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Show Progress Wednesday, November 10A Emery County 16, 1983 No. 2 gets thorough overhaul imtington - Like pieces HUNTINGTON of a mammoth, jigsaw puzzle, the internal workings of the No. 2 Unit at the Huntington Power Plant are being put back together after overhaul. Utah Power & Light Co. maintenance crews have been days for working six, the last five weeks to inspect almost every part of every system in the unit. But theres something going on here that goes beyond the routine inspection, replacement and repair. Huntington No. 2 is being improved. The company took advantage of this scheduled down time to continue installing changes that have resulted from an intensified engineering, training program that has put UP&L near the top of its class of electric utilities. And it was a program that had to begin while the company was reeling from a o punch in 1976 and 1977. Arvin S. Gibson, the companys executive vice president for operations, explains what happened to change the way UP&L looked at reliability. Before 1976, he says, the company could get by with less emphasis and expense on maintenance. Minor failures and breakdowns were tolerable, simply because there was plenty of power to buy from neighboring power companies, and at prices that were close to the companys cost of generating its own power. But in June 1976, a faulty switch caused an explosion that knocked out the Huntington No. 2 turbine for a year. In the winter of that year and 1977, a drought hit the Northwest, drying up the sources of hydroelectric power the company had relied on for years. The drought did to hydro prices what OPEC did to oil prices. Suddenly, UP&L had to squeeze every megawatt it could out of its own system. The first thing we had to do was find out where we were and how we got there, Mr. Gibson says. So the company started a multi-million-doll- ar one-tw- 10-ho-ur att and management effort that began to take shape seven years ago. For example, members of a traveling maintenance crew have glued abrasion-resistaceramic tile to the lining of the coal mills. These are huge machines that pulverize tons of coal per hour into the consistency of talcum powder. The tile will outlast steel in the fierce storms of coal dust. Plant Operations Superintendent Bill Kile says this will keep the mills running longer and more reliably than before, reducing the failures that were once a leading cause of lost output. When a mill broke down, it meant that not enough coal would get to the boiler, so the plant couldnt generate as much power. Elsewhere in the plant, welders have sealed off minor leaks in the section of the steam turbine. This turbine runs something like a pinwheel, only it weighs many tons and its spun around by jets of steam blowing across its blades. The turbine is what spins the generator to make electricity. This section wasnt scheduled for overhaul, but the leaks were nt documented according to cause, then engineers, operators and maintenance people figured out system of operating and maintenance reporting that has since evolved into a sophisticated, computerized data base. Reports are compiled on a daily, monthly and quarterly basis and are so complete that the reliability of any subsystem in any power plant can be called up on a computer screen, according to Dale Richards, Steam Generation Availability Engineer. Parts or systems are then arranged according to failure rate and cost in lot megawatts. These data give the basis for plotting the most attack on inefficiency. cost-effecti- solutions. When the cures were found, a ve a Jt decreasing a "MW the situation and isolated the problem, based on their that enable plant 1 calculations of the cost of repair and the benefits of extra output, to fix the plant got the the turbine during overhaul. The improvements in the turbine and coal mills are designed to improve a rating go-ahe- ad called equivalent a measurement in utility watched thats closely Mi availability, -- - V- circles. Simply stated, availability equivalent measures how much power a generator could put out at any given time. Huntington Plant Manager Tim Gwyther explains that this were Dave Herring glues ceramic tile inside a coal mill. The tile will improve efficiency because it outlasts steel. & 1. ?. I fy I 4 steam power and sapping $W studied Engineers operators to spot and report problems and control plant functions more smoothly. It was training that upgraded the skills of maintenance people who repaired those problems. And it was training at the managerial level that put it all together. The company also beefed up its engineering force to design improvements. In the case of the coal mills, for example, all the factors of the program came together. Their failure rate put them near the top in causes of reduced Breakdowns So the more power Huntington can put out, the less power is required from units where coal is more expensive. burning facility. Huntington is right next to its coal mine, so there is virtually no tran- - result of this targeted response to a problem has been a dramatic drop in pulverizer failures. Operations supervisor Kile notes that the repairs on the Huntington turbine follow a similar pattern. Plant operators found that the generator wasnt putting out as much power as they thought it should, and reported the problem. d Training went with the data base gathering, Mr. Gibson explains. It was output. crew organized and trained for this purpose went to work. The hand-in-han- training maintenance traveling sportation expense added to the cost of coal, rating is especially important to his plant because it is the companys most efficient coal- - ' efficiency slightly. JrA -- i Engineers determined it could be fixed for an acceptable extra expense while the plant was 4', 'O' - Myron Pierce checks out a device that measures temperatures inside the generator. The device prevents damage to shut down. The mills and turbine are two case studies of a reliability a- - if X X the generator by warning of overheating conditions. V- . - V. 7 X - XV , j turbine and generator have been disassembled for overhaul. No. Huntington Cigds 2 304-266- 2 i.t E.C. Kift lim 69 Mini 32 Chimpiofl ol a 2.69 1 .49 Hires Root Beer 2 liter Vpt. Whip Cream A A iA A. J Butterboll Turkeys iw.39 Topping MEADOW GOLD -- S wa 89 Mrs. Smith's Pumpkin Pie IGA fj 6h.89 Stove Top Stuffing Chiffon Dinner Hopkins Seedless Raisins V isoz.79 Pitted Olives Mcrshnallows X. X 7f'- - 85 289 IGA Whole Hams IGA Half Hams Rib V2 Loin ib. "93 "93 lean" Lean Pork Loin Vi Pork Cheese V.P. Mild, Colby, Mozzarella 87 1.79 1.89 ib.M .09 ib.1 .19 1.89 Ib. Ib. ft Ib. n .. MEADOW GOLD, 16 oz. Sour Cream .00 .. 8M .00 3ib$.M Tams Ruby Red Grapefruit. Fresh Carrots welder repairs a small hole in the Huntington No. 2 turbine. Small leaks had been sapping some steam power, reducing efficiency, so the company decided to fix them during overhaul. A 4i1.00 ,WVyvvw U Coke, f 1 1 jr Pepsi, 7-U- p, HIRES Vy Root Beer, 1Dr. Pepper 1 .45 with deposit CASE PRICE 4w5dePOsit Sprite, Tab, Diet Coke, Diet Sprite, Caffeine Free A 4 it time fat Foil FORGET ME HOT Roasting Pen with your Turkey and GIFTS AND CRAFTS Dressing purchase Open noon to Right off Main Street in Ferron Tuesday-Saturda- . 7 -- TT y 12 5 p.m behind Jeanle's ri |