Website Upgrade Incoming - we're working on a new look (and speed!) standby while we finalise the project

Tips on using this forum..

(1) Explain your problem, don't simply post "This isn't working". What were you doing when you faced the problem? What have you tried to resolve - did you look for a solution using "Search" ? Has it happened just once or several times?

(2) It's also good to get feedback when a solution is found, return to the original post to explain how it was resolved so that more people can also use the results.

Shutdown Activities

7 replies [Last post]
Tue, 2005-04-26 22:26
Brennan Westworth
User offline. Last seen 7 years 26 weeks ago. Offline
Joined: 23 Feb 2003
Posts: 150
Groups: None
Just wanted to put the question out to all you Planning Planeteers to get some feedback.

How do you guys handle activities that require plant/equipment shutdowns?

Do you create callendars for each piece of equipment showing working days only for scheduled outages?

I doubt this would be suitable as the number of calendars required would greatly exceed those available in P3 (3.1)

any ideas / methods?

// I want to be able to see the real float on shutdown activities... currently for me this is a manual process, knowing all the available windows and when the activity needs to be completed (late finish)
Top

Replies

Fri, 2005-04-29 02:13
#1
Philip Jonker
User offline. Last seen 15 years 48 weeks ago. Offline
Joined: 7 Nov 2004
Posts: 852
Groups: None
Hi Brennan,

If it is float you are trying to manage, try using buffer activities, at the end of each logical path, that will force each of the path to go critical ie zero float, and give the buffer activities a specific code, this will enable you to check what is happening in each path after every update, and is a simple way of managing float.

Regards

Philip
Top
Thu, 2005-04-28 17:40
#2
Brennan Westworth
User offline. Last seen 7 years 26 weeks ago. Offline
Joined: 23 Feb 2003
Posts: 150
Groups: None
No, it is not for work to be completed within a specified window but more a tool to manage the available windows (float)
Top
Thu, 2005-04-28 11:55
#3
Bernard Ertl
User offline. Last seen 9 years 47 weeks ago. Offline
Joined: 20 Nov 2002
Posts: 757
Groups: Petro-Chem / Oil & Gas, TURNAROUND & SHUTDOWN (T/A & S/D)
Your post tends to indicate that you are attempting to define the starting and ending parameters for the shutdown with a calendar rather than scheduling the work on a working basis and letting the critical path fall where it may.

If you are creating a turnaround project file encompassing only the work for a specific downtime period, I don’t see where you will have a huge number of calendars (regardless of what scheduling tool you use).

Bernard Ertl
ATC Professional Shutdown / Turnaround Management System
Top
Thu, 2005-04-28 02:12
#4
Philip Jonker
User offline. Last seen 15 years 48 weeks ago. Offline
Joined: 7 Nov 2004
Posts: 852
Groups: None
Hi,

I have done quite a few shutdowns\outages and have never needed more than about six to eight calenders, which P3 is more than capable of handling, I think you misunderstand the use of calendars. For example, you will need possibly a calendar for five days a week normal hours, a six or seven day week day shift\night shift\twenty four hour calendars. Besides this you might need extra calendars for NDE (x-rays) or perhaps heat treatment, or any other specialised work.

For any individual resources, you can set availabities. Further you can use constraints (finish not later than) for areas or equipment that require specific finish dates.

Hope this helps.

Regards
Top
Wed, 2005-04-27 20:58
#5
Brennan Westworth
User offline. Last seen 7 years 26 weeks ago. Offline
Joined: 23 Feb 2003
Posts: 150
Groups: None
The work is to be done during scheduled plant outages.

As you will know plant maintenance requires scheduled outages and any planner worth his salt will try to complete all project shutdown work within these maintenance shutdowns to minimise the impact on production.

I have a feeling that P3 is not cut out for this kind of complex scheduling.
Top
Wed, 2005-04-27 11:12
#6
Bernard Ertl
User offline. Last seen 9 years 47 weeks ago. Offline
Joined: 20 Nov 2002
Posts: 757
Groups: Petro-Chem / Oil & Gas, TURNAROUND & SHUTDOWN (T/A & S/D)
Are you asking about scheduling these tasks as a daily maintenance item (ie. while the plant is operating), or as a turnaround project (ie. where the plant shuts down for a while)?

Bernard Ertl
ATC Professional Shutdown / Turnaround Management System
Top
Wed, 2005-04-27 02:37
#7
Dragan Ilic
User offline. Last seen 2 years 8 weeks ago. Offline
Joined: 18 Jun 2002
Posts: 7
Groups: None
Make it more simple. Think! The base principles:

Job Description
Time
Links
Activity Type!

I use Milestone for ShutDown activity. I make sequence of activites to reach that Milestone. From ShutDown what do you do next? Put the other set of activities.

You can group your Plant/Equipment units. Do not put 100’s of them in the program. Remember that Plant/Eq. are more static subjects it is not dynamic.
Top