The execution phase of the shutdown is the most important phase� It is char- acterized by the performance of a large volume of tasks by a large number of people of many skills and disciplines concentrated in a limited space� If the plan was laid out well, all the allocated resources will be pulled together to realize their full potential� However, the shutdown coordinator should not just sit back and watch it all happen� The effective control and coordination of work is also very important�
Execution can be broken down into a number of subphases, as follows: • Preshutdown work
• Shutting the plant down (removing inventory, decontaminating, cooling, isolating)
• Opening the plant up (physical disconnection of items and removal of covers)
• Inspecting the plant (visual and instrumental examination and report); nondestructive testing etc�
• Installation of new items; overhaul of existing items • Safety review during execution
• Boxing the plant up (final inspection, replacement of covers, and reconnection)
• Daily meeting/communication • Monitoring and controlling • Joint integrity management
• Plant testing (pressure tests, system tests, trip and alarm tests) • Starting the plant up (reconnecting services and reintroducing
inventory)
• Plant cleanup and final inspection (removing all traces) of the turnaround
Kickoff Meeting
The kickoff meeting is the first in a series of team meetings� It is critical for team members because it provides a broad introduction to the shutdown� Among the topics covered at the meeting are planning, and the methods used to plan and execute the shutdown� In addition, team members are put through a series of exercises and discussions� At this time, they learn what lies ahead of them�
Everything anyone ever wanted to know about the shutdown is revealed at the kickoff meeting! It lays the groundwork for what lies ahead for the team� Working through the agenda, the shutdown manager explains procedures to be used to execute the shutdown� The team will learn that the shutdown is a collaborative venture� They will all participate in shutdown planning and share in achieving good communication within the shutdown, and they will learn that their expertise will be needed in creating the shutdown plan� They also will learn that in creating the plan, each team member can support the shutdown by going beyond his or her personal knowledge to query subject matter experts within their organization, by asking for help in developing the information they bring to planning meetings� Because it is important that every team member fully understands these points at the beginning of the shutdown, everyone on the team must attend this meeting!
A preshutdown walk-through with everyone associated with the shutdown is advised� Check lighting requirements, free and open access to exits, and review any emergency plans� Check for crane activity, which should be espe- cially heeded during a shutdown� If cranes are scheduled, watch out that jobs aren’t scheduled under the crane’s lift path�
Safety
A turnaround is like a construction job, so extra precautions should be taken� There may be a lot of people in the same area at the same time during a shutdown, so the potential of one group’s work interfering with another’s is possible� It’s a good idea to step through all jobs that will be going on concur- rently� Questions of safety during this activity should be asked:
• Have all personnel, including contractors, been briefed on personnel protective equipment requirements?
• Are safety procedures such as lockout, vessel entry, and hot work understood by all?
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Executing the Shutdown
• Will adequate lighting be available? • What type of lockout will be used? • Will blinds be required?
• Will people be working above other people?
• Will two or more groups be working in close proximity? • Will a crane or other overhead device be used in this area?
Job Status Update
Up-to-date information is the key to shutdown success� Lack of job informa- tion during shutdown execution is the root of many shutdown failures� The status of all jobs must be communicated in a timely manner� A formal rou- tine should be developed to report job progress�
1� Each morning, the shutdown coordinator should communicate with the shift coordinators� If a three-shift operation is being employed, the second (or night) shift coordinator should have already briefed the third (or graveyard) shift coordinator� Information provided by the coordina- tors should include
a� Delays and problems that occurred during the prior evening� b� Which problems were resolved and which were not� Unresolved
problems on back shifts end up being handled by the day shift� c� Staffing changes that were made during the evening�
d� The percentage of completion of all the jobs performed during the evening�
e� A rough estimate of the elapsed time remaining on each job� 2� During the day shift, all problems which may result in a delay
in completion time or an increase in shutdown cost should be communicated�
3� At the end of every day shift, the shutdown planner should meet with all the shutdown support personnel and update the shutdown status�
4� Properly close all work orders from the shutdown as they are com- pleted� Don’t wait until the end of the shutdown� This will help keep the shutdown cost accounting up to date�
Daily Schedule
Some shutdown coordinators wrongly wait until the start of each shift to develop a schedule� They feel they won’t know enough about the progress of jobs to develop a good schedule� Still others require the maintenance super- visors to develop their own schedule from the updated master schedule�
It is important that individual daily schedules be broken out of the master schedule before each day of the shutdown� It is best if this task is performed by or under the direction of the shutdown coordinator� The resources have already been properly leveled and extra downtime jobs have been added to better use the eight maintenance employees, eight per shift� Two, 12-hour shifts are employed� The evening shift schedule can also be developed ahead of time� Any changes required to the evening schedule prior to the shift change should be minor� The maintenance first-shift supervisor can com- municate these changes�
Reporting Status
A shutdown planner should be prepared to report the status of the shutdown at any time� Early on in the shutdown, it should have been determined who the customers or stakeholders are�
The status meetings held with shift coordinators and other shutdown team members will provide the background information for all communications with operations� The shutdown coordinator should verify the statements made during these sessions and take actions to get the shutdown on track� Once these actions are in place, the shutdown coordinator should conduct a session with operations�
Progress with respect to eventual start-up time is usually the most desired information� Any situations that may extend the shutdown should be reported immediately� Any contingency plans and remedies should also be communicated to operations�
The shutdown manager should also report if the shutdown work is pro- gressing quicker than originally estimated� Operations may want to resched- ule operators or other line personnel for the earlier date�
An atmosphere of total communication should exist during the shutdown� Other persons involved in the shutdown, such as maintenance workers, may want to know how their efforts are affecting the shutdown� The shutdown master schedule should be displayed for all to see� The current status toward completion should be indicated on the schedule� Any benchmarks or goals that have been reached should be identified clearly�
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Executing the Shutdown
A Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT) chart provides the best overall look at shutdown progress� The jobs that are completed are high- lighted� Delays and extensions of certain jobs are also shown, along with a progress update�
Tracking Shutdown Costs
Shutdown cost data should also be published and displayed for all to see� There are two common ways to present the data: cost per week and cumula- tive costs�
Budget versus actual costs is best tracked using the cumulative (S-curve) and weekly charting method�
This chart shows progress made toward reaching the budgeted goal for the shutdown� Both estimated and actual costs are displayed�
In addition, the following points are taken care of during the shutdown: • Updation in software to identify overall shutdown status
• System of rescheduling of activities with resource allocation based on daily work progress
• Reporting system for daily shutdown monitoring
• Coordination among departments, that is, maintenance disciplines, production, materials, technical services, and administration
• Monitoring and reporting format for maintenance and shutdown jobs
• Preparedness for unplanned/unforeseen jobs
• Record of shutdown execution and completion, the detail execution phases like safety, quality, monitoring and control are described in separate chapters�
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