GAS Turbine Training

R

Thread Starter

RenegadeGas

Hello Everyone,

I hope someone here can help me with my query.

I am an Electrical Engineering College Student. I have an interest in gas turbines and would like to become a field service engineer. I'm currently having problems with finding a place to train in this direction as most Training courses I find are for turbine operators.

I live in the centre of England and the closest power Gas Turbine site is about 100 miles from where I live (SIEMENS). I just can't find a place to train as a new guy coming into the industry. The other alternatives are to train on Aircraft type which is only about 5 miles from home but that is not the type I want to specialize in.

Is there a place I can go and train to become a Gas Turbine field engineer?

Your help deeply appreciated.

thanks
 
Hi,

About the best "training" I know of for gas turbines is available from Cranfield University, at Cranfield, Bedfordshire. But this training is primarily for design and maintenance, I believe--not "field engineer" training, per se.

Do you want to be a mechanical field engineer, or a controls field engineer?

About the best field engineering training one can get is by getting hired on with one of the major OEMs likes GE, Siemens, Solar, etc. (Alstom is being assimilated by GE as we speak, and their turbines were mostly knock-offs of GE-design units to begin with, as long ago they were a licensed packager of GE-design heavy duty gas turbines.)

I don't know about GE Oil & Gas, headquartered in Firenze (Florence), Italy, but I know that in the USA GE isn't doing any field engineer training to speak of. Virtually none. The new unit gas turbine business in the USA is not very good these days, and when new units are being sold and installed and commissioned that's when GE is training field engineers like crazy in the USA.

There is the GE division in Belfort, France, which used to be called GE Energy Products-Europe; don't know what they're officially called these days. (I have some names for them; none of them polite.) They are selling turbines in the Middle East and Asia and in Europe, and also I believe in the UK.

As for Siemens, I'm not sure how they're doing these days, but they're always an option. As with most German-manufactured equipment and products they are over-engineered and extremely complicated and require lots of periodic maintenance. Siemens even have a line of gas turbines that even though the Customer buys and owns the unit they can't get parts or service from anyone other than Siemens. Kind of 'job security.'

Mitsubishi and Hitachi are both beginning to sell a lot of turbines around the world and may have need of local field engineers in the UK/Europe.

But, field engineer training is usually provided by OEMs, and usually one has to choose a discipline (or, it's sometimes chosen for them). The best way to learn is to work on new unit installations and commissioning (start-ups) as there is usually "time" to become acquainted with things, and drawings, and systems. Trying to just break into the maintenance or troubleshooting business without operational or field engineer experience wouldn't be very easy. Many owners require CVs (resumes) of personnel--and they want experience when maintenance activities are being performed. (They don't get the luxury of "selecting" installation and commissioning personnel--thought some Customers are more insistent than others about this, too (mainly in Hong Kong and South Korea, and some places in the Middle East).

Field engineering is a hard life, my friend (if I may call you a friend). You work lots of long hours, mostly away from home, lots of weekends, and holidays--and there can be a LOT of stress, a <b>LOT</b> of stress, especially for the controls field engineers who get squeezed during start-ups (ANY start-up) because the mechanical crew rarely (RARELY) complete their activities on schedule but the start-up date never gets moved back to allow controls activities to occur at a more "normal" pace (that's kind of an oxymoron, saying 'controls activities' and 'normal pace' in the same sentence!). And the controls field engineers always get blamed for holding up the start-up--even though they didn't have sufficient time to complete all their activities properly.

And, lastly, today, field engineering work is extremely difficult--because of the safety aspect. There's Job Safety Analyses or Job Hazard Analyses which have to be performed, and some of these are simply oppressive at some sites (especially those which are operated by OEMs under contract to owners). There's Arc Flash Protection, and PPE requirements just to take a voltage measurement in a 440 VAC motor starter that require one to two hours to complete and dress for just to take one or two voltage measurements. And, many sites (again, especially those operated by OEMs for owners) which will NOT allow work on energized circuits--even T/C or 24 VDC/4-20 mA circuits. It's virtually impossible to troubleshoot or commission a gas turbine when the controls circuits are de-energized. When you have to fight tooth and nail just to be able to take voltage readings in junction boxes to troubleshoot or commission a gas turbine, and then, basically you're told, "You're on your own! If you get hurt, ..., well, it's your own fault! We told you so!" and they turn a blind eye to your activities--but they're always looking to "cite" you for safety violations, which can result in expulsion from site. They want the work to get done, but they don't know what it takes to do the work, and they want zero possibility of any getting even a cuticle broken in the commission of their work.

I've worked with field engineer trainees (field service personnel, mostly) recently that were so afraid of taking voltage measurements because of their safety training we couldn't even get them to take voltage readings in a laboratory setting--much less in the field. It's very, Very, VERY, <b>VERY</b> sad what the Danger Rangers (the Safety Managers) are doing to the business.

It's a lot better for mechanical field engineers, from a safety perspective.

Hope this helps!
 
R
Hello,

thanks very much for the helpful reply. Its been been very enlightening. I've been looking for someone to give me information like this.

I have written to Cranfield College about information like you posted here but haven't had a reply yet. They seem to have very short courses that I thought wouldn't suite me.

I have done some controls in college in PLCs so I think controls would be an area to specialize in but it's scary the pressures control's engineers come under which is making me have second thoughts. I didn't realize one can specialize in either mechanical or controls. I thought I had to do both. I enjoy taking things apart and putting them back together.

Do Turbine controls engineers earn more than mechanics considering the pressures?

Thanks again for your help.
 
Renegade_Gas,

> Do Turbine controls engineers earn more than mechanics considering the pressures?

That's amusing! <b>NO!!!</b> The pay is generally about the same for mechanical and controls field engineers, and they both generally earn overtime because it's the nature of the work that it generally doesn't get scheduled for 8-hours days, and when it's "crunch" time the hours can get very long (sometimes 20 hours/day--especially for the controls field engineers).

Remember, though, that while you may be earning more money because you're generally working a lot of hours--you're away from home, which means you're missing birthdays, anniversaries, births, deaths, commencements. Also, you don't quite get any support from your managers.... They aren't there, many of them, these days, don't know what the job really entails, and therefore don't provide much in the way of positive reinforcement or encouragement. You have to be able to derive most of the satisfaction you receive from your work by yourself, or with the colleagues you will be working with.

Because most of the work will not be near your home, you will be away from home a lot--and it's kind of good to be working a lot of hours because it can be quite boring to be away from family and friends, stuck in a hotel, working only 40 hours per week. A lot of sites are NOT resorts or tourist destinations by any stretch of the imagination.

And, in these jobs the technical aspect is not NEARLY as important as the interpersonal aspect. You will be dealing with all manner of people, especially when performing commissioning work--some of whom have some experience and knowledge, many of whom who don't, but think they do. It can be VERY frustrating at times--combined with the pressure of scheduling and safety considerations, it can be extremely stressful. And, no; there's no such thing as "hazard pay" for these conditions!

Also, you have to be prepared for a lot of paperwork (expense reports; job reports; JSAs/JHAs) and computer-based training (which usually your manager wants you to complete on YOUR time--not Company time).
 
R
Thanks again for the reply. I'm now having a picture of how life is like as a field engineer. I haven't had anyone to give me the faintest idea of what the job is like which is what brought me here.

I'm not really worried about the time they spend on the field as I already work between 55 and 70 hours per week driving trucks across the UK so I spend lots of time on my own.

The only problem I think I would have is dealing with the stress and pressure of the job. I think with the right training I would cope in the environment if I know what i'm doing.

The problem now is to find a very good training centre to train.
I also need to select which brand of turbine controls I would like to specialize in (Siemens or GE.).

Thanks again for your help. Your help is invaluable.
 
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