Reason Magazin 2014Q3 Seite 13

Hinweis: Dies ist eine maschinenlesbare No-Flash Ansicht.
Klicken Sie hier um zur Online-Version zu gelangen.

Inhalt

ISSUE 3 2014 Reason 13 theLATEST nets on the ground floor Equipment was also burned in the rooms directly adjacent to the Unit A transformer room And that was only the direct damage The plant was down for five days until tem porary equipment was rented and installed Once production ramped back up it reached approximately 80 percent of the norm within three days and was back to nearly 100 per cent of capacity within two weeks following the loss this was accomplished by operat ing with limited outside power using diesel generators and mobile transformers which incurred additional costs to bring on site and operate The fire necessitated the rental of 15 large generators to power the plant as well as the rental of several propane powered forklift trucks to temporarily replace battery pow ered units that could not be reliably recharged The long lead time required to purchase and install replacement transformers and electrical equipment entailed keeping that equipment in place for weeks Similarly the lack of sprinklers and the cable penetrations and floor openings allowed the fire to spread to areas outside the room of origin It should be noted that the separation and enclosure of transformers the presence of smoke detectors and the prompt action by plant personnel in response to the fire helped to mitigate damage This incident shows that a fire involv ing a relatively small amount of mineral oil released by an indoor transformer explosion can cause millions of dollars in damage and lost production if not properly isolated from the surrounding occupancy notes Glenn Mahnken former senior engineering special ist for engineering standards at FM Global According to Mahnken it is important to understand the potential ripple effects that transformer breakdowns may have on production downtime Recognize that any transformer could fail and establish a con tingency plan to expedite obtaining and installing a replacement especially when high value production operations would be impacted by the breakdown he says problems as well as those associated with normal usage it is important to institute a program of regular inspection and ongoing testing and maintenance Xu says Testing is particularly important because it can provide early indicators of internal problems before they become dan gerous Preparing to mitigate aftereffects of transformer failures is part of a sound loss prevention strategy but paying close attention to transformer function and perfor mance through maintenance and testing can help avoid failures in the first place says Xu Every transformer has electrical pro tective relay devices designed to act within a second to isolate the transformer when faults arrive It is critical that they are properly maintained and regularly tested For more information on transformer loss prevention consult FM Global Property Loss Prevention Data Sheet 5 4 Transform ers or talk to your FM Global loss preven tion consultant about site specific advice and assistance When designing rooms for mineral oil insulated transformers Mahnken advises to anticipate the potential for violent arcing scenarios that may lead to rupture of the shell and cause fire to spread outside the room if the room is not properly sealed to contain the ejected oil and fireball follow ing the rupture If feasible says Mahnken use a dry transformer an FM Approved transformer or a transformer insulated with FM Approved transformer fluid Preventing electrical problems before they start is also critical Shuzhen Xu senior staff engineering specialist in engineering standards at FM Global explains that trans former problems can arise from many dif ferent factors Trouble can start with poor handling of the transformer in delivery and during installation which can potentially damage or weaken the internal structure itself overloading a poor operational envi ronment In addition to internal contami nation external threats such as lightening strikes and grid disturbance can pose issues To detect and anticipate any resulting 3 BOILERS3 COMPRESSORS 4 PULP AND PAPER PROCESSING 6 NON ROTATING ELECTRICAL 43 TURBINES 14 GENERATORS 11 TRANSFORMERS 7 CHEMICAL VESSEL PROCESS EQUIPMENT 9 MINERAL METAL PROCESSING BIGGEST EQUIPMENT LOSSES AMONG FM GLOBAL CLIENTS 2008 2013