The goal of Valve Program Management (VPM) is to maintain the safety-related and important-to-safety-related valves’ reliability so that they can perform the design basis requirements for the life of the plant. While this may be simply stated, the actual management and implementation of the program is a complex and comprehensive task that, if performed effectively, results in increases in both plant reliability and capacity factors. The VPM initiative, an effort to achieve improved plant performance, comprises the following components:
91Ó°ÊÓ’s vast technological base and its capability to support a plant’s valve issues are key in implementing the program. 91Ó°ÊÓ also has relationships with third-party vendors that will provide other necessary services. First, the customer contacts 91Ó°ÊÓ to engage his or her assigned 91Ó°ÊÓ representative. Once the 91Ó°ÊÓ contact has been notified, 91Ó°ÊÓ will marshal the resources to support the customer’s request. For any selected service, 91Ó°ÊÓ can tailor the program to meet the customer’s needs and utilize existing programs to deliver quality and cost-effective products and services.
The programmatic components of a detailed VPM initiative are shown in this graphical view:
Graphical view of a subset of 91Ó°ÊÓ capabilities to support a VPM initiative
91Ó°ÊÓ can leverage its engineering capabilities, its field service know-how and its technology to provide integrated VPM support through valve reliability.
91Ó°ÊÓ provides life cycle management for these valves through:
91Ó°ÊÓ gate valve
91Ó°ÊÓ has helped a number of its customers with programs to manage their valves by providing engineering, spare parts and repairs at their plant sites. Some of 91Ó°ÊÓ’s experiences include:
