8
some went smooth, and some were more challenging which
allowed to identify “do’s” and “do not’s.”
What Works Every Time
Being Agile Yet Methodical: A Step-by-Step Approach to
Start-Up Planning
• Release a structured commissioning and start-up
timeline to all key stakeholders (management, con-
struction, commissioning and operation teams) to
align everyone’s objectives. It is essential to maintain
constant and ongoing communication regarding
the progress and any changes that may occur in the
timeline
• Develop commissioning sequences incrementally
with dedicated teams assigned to each sequence or
sector, ensuring that a responsible individual is iden-
tified for each team:
– During the planning phase, it is important to
involve all team members in the preparation pro-
cess to benefit from the experience of everyone.
– Assigning a responsible and accountable person
allows to relieve operating crew from difficult deci-
sion making during the commissioning phases.
• Establish operational procedures:
– During commissioning and start-up, stress and
pressure can cause important steps to be missed
if there is no clear documentation. Checklists
and procedures reduce risks related to equipment
integrity and team safety. These documents must
be approved, implemented, and followed during
operations.
What Makes a Commissioning Challenging
Based on multiple experiences over the years, key factors
that contribute to slow down the commissioning and start-
up processes were identified:
• Assuming operation staff competence without pro-
viding specific training customized for the site:
– Hiring experienced employees is a major asset for
any new company. However, it is essential to pro-
vide the same quality of training and mentoring, as
each installation and process has their own speci-
ficities. Well-trained, experienced operators will
accelerate the start-up process.
• Having external support teams that are not inte-
grated with the operation staff:
– Failing to maintain synergy between support
teams and the operational teams can cause risks to
equipment integrity and delay the commissioning
schedule. Certain bypasses in protection measures
may occur during equipment testing. If this infor-
mation is not clearly communicated to the opera-
tional teams, it can lead to equipment failures
during the start-up.
• Having an overly optimistic schedule:
– Not accounting for supplier visits for essential test-
ing required for equipment warranties
– Failing to consider seasonal factors in planning and
scheduling, such as snow removal prior to equip-
ment testing, the risk of line freezing during water
tests, and potential slowdowns caused by rainy sea-
sons, etc
– Not adequately spacing out the commissioning of
various sectors to allow for the correction of pos-
sible deficiencies.
• Not allocating sufficient resources for programming.
– Although programming resources are generally
planned for most of the commissioning and start-
up stages, they are often insufficient in number
and do not remain on-site long enough to address
operational contingencies. They are key resources
to:
-Add or modify the equipment interlocking logic
-Support control room operators during
unplanned equipment shutdowns or alarms.
-Assist control room operators in understanding
the behaviour of certain control loops.
-Modify the programming of control loops to
meet operational needs.
-Support investigations during communication
losses with equipment.
-Initiate or complete the programmi5ng of auto-
matic equipment startup or shutdown sequences.
– Since the availability of external programming
resources can be limited, failing to allocate enough
resources at the beginning of a project can present
additional challenges during the start-up phase.
• Planning the arrival of external support teams too
late in the process.
– When support teams arrive too late in the process,
coordinating operational activities, training, and
coaching become more difficult. In most cases,
there is little supporting documentation available
for the operation and no time to produce it.
• Not planning sufficient external resources to support
operations, both for the control room and for field
operators.
some went smooth, and some were more challenging which
allowed to identify “do’s” and “do not’s.”
What Works Every Time
Being Agile Yet Methodical: A Step-by-Step Approach to
Start-Up Planning
• Release a structured commissioning and start-up
timeline to all key stakeholders (management, con-
struction, commissioning and operation teams) to
align everyone’s objectives. It is essential to maintain
constant and ongoing communication regarding
the progress and any changes that may occur in the
timeline
• Develop commissioning sequences incrementally
with dedicated teams assigned to each sequence or
sector, ensuring that a responsible individual is iden-
tified for each team:
– During the planning phase, it is important to
involve all team members in the preparation pro-
cess to benefit from the experience of everyone.
– Assigning a responsible and accountable person
allows to relieve operating crew from difficult deci-
sion making during the commissioning phases.
• Establish operational procedures:
– During commissioning and start-up, stress and
pressure can cause important steps to be missed
if there is no clear documentation. Checklists
and procedures reduce risks related to equipment
integrity and team safety. These documents must
be approved, implemented, and followed during
operations.
What Makes a Commissioning Challenging
Based on multiple experiences over the years, key factors
that contribute to slow down the commissioning and start-
up processes were identified:
• Assuming operation staff competence without pro-
viding specific training customized for the site:
– Hiring experienced employees is a major asset for
any new company. However, it is essential to pro-
vide the same quality of training and mentoring, as
each installation and process has their own speci-
ficities. Well-trained, experienced operators will
accelerate the start-up process.
• Having external support teams that are not inte-
grated with the operation staff:
– Failing to maintain synergy between support
teams and the operational teams can cause risks to
equipment integrity and delay the commissioning
schedule. Certain bypasses in protection measures
may occur during equipment testing. If this infor-
mation is not clearly communicated to the opera-
tional teams, it can lead to equipment failures
during the start-up.
• Having an overly optimistic schedule:
– Not accounting for supplier visits for essential test-
ing required for equipment warranties
– Failing to consider seasonal factors in planning and
scheduling, such as snow removal prior to equip-
ment testing, the risk of line freezing during water
tests, and potential slowdowns caused by rainy sea-
sons, etc
– Not adequately spacing out the commissioning of
various sectors to allow for the correction of pos-
sible deficiencies.
• Not allocating sufficient resources for programming.
– Although programming resources are generally
planned for most of the commissioning and start-
up stages, they are often insufficient in number
and do not remain on-site long enough to address
operational contingencies. They are key resources
to:
-Add or modify the equipment interlocking logic
-Support control room operators during
unplanned equipment shutdowns or alarms.
-Assist control room operators in understanding
the behaviour of certain control loops.
-Modify the programming of control loops to
meet operational needs.
-Support investigations during communication
losses with equipment.
-Initiate or complete the programmi5ng of auto-
matic equipment startup or shutdown sequences.
– Since the availability of external programming
resources can be limited, failing to allocate enough
resources at the beginning of a project can present
additional challenges during the start-up phase.
• Planning the arrival of external support teams too
late in the process.
– When support teams arrive too late in the process,
coordinating operational activities, training, and
coaching become more difficult. In most cases,
there is little supporting documentation available
for the operation and no time to produce it.
• Not planning sufficient external resources to support
operations, both for the control room and for field
operators.