I63 - Pacifica Shipping - Canterbury Region

Summary
Pacifica Shipping has been improving its engine conditioning monitoring since 1985. This has been expanded from the original 'Oil analysis programme' to include all critical ship-board and dockside plant. A Computerised Engine Analyser is expected for trial by the company, which should provide a powerful tool in monitoring engine conditions, providing far more accurate information on performance than hitherto has been available. It is expected to help reduce oil and fuel consumption, minimise engineering repairs and cut exhaust levels.

Business Profile
Pacifica Shipping is the shipping arm of the Pacifica Transport Group and operates four freight-only coastal vessels:

• MV's "Spirit of Competition" and "Spirit of Freedom", carry mainly roll-on/roll-off freight between Wellington, Lyttelton, Timaru and Dunedin
• MV's "Spirit of Progress" and "Spirit of Vision" carrying a mixture of roll-on/roll-off freight and containers between Auckland, Nelson and Lyttelton.

Type of Project(s)
Energy efficiency, good housekeeping, process modification, reduction in use of hazardous substances, resource conservation, and waste reduction.

Reasons for Project(s)
Cost minimisation; improving performance; reducing adverse environmental impacts.

The Project

1. Engineers can end up dismantling perfectly sound and reliable equipment for inspection, when it could have run for many more hours without any problem. This in turn wastes labour, cleaning materials, consumables (jointing, nuts, bolts, etc.) and other items, such as bearings, which end up being replaced. Disassembly and reassembly can introduce more problems in the form of component damage, human error when assembling, ingress of dirt into delicate parts etc. These all have the potential to adversely affect the initial performance and reliability on start-up of the machinery. The result may be even more costly rebuilding and downtime while a secondary fault is rectified, when there was nothing wrong with the machine in the first place.
2. On the other hand, if intervals between services are too great, then complete failure of the machine may result, or wear may be so far advanced that, when an overhaul is finally carried out, more components may require repair or replacement than would otherwise have been the case.

With 'condition monitoring', the performance of a particular machine is monitored during regular operation. Readings taken at specified intervals are used to provide a trend analysis of performance. This data can then be compared with known standards which provide acceptable limits for the parameter being monitored. Monitoring machinery in this way shows personnel when performance drops off, enabling informed maintenance decisions to be made and servicing scheduled when it is least likely to affect the plant's operation.

Oil analysis programme
Pacifica Shipping embarked on the first stage of this project in 1985 with the introduction of an oil analysis programme for the main propulsion machinery and generator engines on the company's vessels. This has been expanded over the years to take in all critical pieces of plant on board ship and now includes all stevedoring plant ashore.

Direct benefits from oil analysis have been: increased drain periods for some machines, resulting in reduced oil waste; early detection of water leaks, fuel dilution, bearing wear, and dirt, enabling repairs to be carried out, often at minimal cost, before major and costly failures occur.

Vibration analysis
Vibration analysis was used spasmodically in the past to try and pinpoint specific problems. The first steps were taken to systematically survey all the major rotating machines on all Pacifica Shipping vessels in 1996. This initially netted a number of unsuspected bearing and related problems in various pieces of plant which were able to be dealt with quickly, preventing serious problems from developing. These surveys form the basis of a system of six-monthly checks currently being carried out by a contractor. In the future, it is envisaged that this work will be moved either entirely in-house, or split between ships' staff collecting the data on a more regular basis and feeding the information ashore to a vibration consultant for interpretation.

Direct benefits have included prevention of bearing failures on vital pumps and generators ensuring their ongoing reliability and therefore the vessels' safety while at sea.

Engine performance Analysis of engine performance has long been a problem on medium speed diesel engines. Only very basic information is obtainable using the Exhaust Pyrometer, Peak Pressure Gauge and Mean Effective Pressure Gauge. From these readings, the ships' engineers have to determine what is happening in each engine cylinder. Variations in these readings cannot always pinpoint a problem and often open up a range of possibilities that in themselves have to be eliminated one by one. Therefore, fine tuning of engines to optimise fuel consumption and power output is extremely difficult and based, to a large extent, on trial and error. This process involves a large amount of time and can sometimes consume components which were not in fact required.

Affordable technology is now available to ship operators in the form of the Computerised Engine Analyser. This instrument collects all the information that could previously be gathered by the old equipment and combines it with engine revs, crank angle, etc. to provide real-time diagrams of the process taking place in the cylinder. (Note: this is similar to the information taken off slow speed diesel engines in the form of indicator cards, only continuous and more accurate). From this information, the performance of each cylinder can be analysed and adjustments made to maximise combustion efficiency and power output. Servicing once again can be based more on performance than straight running hours. Problems such as leaking valves, faulty injectors, etc. can be pinpointed far more easily.

Pacifica Shipping is currently awaiting an instrument to be supplied for trial purposes, with a view to purchasing a portable unit to use throughout the fleet. This will constitute the next phase in the development of the company's condition monitoring programme. Although not yet in place, the Computerised Engine Analyser can be realistically expected to net good fuel savings when taken over the company's fleet. Improved combustion will also help to reduce exhaust emissions. Cost savings should also result from more effective engine maintenance.

Condition monitoring as a maintenance strategy has provided Pacifica Shipping with tangible benefits in improved maintenance planning, reductions in operating and maintenance costs, and more effective use of both human and other resources.

Environmental benefits are clear though, as yet, unmeasured. They comprise: reduced purchase of lubricating oil, spare parts, cleaning chemicals etc; reduced waste oil generation; at a later date, reduced exhaust emissions and, it is hoped, lower fuel consumption.

For additional information contact:
Geoff Campbell
Technical Services Manager
Pacifica Shipping (1985) Ltd
PO Box 184
Lyttelton
Phone: (03)-328 8059
Fax: (03)-328 9194