RMC-03-108 UNDERSTANDING THE COSTS AND CAUSES OF UNAVAILABILITY EVENTS

Description:

Although many refiners and petrochemical plant owners have managed to improve the reliability and availability of their operating facilities over the past 10 years, the cost of lost production throughout the world still runs into billions of dollars annually. Understandably, catastrophic events typically are thoroughly investigated and analyzed to determine their root causes. From the lessons learned, the owner can implement improved practices and procedures to minimize the likelihood of future business interruptions, as well as develop appropriate contingency plans to mitigate the impact should such an event occur. However, most availability events are not catastrophic and often will not receive the level of scrutiny necessary to determine their causes in adequate detail to allow the plant owner to develop the necessary strategies for improvement. Whether losses are caused by breakdowns of mechanical equipment or inadequate operating practices, increased clarity as to the costs and causes of availability events is key to prioritizing and implementing corrective actions that will result in sustainable improvements in reliability and availability. This paper presents several case studies in which UOP has helped customers implement availability improvement programs and highlights the potential value that can be realized when the causes of poor mechanical reliability and/or availability are determined and understood, and those causes are addressed.