and interfaces also need to be in place for the procurenent-related functions of matersals control, workshop {nspection, quantity surveying and logistics in general. 3) Construction interface. Inevitably this starts with the Sngineer ing definition of unat construction work is required, and fovunat standards (requiring a procurement interface), and Leads Eo a followup stage in uhich construction snfornatien is issued, tainly in the form of dravings, and techaical probless are Fesolved ‘requiring a site interface). 4) Cost control system. This requires an understanding of the Tovel ef control, the Breakcoun of expenditure items (purchasedtens and engineering and management activities) by which cests Will be authorised, reported ane controlled. There inevitebly Yollows a need for consistent numbering system by which each ikem iz recognized, usually called the Cove of Recounts. 5) "project tine schedule control (or Planning) system. Generslly the sane yenarks apply as for cost control. Numering needs are Tess exacting than for cost contrel, because “roll-ups" of Like ttens are not applicable. Generally the numbering systens enployed for equipment and documentation are adequate. Ey guatity. assurance systen ané its implenentation on the project. ‘tis is already partly implied, as we have listed Ehecking of the enginesring work as part ‘of the work. However this may be a timely reminder that the checking and verification Sr cork needs to be organised into @ cohesive whole which will Gneure that no critical aspect i= left to chance, ang that the Gverall standards of surveillance are adequate. Advancing to the detailed planning ef engineering work, ve begin oy grouping work into differeat categories. ost’ ‘engineering work activities are associated vith documents” which are the product of the individual activities. Qerset conunicatien is ‘seldom acceptable, so each activity Caiminates ina document unich is the essence of the work cone Sr Velue added. The change of status of a document, e.g. irom viraun" to checked" to “issued for construction", is Likevise Ascorlated with an amount of work. Most engineering work is therefore, conveniently. identified for planning and ‘control purposes by the aescciated document ang its status. To quantity the cork and sreak it doun inte manageable elements it is only Aecersary £0 produce # list of documents, principally: Plans, desion criteria and vork schedules. Dravings, Cineluding vendor and third party drawings to be Tevieved and approved) and models. Ealculat ions. Specifications and data sheets. Procurement documents (requisitions, bid analyses, negotiation Technical schedules, including the need for their on-going update (equipment lists, cable schedules etc... Reports « technical; progress, inepection, site visit, meet:ng, Plant operation ang maintenance manuals and spare parts data. Work not usually associated with specific documents may sneludet Planned communication activities.+° General managenent administration duties (vork planning and vork Contrel “schedule Updates, informal communication, personnel oh "document" is a piece of recorded information of any type chard copy, electronic, physical model>. This subject is further Goveloped in Chapter 19 under the heading of Document control. seThis subject 1s discussed in Chapter 19 under the hed Conmunication and Briefs. 19gadministration, ete.) Follow-up of technical issues (including pro-active surveillance and response to questions and requests for assistance). It Is possible te categorize many of these activities also by associated documents, and to demand documents as a report of the Sctivitys, To some degree such documents are necessary: an Instruction arising from a followup activity ‘should Be in writing, and the discovery of a serious discrepancy or failure Should ¢iearly trigger a management report as well as corrective action. However if this process is taken too far in relation to fhe real need for precise record, the excess of bureaucracy vill become apparent fo all, with the usual negative effect on For gocument-related work, engineering manhours are estimeted by allocating budget hours to each docunent. For this purpose each document type is usually divides into a few sizes, each having s standard budget. Drawings are groupes by subject and Size; procurement documentation by value and complexity, etc: Nonvdocument-relates work may be estimated by adding 3 percentage te the document related work, or by allouing 3 fixed fime allowance per week, or by allowing a time package per followed-up item e-gepurchase order. In the latter case, the final overall plan must be verified to ensure that adequate resources are available for reactive followup, Ci-es those that ferve by standing and waiting — in plan, anyway} unplanned work Chi material see) Sequence planning of scheduling ef engineering work can be quite rimple or very complex, depending on the project. Fors Simple project, where there is enough time ‘to carry our Sctivitses in 3 logical sequence, and to commence individual Sctivities when the required input information 1s available, the of project may change the picture? 2) Design criteria ave prepared and work 1s planned as outlined 2) The basic process design work is developed, culminating in Brocess flowshects and process data sheets fer plant equipment Stems. 3) he process equipment data sheets become available, equipment Specifications and procurement documents are written, enquiries Bre izcued, and equipment is selected and purchased. 45° pe. purchased” equipaent information becomes available Gineluding outline drawings, and access and maintenanee needs) tho plant layout dravings are developed (these are conceptual Gravings with principal Ginensions only) and maybe plant models Gre built. In this process, designs of the materials transport Systems and plant enclosures are developed. S3"Control Phitosephy and P and I diagrans are prepared. (This Work may also be done in parallel with, or ahead of the layout SQeiSpments depending on the relative Gependence on material transport system design). 6) Bazed on the conceptual Layout drawings and selected equiprent asses and dynamic Loads, equipment support and accent stoclwerle, foundations and enclosures are designed. Jaiso au purchased equipment information becomes available, the 26electrical power supply system ana switchgear are designed and procured, anc plant. instrumentation and control systems are final feed and procured. 8) "the conceptual, layout drawings are upgraded to General brrangenent dravings unich reflect the detail steslwork and civil Gecigns a5 vell as actual equipment dimensions, and are Ginensioned to co-ordinate interfaces. S) Detail designs are prepares for vessels, chutes and other Platework, piping and ducting, electrical and instrunentat ion Gauipment and cables. TO) Technical packages are prepared for purchase of bulk neteriais and plant construction, including work description, Shits. of quantities, drawing lists” and construction speci fications. Ti) Technical documentation is prepared for plant commissioning, Operation and maintenance Cincluging purchase of spare parts) The corresponding flouchart is presented as Figure S.1. in thie figure, "design" has been used vo describe activities whose nein outputs are descriptions, calculations, and iten sketches, Chereas “orsu" describes activities unich are centred on the Grrangenent of comonents within space, and the outputs are Grauings or wodels. This distinction t= artificial and 1s no: so Glearceut’ in practice, nor can it be. Usually, front-end’ engineering activities are performed in a preliminary prevprogect or study stage, in which the conceptual Gosigns and provect basel ine are developed. In the initial stage, ho precurement commitments can be made, and the equipment data Te not final. This brings about a separation of activities which 12 presented as Fig 5.2- Ti the project base-line i not fully-developed in the ssudy stage (always the case, to some extent), then the work sequence To "Comething of a hybrid between Fig.” 5.1 and Fig. 9.25 the brinciple cifference from the Fig 5.2 logic being that because Ghere is an. overall authorisation te proceed, the final procurenent of certain equipment itens, unich are recognised as Being critical to the schedule, will proceed without any preliminary stage, while the overall conceptual design and Baseline ave being final isea. 27‘ORDER REMAINING EQUIPMENT ‘ORDER BULK MATERIALS ARRANGE CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS gun 5.1 ‘SIMPLIFIED ENGINEERING WORK SEQUENCE 28PREPARE DESIGN| PREPARE PROCESS REQUEST FLOWSHEETS AND JEOUIPMENT| "EQUIPMENT DATA SHEETS. i Lh |} —ae* ‘SKETCH AND TAKE OFF RECENE ‘ouwmrmes For structures, | | EQUIPMENT ‘OMILS. PIPEWORK. PLATEWoRK| | OFFERS ES 1CABLES. ETC. [REQUEST QUOTATIONS FOR SUPPLY AND CONSTRUCTION [RECEWE VENDOR DAIWVINGS & DATA ‘CERTIRED FOR CONSTRUCTION" | | AND onwanos FIG. OnE FIGURE 52. CONCEPTUAL STAGE FOLLOWED BY PROJECT STAGEEven in these simplified examples where activities follow = logical sequence of information flow, there is an amount of iteration. “the layout drawings have to be available for Structural design, but they are revised asa consequence of the Gesign. when the connecting chutes, pipevork, cables etc. are Suaed to the design, there are lisble to be problema in fieting {hen in and supporting them, and plant access or maintainability nay be compromised. Thus some revisions to the steelwork design Gnd layout will usually be necessary. And soon for ost Gctivities, Out the iterations are kept to a minimum The Lisitations of the project schedule and the drive for reduction of project engineering and monagenent manhours seldom hermit a comaletely sequential information flow. Usually, the Gestion schedule has to be shortened. le should remember that the Sesion process iz not an end in iteclfy it ie the servant of the projects Its various outputs nave to be available according to eesEnedule that. is co-ordinated with the procurement and Construction needs. Asa result there are denangs for the esrly ordering of long-delivery equipment, the conmencenent of site Construction work before design work’ is completed, the ordering Sf bulk matersals such as piping components before the design is Completes, and sometimes even when detailed design has hardly Started. Simply putting more people on the Job or working lorger fours are not necessarily practical pethods of acceleration, they tre liable to cause a reduction in efficiency and incressed Grrors. Besides, the schedule may be dependent on receipt of Gcsign information trom relatively inflexible third parties. In practice the two most connon devices to shorten the schedule are Parallel working and assumption of design information. In their Bpplication the two devices are alaost identical.+* Tn conclusion, it should be apparent that a flovsheet or CHIASLUs Tigig definition of what tasks can be performed at vhat lage: There is an inherent flexibility to commence tasks without Joon of the required information at a price ~ and it as the use of this facility, and the resulting challenges in terms of the Suagenent. to be exercised and the teanvork needed to retain Control of the work, that is one of the major different iators of performance. The flexible approach 1s one of the factors which Separates the "can’t-do" plodders from the achievers, but being foo ambitious in this regard can result in chaos. DOING THE ENGINEERING WORK In this section, we will review the management of the engineering work which has Deen planned, and enlarge on the Shecution of certain of the activities. It i= not the sntent to Tocus on specific engineering discipline methodologies and bractice} ve are concerned with the adaption ef the discipline 11 The making and control of assumptions, in order to expedite ‘engineering y ‘2 one of the key issues of provect Gngineering in a competitive environment. This 1s discussee in Aosendix Sy Compressing Engineering Schedules.