On-Site Machining Helps Revive Dormant Gas-Powered Plant

“When it comes to close tolerances and critical work, I know I can rely on Climax equipment. And if anything should go wrong, Climax has a great support group that will address any problem right away.” – Chuck Stuckey  president; Portable Machining Services; York, SC

Situation

Chuck Stuckey has over 28 years of experience repairing and maintaining power plants and plant components including turbines, and his name is well-respected throughout the power industry. A year ago, he struck out on his own and founded Portable Machining Services, an on-site field machining service company, then began attracting business from the many plants and project managers familiar with the quality of his work.

The Hillabee Energy Center, a gas-power plant in Alexander City, Alabama, was designed to be a clean and highly efficient combined-cycle generating facility with three 190 mega-watt units having a total output of 570 mega-watts, driven by two Siemens-Westinghouse 501G combustion turbines. Construction was subsequently placed on hold, but recommenced with the purchase of the plant by a major utility in 2008. With increased demand for energy, the new owners hoped to get the plant online by the end of 2009, and hired Zachry Construction to complete the project.

Challenge

The piping and components had been sitting in the field for two years and corrosion had taken a heavy toll on the flanges as well as other piping components. Zachry’s project manager contracted with Chuck Stuckey to assess the damage and determine if any of the flanges and piping components could be salvaged.

Stuckey examined the parts and concluded that, in spite of the pitting and rusting, they could be salvaged by total machining refurbishment. In addition, because he and his team were experienced in on-site machining, Stuckey was confident the parts could be machined efficiently at the job site, eliminating the time and cost that would accrue from having to transport the parts to a machine shop and back.

To ensure meeting the utility’s stringent spec requirements, Stuckey called Climax Portable Machine Tools. He had used Climax machine tools on previous jobs and was confident they had the precision and strength to meet the tight tolerances required.  He liked the fact, too, that Climax tools are backed by 24/7 technical support. He rented two flange facers – the Climax FF4000 and Climax FF5000 – and had them shipped to the job site.

Solution

To meet the deadline for the project, 15 machinists from Portable Machining Services were assigned to work on site at the plant. They set up several work stations and using the Climax FF4000 and FF5000 flange facers, the machinists were able to machine approximately 8-10 flanges per day.

The Climax FF5000 flange facer can machine 5.0 - 24.0 inches diameter (127.0 - 609.6 mm) flanges to a depth of 1.97 inches (50.0 mm) in one setup, using 150 ft. lbs. (204 N.m) of torque at the cutter. The Climax FF4000 flange facer can machine flanges from 3.0 - 19.0 inches (76.2 - 482.6 mm), producing a surface finish of 63 – 500 RMS.  Its 1.45Hp (1.08kW) motor allows a typical material removal rate of 1 cubic inch (16.4 cm3) per minute.

Results

All flanges machined to-date have met the specs set by the utility.

Because all machining can be done on site, the project team has realized substantial productivity gains, and Stuckey’s machinists have been commended for keeping the job ahead of schedule.

Through its team of skilled machinists and precision machining tools, Portable Machining Services has demonstrated to Zachry’s project manager its ability to get the job done quickly and efficiently, putting the company in a prime position to receive additional contracts.

After renting the tools for six months, Stuckey purchased the Climax FF5000. His rationale: the tool is competitively priced so having it continually on hand will be cost-effective while allowing him to be ready for nuclear plant repair and other maintenance projects with short and challenging outage times.

“Portable Machining Services clearly is thriving by building a reputation for efficiency and precision work. We are proud to be able to supply the tools and services that are helping them excel at what they do.” - Geoff Gilmore, President, Climax Portable Machine Tools, Inc.