Pumping benefits into your business

01/14/21

Being a full lifecycle partner means far more to Celeros Flow Technology than effecting a timely repair. It’s about finding the right solution to add value to our customer’s business. Here are some examples from our Pump Aftermarket team that demonstrate what benefits we can bring.

Improving production

An integrated energy company wanted to increase the output of its FPSO to a combined target of 50,000 m³/day at 30,000 kPa. This required an increase in sea water injection flow of 13.5%.

To minimize outage and capital expenditure, we proposed a re-rate of the existing BB5 pump cartridges to meet project requirement. This approach offered significant benefits over the supply of new units because the up-rated spare cartridges could be supplied on staggered milestones. We conducted a feasibility study and factory testing to ensure that the required duty condition was within the hydraulic envelope of the pump. The hydraulic re-rate was undertaken at our ClydeUnion Pumps site in Glasgow, Scotland.

The increase in flow at the pump enabled production of an additional 27,333 barrels of oil per day – or 8-10 million barrels/year.

Saving costs

An American upstream oil & gas customer wanted to optimize efficiency of a third party multi-stage pump that was operating in parallel to feed a common header tank. The pump was generally operated with the discharge valve approximately 60% closed to maintain the desired flow rate into the header.

It became clear that the pump was too large for the application. Our team explored a number of potential solutions, including destaging the pump or possibly slowing the speed of the motor using a Variable Frequency Drive (VFD). Following our investigations, it was determined that the most cost-effective modification was to trim the impellers to match the desired flow and restore running clearances back to API 610 standards.

A cost savings analysis justified the re-rate, with payback in a little over 12 months. Following the pump re-rate, power consumption reduced by more than 30% and operating costs reduced by around 20%.

Reducing downtime

Responsiveness and a rapid turnaround are key to keeping critical flow control equipment functioning and reducing downtime.

For one offshore customer, we had just 11 weeks to deliver a complete pump package (including base plate, motor and mechanical seals) to satisfy operating conditions of 4770 USgpm at 308 feet Total Dynamic Head. A new complete pump offering was not feasible in the time, so we sourced a replacement pump and a Westinghouse motor that could be overhauled to meet requirements. Using a unique combination of engineering skills, service capabilities and testing facilities Celeros Flow Technology enabled a rapid turnaround that cut lead times by almost 70% compared to a new pump solution.

Future maintenance will be quicker too, thanks to the redesignation of the pump to our ClydeUnion Pumps brand: giving the customer assurance regarding spare parts availability and service support throughout the lifecycle of the equipment.

For more information about our Aftermarket service solutions, visit www.celerosft.com/en-us/aftermarket