RUNNING HEADER: POWER PLANT TECHNOLOGY AND AUTOMATION Power Plant Technology and Automation Michael Toftee ECPI University 7/25/2016 2 Power Plant...

Power Plant Technology and Automation

Michael Toftee

ECPI University

7/25/2016

Identify your proposed solution(s).

The current situation of power plants is that most of them are outdated, technology wise, emission wise and heat rate wise. Coal plants are scheduled to be shutdown permanently in the near future leaving companies to find cleaner power generation solutions. The newer plants that have been built, and are under construction have a whole new string of automation relying heavy on the Distributed Controls System (DCS) and not the operator anymore. The role of the operator is changing drastically and fast. The newer generation of operators needs to be tech-savvy, and rely on computer experience.

With these changes comes a unique opportunity to attend college for Power Plant Technologies. This course gives people the opportunity to learn about plants and the types of equipment they will be working with. Another opportunity that companies should take advantage of is the unlimited resources and training from companies like GE and Siemens. This training comes with a hefty price tag, but is well worth it. These are the companies that design the power plants and provide detailed specific training that is valuable to operators and the company in the long run. The companies purchasing these plants need to be aggressive in investing in their employees especially the older operators. Another way to help is these plants could partner up with these schools and get the opportunity to have interns onsite with the option to hire out of college.

Identify your audience.

The audience I intend to target with this proposal is of two different varieties. The first, being the older generation of current plant operators. These are the operators that have been in the industry for years and have the most to lose by these changes. The importance of retaining theses seasoned operators is to help bridge the gap of the newer changes and the hands on operating they are used to. My second target is the future operators, and showing them a path to success for the current industry and the options the now have education wise.

The positions of my target audience are that they either being pushed out of the industry or they lack the experience. With the population and the need for electricity growing, more state of the art power plants are being constructed. With these new plants come the new technology and the need for more educated operators. The experienced operators are being pushed out of the industry due to their lack of knowledge with control systems and computers. The new generation of operators is not given the opportunity due to lack of industry experience. The industry needs to somehow bridge this gap with training opportunities.

Cite the research you used to develop your proposal.

Siemens - Sustainable Energy - Siemens. (n.d.). Retrieved July 18, 2016, from http://www.energy.siemens.com/hq/en/sustainable-energy/?tab=energy-1213565-Power Generation

Clean Power Plan for Existing Power Plants. (n.d.). Retrieved July 18, 2016, from https://www.epa.gov/cleanpowerplan/clean-power-plan-existing-power-plants