Lesson 1 | Prelims
Process Plant
Layout and
Piping Design
BSME – 4th Yr
Learning objectives
1. Understanding the fundamental aspects of process plants, plant layout and piping
design.
2. Understanding the procedures and the workflow methods used in designing process
plants and piping systems.
3. Understanding the physical quantities and units used in process plant layout and
piping design.
1.1 Plant layout fundamentals
Process Plants
are complex facilities consisting of equipment, piping systems, instruments, electrical
systems, electronics, computers and control systems
SAMPLE OF PROCESSING FACILITIES
Refineries Chemical/Petrochemical Plant
SAMPLE OF PROCESSING FACILITIES
Off-shore Processing Facilities Power Plant
SAMPLE OF PROCESSING FACILITIES
Food and Beverage Pharmaceutical Plants
SAMPLE OF PROCESSING FACILITIES
Water Treatment Plant
The design of process plants is a complex team effort involving different disciplines of
engineering: process (chemical), mechanical, piping, electrical, instrumentation, controls,
materials and project. It also requires considerable management and coordination skills.
Other factors to be considered in the design of
process plants are:
Short design, engineering and construction schedules and getting the plant on stream as quickly as possible.
Minimizing or even eliminating field rework, which significantly increases plant construction cost.
Constructability
Maintainability
Operability
Satisfying environmental requirements.
Minimizing cost
Tasks involved in plant layout and piping design:
1. Development and refinement of “Plot Plans”. Plot plans are representations of precise location of equipment
and their associated infrastructure (foundations, ladders, platforms etc.). Plot plans are developed taking
into consideration process, client and safety requirements. Plant coordinates are used extensively in
specifying equipment locations.
2. Establishing equipment nozzle locations. Nozzles are components of equipment that connect to pipe.
3. Routing of pipes. This is a dynamic and iterative process until the equipment and nozzle locations are
finalized.
4. Designing equipment ancillaries such as foundations, platforms, and stairways.
5. Location of safety equipment such as fire hydrants and safety showers.
6. Being cognizant of the location of structures, instruments, control valves, electrical raceways and
miscellaneous plant items while routing pipe.
Skills and Qualities Required:
1. Sufficient knowledge of the process being used including function of each equipment. This information is
obtained from the process group in the form of “Process Flow Diagrams (PFDs)”.
2. Knowledge of the operating and maintenance procedures used for equipment.
3. Common sense and attention to detail.
4. Ability to think creatively to solve layout problems and challenges.
5. Ability to think and visualize spatial relationships between plant items in three dimensions.
6. Ability to effectively use computer tools such as 3D modeling software and pipe stress analysis software.
7. Excellent communication skills.
8. Ability to function effectively as a member of a multi-disciplinary project team.
9. Effectively communicate and resolve layout issues and problems with project management.
10. Ability to produce, maintain and update project drawings and documents.
11. Awareness that conscientious, quality effort during the design and engineering phase can shorten project
schedules resulting in economic benefits and client goodwill.
Rules of Thumb in designing:
1. Knowledge and understanding of project requirements and project documents.
2. Conservation of space and resources.
3. Arrangement of equipment in a neat, organized manner taking into account process needs and safety.
4. Attention to detail including adjacent equipment, supports and other items, which can cause potential
clashes between piping and equipment/supports.
5. Consideration of constructability, operability and maintainability of the plant.
6. Routing of pipe in a neat, orderly and symmetrical manner keeping in mind the future needs of the plant.
7. Avoiding excessive changes in elevations and directions.
8. Ensuring consistency in design.
9. Avoiding excessive amounts of relocations and revisions by “doing it right the first time”.
Work flow methods:
Organizations involved in providing standards and
guidelines for plant layout and piping design
1. American Society for Mechanical Engineers (ASME): Publishes and updates codes for piping design. The code
relevant to the design of piping systems is ASME B31.3 – 2004 Process Piping. (www.asme.org)
2. Center for Chemical Process Safety (CCPS): Publishes documents and guidelines related to process safety.
The focus is on preventing or mitigating catastrophic releases of chemicals, hydrocarbons, and other
hazardous materials. CCPS has published guidelines for “Facility Siting and Layout”. (www.aiche.org/ccps)
3. Construction Industry Institute (CII): Provides guidelines for cost effective and safe construction methods and
has several publications on constructability. (www.construction-institute.org)
4. Society of Piping Engineers and Designers (SPED): Promotes excellence and quality in the practice of piping
engineering and design. SPED emphasizes education and training and has certification programs for piping
designers. (www.spedweb.org)
5. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA): Provides regulations and safety standards for the
operation of process plants. (www.osha.gov)
6. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA): Provides fire protection standards for process plants and for gas
storage and handling. (www.nfpa.org)
Physical quantities and units in plant layout and
piping design:
Common abbreviations used in plant layout and
piping design:
1. N,S,E,W: North, South, East and West
2. CL: Centerline
3. El: Elevation
4. TOS: Top of Steel
5. BOP: Bottom of Pipe
6. POS: Point of Support
7. BBP: Bottom of Baseplate
8. ISBL: Inside Battery Limits
9. OSBL: Outside Battery Limits
10. AG: Above Ground
11. UG: Underground
12. ϕ: Diameter
13. OD: Outside Diameter of pipe
14. ID: Inside Diameter of pipe
15. TL: Tangent Line
16. TYP: Typical
17. PFD: Process Flow Diagram
18. P&ID: Piping and Instrumentation Diagram
