CONDITION ASSESSMENT

FOR GENERATORS
Services for thermal power plants
Alstom is dedicated to keeping thermal power plants competi-
tive. Thanks to our OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer)
expertise and involvement in around 25% of the world’s power
production capacity, we operate from a position of proven
expertise. With 15,000 power industry professionals spread
across 200 worldwide locations, Alstom Thermal Services sup-
ports our customers with extensive service solutions for daily
operations and maintenance while helping to enhance lifecycle
management.

In a changing competitive and regulatory environment, flex-

ibility and expertise are key. Building on our global fleet and
project execution experience, we partner with owners of
Alstom and other OEM equipment to help maximise perfor-
mance and lifetime profitability while keeping safety, reliability
and environmental compatibility as top priorities.

Alstom is a global organisation that cultivates cutting-edge

expertise at the product/technology level while maintaining a
strong local presence to meet site-specific needs and efficiently
deliver tailored solutions in both established and emerging
markets. Whether you require support in the areas of skills or
systems, we have the technology, solutions and presence to
meet your needs.
 In today’s tough markets,
plant owners need accurate
information to ensure the
availability and reliability of
their generating assets.

Inspections, robotics,
 monitoring & diagnostics
Presence In an increasingly competitive and technically complex industry,
Alstom Thermal Services is present at more than 200 locations power producers are looking for more affordable, sustainable
in 60 countries. Having local offices and execution centres and secure solutions for their generator operations and mainte-
allows us to respond quickly to the needs of our customers. nance. Alstom’s generator condition assessement solutions build
on 60 years of development, engineering and service experience
and address the needs of customers who want to maximise
Solutions the return on their assets through more accurate and timely
Alstom offers forward-looking solutions to improve efficiency information about the condition of their generators.
and flexibility while enhancing reliability and increasing
performance. We offer a full portfolio of solutions for online (machine in
operation) and offline (machine at standstill) condition assess-
ments, which provide plant owners with a powerful basis for
Technology cost-effective operations and efficiently planned maintenance.
We respond to customer and market needs by leveraging our These solutions are also available for generators from other
technological leadership. Based on our fleet management, Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs).
plant systems, factory and R&D capabilities, we are able to
offer a unique portfolio of products and services for the lifecycle
management of Alstom and other OEM equipment.

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 EN
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How Alstom is helping SI
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REDUCING LOWERING INCREASING

COST OF ELECTRICITY ENVIRONMENTAL FOOTPRINT FLEXIBILITY & RELIABILITY
It takes competitive assets to keep Clean generation is one way of Intermittent power generation is a
electricity affordable. We enable power demonstrating environmental growing challenge to energy security,
companies to compete successfully in responsibility. Another is lowering as is maintaining an ageing installed
the marketplace and provide affordable resource usage, visual impact and noise base and adapting it to changing market
electricity to consumers. We help you pollution. In both cases, we can help conditions. We help you tackle both
reduce the cost of electricity through: you meet or exceed regulations and issues so that you can enjoy dependable
environmental standards. That is why operations with:
• Efficiency improvements Alstom innovates in the following areas:
• CAPEX reduction  / scaling up • Maintainability and outage
• Capacity factor increase (renewable) • Renewable portfolio time reduction
• Lead time reduction • Natural resource optimisation • Operational and fuel  flexibility
• Competitive O&M • Pollutant control • Lifetime extension and power uplift
• Competitive financing (SOx, NOx, PM, mercury) • Designs and service for improved
• CO2 emission reduction & CCS availability and reliability
• Land use, visual impact and noise • Climate packages
• Water intensity reduction & • Energy storage
recyclability

4
The Alstom generator condition assessment portfolio
offers all the solutions you require to cost-effectively
optimise generator operation and maintenance.
 Condition
Your needs,

Generating confidence
To convert turbine torque into electrical energy, power plants depend on increasingly powerful and efficient generators. But with
the sophistication of the technologies employed comes a greater need for knowledge of the equipment status. Besides classic
rotor-out inspections we offer modern robotic rotor-in inspections, as well as online monitoring and diagnostics. After all, accurate
assessment of the generator condition enhances the reliability and availability of the whole plant.

Based on decades of experience with our global installed base totalling over 1170 GW, Alstom has developed advanced methods to
assess the condition of specific parts of the generator and facilitate cost-effective decision-making.

Alstom’s generator condition assessments provide reliable

information on:
• The overall condition of the generator and its components
• Indications of impending issues
• Necessity and nature of repairs required
These insights provide a powerful basis for our full offering of generator services that
includes outage and emergency repairs, rewinds, upgrades and retrofits.

Key benefits
• Cost-effective condition-based maintenance
• Increased reliability through timely responses
• Extended maintenance intervals
• Lifetime extension through renovation or retrofits
• For both Alstom and other OEM generators

6
assessments
our solutions
Analysis at the service level you need
Thanks to Alstom’s unique generator condition assessments, the earliest possible indications of component deterioration can be rec-
ognised during scheduled inspections and while the generator is in normal operation. This allows suitable interventions to be planned
long before critical conditions develop.

Offline Online
When operational constraints prevent pulling the rotor, we Alstom offers four levels of service covering the full range of
recommend Alstom’s DIRIS® robots for a rapid assessment of customer needs from periodic data collection and reporting to
the rotor condition in situ. When time permits and the rotor can round-the-clock remote monitoring and reporting.
be pulled, a full inspection with Alstom’s WIDIPRO® packages
is the ideal choice. The basis for all our monitoring services is a ‘Level 1’ pack-
age of sensors, cabling and connection boxes that need to be
permanently installed in your generator. Thereafter, customers
can choose ‘Level 2’, ‘Level 3’ or ‘Level 4’ options – for periodic,
on-demand or permanent monitoring respectively.

Alstom Condition Assessment Reports

Insights for reliability and availability
OFFLINE ONLINE
Level

Permanent data link 4

ALSPA® Care Remote

Level Level

Rotor in place Rotor pulled Portable equipment, site visit

2 Data acquisition units, servers installed
3
GOLD® Service ALSPA® Care Generator
Robotic inspection Classic inspection
Diagnostic Winding
Level
Inspection Diagnostic
Rotor In-Situ
(DIRIS®)
and Inspection
Permanently installed in generator
1
Program
(WIDIPRO®) Alstom sensors, cabling and connection boxes
rotor ex-situ

Periodic data collection Permanent data collection

Testimonial - ALINTA ENERGY

“We chose Alstom for condition assessment and monitoring across our fleet of gen-
erators because they are able to benchmark our equipment condition against compa-
rable units installed across the globe. Also, Alstom provide us the support we require
to operate in line with PAS 55 standards. With Alstom, we benefit from diverse and
intimate knowledge of generators ranging from design, manufacture, installation and
commissioning to maintenance repair and condition-based monitoring.”

7
 Comprehensive
Because prevention

Offline solutions
Alstom’s offline generator diagnostic services are based on risk-free measuring methods and visual inspections that can be conducted
efficiently during any outage.

Quick and easy – rotor in place In-depth inspections – rotor pulled

DIRIS® robot assisted investigations WIDIPRO® full investigations
Alstom’s DIRIS® Diagnostic Inspection Rotor In-Situ allows fast Alstom’s WIDIPRO® (Winding diagnostic and inspection
and reliable robotic inspection of the generator while avoiding programme) is a modular set of offline diagnostic inspection
the time and costs associated with rotor removal. and analysis packages.

Combining Alstom’s proprietary robotic inspection technology A structured group of packages for stator, rotor and exciter
and expert field service, DIRIS® is the simplest solution for inspections provides an increasingly insightful assessment of the
an increased level of operational confidence between major generator condition. And Alstom’s generator condition database,
outages. A DIRIS® inspection includes: developed through decades of OEM and field service experience
on many brands of generator, allows benchmark-based
• Comprehensive visual (video) assessment predictions to be included in the expert report.
• Stator slot wedge tightness assessment
• Low flux iron stator core testing (EL-CID)

150 generator diagnostic specialists worldwide

1,000 generator diagnostic reports per year
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solutions
is better than cure
Advanced technologies for accurate assessments

Alstom’s online condition assessment • Partial discharge

solutions include the following monitoring • Rotor flux
methods: • Rotor shaft voltage
• End winding vibration
• Stator bar temperature

Online solutions
Online monitoring of your generator condition with Alstom’s periodic or permanent monitoring is the best way to increase reliability
and availability and optimise maintenance costs, because early mitigation of faults prevents the development of critical conditions.
Besides the time-saving and planning benefits, online condition assessments are more realistic. This is because the generator is
measured while it is subject to real operational stress conditions – temperature, vibration and voltage distribution. Thus online as-
sessments provide a better picture of the generator condition and capture indications that are not noticeable in offline assessments.

Periodic monitoring Permanent monitoring

GOLD® Service ALSPA® Care Generator
Alstom’s GOLD® Service is the perfect way to begin enjoying Some customers prefer the convenience of permanently
the benefits of online condition assessments. installed data acquisition devices that allow for data transfer to
Alstom for expert analysis by a remote team.
With Alstom GOLD® Service, our specialists visit your plant
with portable monitoring equipment to collect data from the For plants with large turbines, ALSPA® Care Generator is the
permanently installed sensors and produce a reliable condition system of choice.
analysis report. This allows you to plan your next outage more
effectively. Parts can be pre-ordered, and work scheduled, based For the highest level of assurance, customers can opt for remote
on accurate information about the current generator condition. services. These provide a permanent data link to Alstom’s
product centre for continuous monitoring and evaluation of
With repeated periodic GOLD® visits, operational trends can be generator key performance indicators.
established and predictive maintenance recommendations can
be made in the Alstom report.

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 Success stories
Enhancing reliability

Robotic inspections reduce outage time PD monitoring to avoid major failures

The customer was looking for a local diagnostic team able to To reduce the risk of costly emergency shutdown and repair,
provide planned inspection services while adhering to stringent Alstom was asked to perform GOLD Service measurement using
outage time constraints. the PAMOS® partial discharge online monitoring system.

Solution Solution
Alstom offered ‘DIRIS® Small’ robotic technology allowing Beginning in 2003, an Alstom expert took bi-annual measure-
inspections to be performed with the rotor in situ to minimise ments and provided a comprehensive report and trend analysis.
the dismantling of parts. Inspection was performed by Alstom’s
local, fully trained and certified diagnostic engineers. Results
In January 2009, the PAMOS® online monitoring indicated
Results a changing pattern of partial discharges but no immediate
Thanks to Alstom’s robotic inspection technology, maintenance shutdown was required. In June 2010, monitoring showed that
costs and duration were minimised and the availability of this partial discharges had reached critical levels and the unit was
unit was maximised. The customer was satisfied with the pro- stopped for inspection. Partial discharges were located in the
cess and findings – the results correlated with results obtained medium voltage platform, an area rarely affected by Partial
during an earlier classic rotor-out inspection. Discharges. After a minor repair the unit was returned to service
and monitoring results normalised.
Specifications
• Customer: NTPC, Tanda, India Specifications
• OEM: SKODA • Customer: Opel, Rüsselsheim, Germany
• H2 indirectly cooled 110 MW generator • Air-cooled 141 MVA generator, commissioned in 1999
• ALSPA® Care PD / PAMOS online monitoring installed in
2003

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 Alstom
Alstom is a global leader in the world of power generation,
power transmission and rail infrastructure and sets the benchmark
for innovative and environmentally friendly technologies.

Power generation Alstom builds the fastest train and the highest capacity automated
metro in the world, provides turnkey integrated power plant
solutions and associated services for a wide variety of energy
sources, including hydro, nuclear, gas, coal, wind, solar thermal,
geothermal and ocean energies. Alstom offers a wide range of
solutions for power transmission, with a focus on smart grids.

Power generation
Alstom Power offers solutions which allow their customers to
generate reliable, competitive and eco-friendly power.

Alstom has the industry’s most comprehensive portfolio of thermal

technologies – coal, gas, oil and nuclear – and holds leading positions
in turnkey power plants, power generation services and air quality
control systems. It is also a pioneer in carbon capture technologies.
Electrical grid
Alstom offers the most comprehensive range of renewable power
generation solutions today: hydro power, wind power, geothermal,
biomass and solar. With ocean energies, we are developing solutions
for tomorrow. Alstom is one of the world leaders in hydro power,
the largest source of renewable energy on the planet.

Rail transport
TPWR/PROSOL/CAG/EN/10.2013/CHE/1724 © ALSTOM 2013. All rights reserved. Information contained in this document is indicative only. No representation or warranty is given or should be relied on that it is complete or correct or will apply to any particular
project. This will depend on the technical and commercial circumstances. It is provided without liability and is subject to change without notice. Reproduction, use or disclosure to third parties, without express written authority, is strictly prohibited. Photo credits:
ALSTOM. Printed on environmentally friendly paper. A PDF version of this brochure is available at: www.alstom.com

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