MechChem Africa February 2017

February 2017

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MechChem Africa

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Plant maintenance, lubrication and filtration

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Describing the structuring of an asset register,

he says: “For a power station, for example, we follow

the production process from the incoming resource,

through steam and electricity generation and out via

the switchgear. Or forwater treatment, we look at the

equipment and processes involved inmoving and pro-

cessing the rawwater intake, thefiltration, purification

processes, pumping and dispatching.”

The second stabilisation step is to get a sense of

the work actually being done to manage assets: Are

machines being repaired when they break down? Is

any preventive, predictive or proactive maintenance

being done? “We use the collective term ‘asset care

plans’ as ideal deliverable output from this aspect of

the programme.”

“The task is to get to grips with the assets the or-

ganisation has, howthey look after the equipment and

howeachonecomplieswithhealth,safety,securityand

environmental regulations,” he adds.

Citing assetmanagement in the renewable spaceas

an example, Nepgen says: “The cost of renewable en-

ergy generationhas comedowndrastically. Compared

toRound1of theREIPPPP, tender prices are60 to70%

lower. As a consequence, margins are lower, so very

reliable assets and optimised operate and maintain

(O&M) costs are imperative.

“Assetmanagement, whichhas been seen as luxury,

now has an integral role to play in keeping renewable

plantseconomicallyviable.Andeconomiesofscalealso

play a role. By developing some standard solutions, it

is easier to implement asset management solutions to

renewable energy operations regardless of the tech-

nology being applied – wind, solar or hydro – or of the

installed OEM equipment. Since our solutions are all

based on the ISO 55000 and GFMAM, AMIP is easily

rolled out to marginal operations across the sector,”

he tells

MechChem

“The other effective tool embedded in these solu-

tions is risk management. All plants rely on financing

and funding, so investment risks are always of concern.

Investors need to know that the assets will be effec-

tively operational for the full 20 years of the power

purchase agreement (PPA) and asset management is

an essential tool in mitigating against the long term

By developing some standard solutions, Pragma has made it easier to implement asset management solutions covering all aspects of renewable energy operations.

risks associated with poor plant performance and

reliability,” he points out.

“Any investorwill want to seewhat plans havebeen

put in place to ensure efficient operation for 20 years

and practical asset management is the obvious way to

ensureplant andfinancial sustainabilitymatches those

envisioned,” he continues.

He suggests that many development aid invest-

ments on the African continent, while initially

beneficial, “fall apart very quickly” due to poor asset

management. “So, long term, the donor’s vision is not

translated into long-term upliftment,” Nepgen says.

The final destination of the Pragma Road Map

highlights the ultimate sustainability objective. “The

principle is universally applicable, wherever there are

physical assets where the sustainability benefit has

to be realised, formalised asset management plays a

vital role.

In summary, he says that assetmanagement strives

tooptimise thebalancebetween threepillars: cost, risk

andperformance. “Byneglecting the assets, the failure

risk rises and the performance drops, whichwill even-

tually drive up the costs. But if you over minimise the

risk, then the care cost couldgo skyhigh. It is important

to find the sweet spot, where the total costs and risk

are minimised and the performance maximised.

“In practice, though, assetmanagement is all about

discipline,” he continues. “The higher an organisation

progresses on the management maturity ladder, the

moredisciplineplays a role. That iswhy theoutsourced

Asset Care Centre (ACC) service we offer is so suc-

cessful, because it enables discipline to be contracted

into a service level agreement from the start,” he

concludes.

“Asset management, which has been seen as luxury, now has an

integral role to play in keeping renewable plants economically

viable. And economies of scale also play a role. By developing some

standard solutions, it is easier to implement asset management

solutions to renewable energy operations regardless of the

technology being applied – wind, solar or hydro – or of the

installed OEM equipment.”