White Paper: Operational Excellence Through …

1 ByWilliam Green, President GP Strategies Ms. Phindile Mooketse Plant Manager, Generation Division EskomWhite paper : Operational Excellence Through qualification and Global Knowledge TransferWhite paper : Operational Excellence Through qualification and Global Knowledge TransferG3 6trategies &orporation $bstract This paper presents examples of successful Operational Excellence projects and best practice approaches employed by GP Strategies in partnership with Eskom, Medupi power Plant (six units of 800MW) and other power companies around the world. These best practices have allowed power companies to realize benefits such as improvement in plant worker knowledge retention and skills development, improved plant and personnel safety, reduction in operation and maintenance costs, and reduction in operator-preventable errors.

2 GP Strategies, a global performance improvement company, has worked in partnership with numerous power companies around the world to address specific workforce-related performance concerns within power generation organizations. GP Strategies employs empirically proven approaches and principles of Human Performance Improvement processes to address and resolve workforce-related concerns in all phases of the power plant lifecycle (that is, new construction, retrofit, and sustained operations). Eskom, in turn, has been in power generation for 90 years and is now constructing two of the first super critical fossil power plants in South Africa that are the fourth biggest in the world.

3 Eskom s approach to Operational readiness best practices is based on robust operator qualification and enhancement of the existing operating culture within the fleet of 14 coal-fired power plants and has joined with GP Strategies for process improvement and global knowledge transfer. This paper focuses on the most common workforce-related power plant concerns and presents the concerns, the resolution approach, the obstacles to overcome, and the results. The paper also highlights recommended best practice approaches based on GP Strategies 45-plus years of experience in power generation performance improvement and Eskom s 90 years of experience in power generation practices.

4 ,ntroductionOver the course of the foreseeable future, the global power generation industry faces a significant challenge in meeting energy demands. By 2040, global electricity generation is projected to nearly double with the most significant growth expected from developing countries. The demand that is driving this growth, the continued short-term predominance of fossil fuel sources in power generation, and the desire to control global warming are also forcing power companies to generate electricity in a more competitive, efficient, and reliable manner.

5 This is requiring power companies to rapidly deploy new generation capability and, at the same time, move their organizations towards Operational Excellence . Each organization must establish a strategy for achieving Operational Excellence based on clearly defined metrics that are critical for successful operation and company performance. In general, an operationally excellent power -generating organization is one that can operate and maintain the plant in a safe, efficient, cost-effective, and reliable manner. The three major factors that contribute to performance and Operational Excellence in a power plant environment are the: People that operate and maintain the plant Processes instituted to govern operation and maintenance of the facility Technology deployed and leveraged at the plantOnce the plant design has been established, the major technology decisions that impact performance are made.

6 The exceptions are technological improvements, which are considered as they become available, and add-on technologies that can help maintain design performance. However, an organization s people and processes are, and will remain, the most significant controllable contributors in determining whether the organization can and will achieve Operational Excellence . Many challenges work against organizations striving to achieve Operational Excellence . They include, but are not limited to, qualified labor shortages, loss of legacy skills and knowledge within the organization Through attrition, knowledge transfer issues due to generational differences, and rapid technological advancements.

7 This paper focuses on strategies to overcome many of these challenges so that organizations can achieve Operational Excellence in part Through qualification and global knowledge transfer. This paper examines methodologies recently employed at a new build project seeking to drive Operational Excellence from the onset of commercial operation. These methods employ performance improvement processes and global knowledge transfer in the design and development of training and qualification programs to qualify competent operators to safely, reliably, and efficiently operate and maintain their power plants.

8 White paper : Operational Excellence Through qualification and Global Knowledge TransferG3 6trategies &orporation 0ethodologies EPplo\ed in Global Knowledge Transfer for Operator Excellence Methods used for global knowledge transfer include the following: Performance Expectations Industry Best Practices The Future State Defining Performance Expectations No two power generation companies are identical. Although they face similar challenges, each operates at a specific time in the lifecycle of the company or plant and has unique and specific challenges that need to be identified, quantified, and addressed.

9 Each also operates in a unique environment from a competitive perspective. Based on these market and competitive considerations, senior leadership within the organization typically identifies critical metrics or Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that are used to define the company s measure of success. They also must establish measurable and achievable targets for these KPIs, which become the measure of success within the organization that, in turn, drives performance expectations and operating models throughout the organization. Defining Industry Best Practices In competitive market environments, benchmarking is often employed to support establishment of targets.

10 In this paper , benchmarking is defined as comparison of best practices within the same industry and identifying areas for improvement. Companies essentially examine the KPIs critical to success within their industry and identify those companies that do it better than anyone else. This is classified as best-in-class or the target for Excellence and the goal of other competing organizations to attain or exceed. GP Strategies, in partnership with power -generating companies around the world, has integrated the processes of benchmarking and assessment to drive Operational Excellence with power plant operating environments.