Specialized Engineering

Scan input – process logic – scan output – housekeeping – repeat.

Now you know what every single power plant turbine controller does in about the time it takes you to blink. A 40 ton steel rotor requires utmost control while spinning one revolution in a fraction of that time.

This is a unique field of expertise, it is complicated, requires specific engineering know how and, if not done right, the results can be catastrophic.

You can think of a power plant control system as the brains of the plant. However, control systems rely on electronics, software and devices that have a finite life typically ⅓ of that of the rotating equipment. Therefore, plant control systems require periodic upgrades and replacements. As discussed in our prior blog Why You Are Not Maintaining Your Control System, it is very easy for the asset owner to push the retrofit into the next budget year, provided the system is operating reliably. Eventually, the control system must be upgraded.

Years of brain drain and structural change for equipment manufacturers

Here’s the rub, the services business for controls is a low revenue business, it’s complicated and it’s hard to sell.

Originally, turbine controls were part of a vertically integrated turbine/generator package with control divisions heavily subsidized and embedded with the turbine group. Over the decades, equipment manufacturer’s focus has shifted more and more to increasing shareholder value. As such, service businesses were moved off their balance sheets or to stand alone divisions more aligned to automation rather than a dedicated, prime mover, controls business. This has put in house turbine controls divisions in the cross hairs of corporate financial engineering for years.

The result? Erosion of resources and capabilities replaced with outsourcing strategies or loss of market share.