MONTHLY BOILER MECHANICAL SAFETY CHECKS
The monthly safety check on combustion and mechanics is just as important an important a part of the overall boiler program as the water treatment service. Boiler users have long seen the value of proper water treatment as vital to the success of an effective boiler maintenance program. For a long time the mechanical needs of boilers have only been addressed when there was a problem or when a shutdown occurred.
The seven advantages of this preventative maintenance program:
(1) reducing fuel cost by improving efficiency,
(2) omitting the increasing capital costs of major boiler repairs or replacement,
(3) reduced downtime due to unexpected breakdowns,
(4) improved safety,
(5) operator training ,
(6) third party audit, and
(7) insurance assurance.
(1) Reducing fuel costs was not important for many years. It was not a significant part of overall manufacturing, operating costs. However, the Arab oil embargo in the 1970's forever changed that view. Some industries found that energy was their second highest cost falling close to their number one cost of labour. At present we have an increase in competition resulting from the deregulation of natural gas. Businesses are very conscious about energy efficiency. Energy efficiency is vital in an industry to remain competitive. And the long range planning of the American industry is to preserve energy supplies for the future. A boiler with a 20,000PPH load and seven day week operation will use $1,000,000 of natural gas per year. At today's price of $5.00 per mcf of natural gas fuel savings alone will pay for the monthly maintenance service. With only a 1% improvement in efficiency the annual savings add up to $10.000. Several boiler companies are selling visual inspections as a low cost alternative but visual inspections alone accomplish little or nothing and have no cost benefit. A combustion analyzer with stack probe and printout is recommended.
To obtain a computer analysis of your boiler fuel efficiency and operating data contact your B&HES technical representative.
(2) Capital costs associated with the purchase of new boilers have risen dramatically in the past decade. But this has been for the good. Safety requirements of CSD1 (Control Safety Device) and NFPA (National Fire Protection Agency) have now been adopted by virtually all the states and will contribute greatly to the safety of boilers in the future. Control systems are now more sophisticated for better load management and DCS (distributive control systems) allow for connecting to computer controllers. The knowledge of our qualified service technicians today is
much greater than five years ago. Other boiler companies have failed to keep up with the rapid change in technology. Proper mechanical service will reduce repair and capital costs.
(3) Downtime is one of the most expensive items associated with improper maintenance of mechanical equipment. Outages can cost from thousands of dollars per hour in a small plant to hundreds of thousands of dollars in a large plant. Monthly mechanical testing often results in early detection of improper functioning controls. If possible we replace them at that
MAINTAINING EFFICIENCY
An important part of maintaining the plant is maintaining efficiency. Since the cost of fuel is the largest
single expense in a boiler plant activity it’s essential to prevent that cost getting out of control. Efficiency main tenance relies on two activities;
1. monitoring to detect any changes and
2. tune-ups when a problem arises.
Monitoring is the boiler operator’s responsibility; tune-ups are usually performed by outside contractors that have the necessary equipment and skills to perform that work. I would prefer to do my own tuning but there’s nothing wrong in having an outside contractor do the work in small plants where the energy saved cannot justify the purchase and maintenance of the equipment required to
tune up a boiler. An operator should know enough about tuning to ensure the contractor is doing a proper job and the sections on combustion and controls in this book are sufficient to impart that knowledge.
RECORDS
How do you remember when it’s time to change the oil in your automobile? That sticker on the windshield or side of the door is a record that gives you that information. I don’t know about you but I can never remember the mileage when I changed my oil last and that record is important because without it I may fail to change the oil until the engine lets me know I should have. Schedules for maintenance are essential to ensure the longevity and reliability of most equipment.
Whether you let it run until it breaks or perform significant PM (preventive maintenance/predictive maintenance) documentation is essential. For breakdown maintenance items it allows you to know about when you need to order a spare device because the operating one is scheduled to fail. More importantly, the documents tell you what to buy, what oil to use, what grease to use, etc., so you perform the maintenance in a manner that keeps the equipment and systems running.
Maintenance isn’t complete until all the documents are properly filed away (see the chapter on documentation). To anyone investigating your plant after an incident a lack of maintenance records is an indication of a failure on your part to see to it that the work was done. You can say you did it, describe the day and what you did, but without that documentation you can’t prove it. When a check is listed as part of an SOP then your entry into the log that you performed the procedure is documented
proof you did it. Be careful, however, that it’s done consistently or the entire log is questionable. Do
what you say you will and say what you did consistently for the protection of your employer, your job, and the health and welfare of you and your fellow employees.
OPERATOR ERROR AND POOR MAINTENANCE
Regrettably the National Board statistics, which are quoted here, don’t provide enough breakdown to clearly indicate why trends exist or to detect reasons for trends. I’ve seen a considerable increase in the elimination of central plants with licensed boiler operators. Their replacement multiple low pressure heating plants are maintained by individuals without a license so the increasing contribution of operator error to boiler failures isn’t really surprising. Until such time that the National
Board chooses to differentiate between licensed individuals and the janitor there’s no way for them to determine if that’s the case. In my judgment it’s the perception that licensed operators cost too much and actions taken to replace them that has resulted in increased losses and loss of life. When the person maintaining a boiler has all the training and skill of a janitor that was handed a broom and told where the boiler room is it’s no wonder this facet of failures is showing
an increase.
Is it that increase the operators’ fault? Hell no! When I encounter problems that are attributable to operator error or poor maintenance I always find an attitude on the part of the plant management that promotes or enforces the improper action or lack of action. I’ve recommended training for upper management in many plants since the 1970’s and have yet to do any. All that plant manager wants to hear from me is how screwed up the operators are and when I tell that manger that the
Problem originates at a higher level than the operators they go look for another consultant that will tell them what they want. I hope a lot of plant managers read this book but my experience indicates they won’t.
Frequently it’s not the operator that contributes to poor maintenance. The operator manages to keep the plant running by a growing mountain of temporary fixes that accumulate until nothing can keep the boiler running. The reason is management’s attitude about maintenance. In some cases operators simply have to allow the boiler to fail or shut it down due to unsafe operating conditions. One of the advantages of a license is that license gives you the authority to do just that, shut it down and refuse to operate it. Of course there’s a potential for being fired but you may get a supporting position from another source and after a hearing you will be reinstated. When you don’t have the confidence to shut the boiler down you do have the option of reporting the condition to the State Chief Boiler Inspector who will send a deputy inspector to look at the boiler. If the problem is one that threatens failure the deputy will ‘red tag’ the boiler and instruct you to shut it down.
There’s absolutely no way you can be dismissed under those circumstances. And, just because an insurance company inspector passed your boiler don’t believe you have no recourse. I know of several instances where a State Deputy Inspector red tagged a boiler that was reported safe by an insurance
company inspector. That’s especially true if nobody sees the inspector but a new certificate to operate
suddenly appears. There are situations where an insurance inspector has inspected the boiler while sitting in front of the television at his house several miles away. They aren’t supposed to do it, but it’s done. The National Board’s data doesn’t break down maintenance problems either. The most likely is loss due to lack of proper water treatment but we simply don’t know. I think that’s highly probable because a large number of boilers are installed and operated with no consideration of water treatment beyond an initial charge of chemicals, especially hot water boilers. If it isn’t broke don’t fix it! How often we’ve heard those words in one form or another. I’m always told that it hasn’t broke yet so it must be okay. If there’s no log, no record of maintenance, and no repair history I’m there because the plant is frequently shutting down for unknown reasons and fuel bills seem to be much higher. Just because it’s working doesn’t mean it’s working right. People that use that excuse are costing their employer a lot of money and exposing themselves to increased risk of injury or death.
It’s true that a licensed boiler operator could make a mistake with disastrous consequences, a license is no guarantee and neither is training. However, I’ve had many opportunities to observe individuals without a license and have no doubt that the lack of the discipline involved in training and preparing for the exam leaves lots of room for error. If you don’t have a license that doesn’t mean you’re more likely to make a mistake because I’m reasonably confident that the operator that chooses to read this book is far less likely to do something that will result in an accident with loss of life or serious injury than one who believes it’s a waste of time. Part of the business of acquiring a license includes
the development of respect for the profession and greater understanding of the responsibility so you
should attempt to get a license even if you don’t need to have one. It’s more a matter of attitude than the actual license. When a state licensing program exists the wise operator seeks to obtain the license to support a professional perception of his role.
Attitude and perception seem to be the key to operator error. When a boiler is damaged, and I’ve investigated several cases of damage that never reached the status of a National Board investigation and report; any failure in operation is usually attributable to an attitude. The most disconcerting one is “the boss doesn’t care so why should I?” Since I have the opportunity to get to know operators in several boiler plants I eventually learn a lot about their perception of their job and their attitude. It’s the ones that seem to believe that they can get away with doing the minimum and the company should be happy that they even show up that eventually make the mistakes that result in damage. Usually that
same attitude also protects them from exposure to the failure and eventual injury as well, an undeserved result. I know many operators who I’m certain will eventually do something, or not do something, that will result in failure and possible injury or death. If you don’t have some fear, fear that a boiler failure could occur if you did the wrong thing, then you are potentially one of those people that will make a mistake. You shouldn’t be afraid of the plant but you do have to respect the potential for a boiler or furnace explosion and act accordingly. It’s the people without fear, with an attitude that they’re infallible, that take unnecessary risks with everything from shortening purge periods to skipping boiler water analysis which eventually result in a failure.
Over the years I’ve screwed up. In some cases it was a royal screw up. You’ll never know how many of those operators described in this book were really the author. I give you all I can to prevent your making those mistakes and I hope you’ve learned something and even enjoyed that learning experience a little. I also hope you learned those priorities and acquired a respect for the equipment you’re operating. God bless you all, the devil doesn’t need any more help with his furnaces.
