The Marathon Catlettsburg Refinery has been a Meridium user for the past 10 years. During this time, the use of Meridium has evolved from a database storing basic equipment information to a tool used to assist in the development of a fully integrated asset performance management (APM) program combining engineering, reliability, inspection management, process safety information and mechanical integrity work flows. Development Stages
Stage 1. At the Catlettsburg Refinery, the APM development process begins with engineering equipment controllers building equipment records within the Registry tool. Data is managed through the use of defined equipment numbering and data information processing standards. Once equipment numbers are generated, corresponding key process safety information is populated. The careful organization of equipment records builds the foundation of success for the management of our data. Once equipment is added to the database, condition alert technology is used to notify other groups that action is required.
Stage 2. The APM process continues with an evaluation of how individual equipment will be managed by the Refinery. These reviews are conducted by specialists who are responsible for specific equipment types. For example, reliability engineers handle electrical, instrumentation and rotating categories, while the Inspection department focuses on fixed equipment.
Stage 3. Inspection, testing and preventative maintenance (ITPM) plans are designed and managed using corporate mechanical integrity and reliability reference practices. All equipment receives a final designation which determines whether the assets are to be included in the site Mechanical Integrity Plan.
Stage 4. Inspection, Calibration and Electrical Management tools are used to set up tasks. These activities may be planned 10 years into the future. Tasks will include the type of inspection, interval and next scheduled inspection. Condition alert programs are then designed to communicate to responsible parties when inspection plans are due, corrosion inspection is anticipated, as well as reviewing when compliance dates will occur.
Stage 5. The above schedules, as well as corrosion data related to fixed and piping systems, are used to populate turnaround work lists, routine maintenance and capital project upgrades. The activities are all managed so that due dates of inspection are not exceeded. Extensive reliability analysis is conducted on rotating equipment; ITPM efforts are managed within the site work order system.
Stage 6. Once the plans have been executed the results of the inspections, as well as work order history, are captured within a single database. A review is conducted again at the conclusion of the event to optimize the next scheduled inspection.
Data Integration Drives Better Decisions
Activities are scheduled using the most effective combination of reliability practices that are needed to support the Catlettsburg Mechanical Integrity (MI) Program. For example, a heat exchanger scheduled for an MI inspection may be proactively replaced so that the availability of the equipment will exceed the scheduled turnaround cycle. Decisions such as this are made by the fixed equipment specialists who rely on the performance history and analyses that are contained in the database. This effort is made more efficient since information related to the inspection history, work order, process safety information and mechanical integrity credentials are all readily available.
Another example of the benefits associated with an integrated data approach to asset management decisions: Corrosion is taking place within a particular system; in the event that the corrosion at a location is expected to approach 50% of retirement, inspectors are notified months in advance, so that proactive inspections and repairs may be accomplished.
Importance of Sharing Data
Data related to asset performance is shared with all departments using a WEB portal so that effective cross departmental decisions may be made regarding the management of the assets. In addition, navigation to external databases is coordinated by using the equipment number as a master search index. This strategy results in efficient mining of data by employees who would otherwise be searching through non-electronic media.
Quantifying Results
The Catlettsburg Refinery continues to focus on reliability improvement efforts by successfully integrating our engineering, reliability, inspection, process safety and mechanical data for the development, management, execution and evaluation of our asset management strategies. This improved decision making process has manifested itself in multiple reliability improvements including a mechanical availability performance exceeding 97 percent and corresponding quantifiable savings through the reduction of lost opportunity events.
About the author:
Louis R. Miller, PE, is a Senior Refining Engineer for Marathon's Catlettsburg Refinery, located near Ashland Kentucky. He currently serves as the site Meridium and Mechanical Integrity Coordinator. During the past 19 years, he has been involved with refinery construction, turnaround planning, maintenance reliability and mechanical integrity. He has a BS degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Missouri and is a registered Professional Engineer in Missouri and Kentucky. Lou also holds certifications in the API 510 Pressure Vessel Inspector as well as the API 936 Refractory Practitioner.
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