Career Episode Report for CDR Australia
Introduction
- My first career episode would demonstrate my experience in the project that I did while working at Lamprell as Electrical engineer. The project was Supply and Installation of the Helideck Perimeter Lights & Flood Lights for Saudi Aramco, it started in 5th June 2004 and ended after five days. The project was to upgrade the oil rig to ensure compliance with Saudi Aramco’s Schedule G operating requirements and it was located at Sharjah south yard. Lamprell specializes in onshore and offshore oil & gas Industries. The Company that I was working for at this time is located at United Arab Emirates (“UAE”)
Background
- Lamprell was founded in Dubai in 1976 by Stephen Lamprell, and it is based in the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”).It has more than 40 years’ experience in the provision of fabrication, engineering and contracting services to the offshore and onshore oil & gas and renewable energy industries. The company has international expertise in the construction of the complex offshore and onshore process modules; it is also a market leader in the fabrication of jack-up rigs, land rigs, multi-purpose lifeboats, shallow water drilling, and rig refurbishment projects. It has the main fabrication yards in Hamriyah, Jebel Ali, and Sharjah all in UAE, other facilities are in Saudi Arabia. Lamprell is currently traded in the London Stock Exchange. Finally, Lamprell has about 9,000 people in various locations and consist of 300 multi-disciplinary specialist and engineers.
- The primary objective of this project was to do the installation of helideck Perimeter lights & flood lights at helideck to meet Saudi Aramco HSE requirements. The project started with the removal of the existing helideck flood lights, Perimeter lights and installation of the new helideck perimeter lights & flood lights supports. It involved the installation of 26 LED green color helideck perimeter lights around helideck and installation of the eight helideck flood lights around helideck. The performance indicators for this project were an improvement of the security lighting and meeting the Saudi Aramco’s Schedule G operating requirements.
- The following is the organization structure that was used on this project
Figure 1 – CE-1 Organization Structure at Lamprell plc during this project
- The following were my roles and responsibilities while working on this project at Lamprell
- Removal of existing helideck flood lights and perimeter lights
- Installation of the new supports for helideck perimeter lights & flood lights
- Installation of LED green color helideck perimeter lights around Helideck
- Installation of helideck flood lights around helideck.
- Cladding and Termination of the cables
- Preparation of the documentation after completion of the project
Personal Engineering Activity
- We reported to the site two days before the start of this project to seek clearance from Saudi Arabian Oil Company. The clearance that we were given was site safety approval and site entrance permit. After we had been issued with these permits, we took another day to plan how to implement the project. The team on this project consisted of five people, and we were given five working days excluding the scaffolding to complete it
- The first design that I did was to come up with the best way of connecting and installing the 26 LED green color helideck perimeter lights and determination of the right size of the fuse that would give protection to the whole connection. To find this, I calculated the total current in each circuit to get the total amperes in the circuit. After determining the total current needed in each connection, I selected the fuse from the standards available in the market.
- The challenge that I encountered in the determination of the fuse size in every socket was lack of the exact sizes of the fuses in the market. This prompted me to look for them from manufacturer and managed to order the fuse wire and used the standard housing or covers found in the local market. I completed installation after the modification of the fuse, and worked very well.
- The first calculation that I did was the determination of the right size of the fuse where I calculated the total current passing through the circuit. There was need to march the fuse and the electric current drawn so as to provide protection when there is excess power. The current was calculated in amperes and used to select the right size of the fuse from the catalog from the suppliers.
- The second design that I did was the determination of the correct sizes of electric cables to be used on every circuit. This was to ensure that they were of adequate size and avoid over heat or melting. The procedure involved calculating the total current that the lights in the circuit draw from the primary source. I did this by adding the ratings of the lights and selecting the size of the cable with a closer thickness of what I had calculated.
- The challenge that I encountered while determining the size of the cable was a lack of the précised size as per my design in the local market. It forced me to select the cable size as per what was available in the market, this was because ordering from the manufacture for the tailor made cable was expensive. I solved this challenge by selecting the size of the wire with bigger thickness than what I had arrived into by the calculation. This was for safety purpose and to avoid overheating and subsequently melting when current is passed through it.
- The calculations that I did during the determination of the cable size was the wire circular mils or the cross section. Since the power connection was three phase circuit, I used the following formula
Wire Circular mils =√3 x 2 x ρ x I x L / (%Allowable Voltage drop of source voltage)
Where;
ρ = resistivity of Conductor
D = Distance in Feet (One way) i.e. ½ the total circuit length
I = Load Current
ρ = Specific resistance or resistivity of Conductor is used here for copper and aluminum is 11.2 and 17.4 respectively at 53° C (127° F)
- The Supply and Installation of Helideck Perimeter Lights & Flood Lights was done in compliances with the following international standards; FAA AC 150/5390-2B heliport design Guide and exceeded the FAA Engineering Brief 87 Specifications. Other codes that this form of lighting met was the Transport Canada TP14371, AGA 7.16, US Army Aviation Lighting Manual TM 5-811-5 and the UK CAA CAP 437
- I acquired knowledge in the use of the AutoCAD electrical through the trained that was organized in-house by Lamprell. I further improved my skills in the use of AutoCAD Electrical by doing research in the library and internet. I also exchange electrical engineering ideas with my colleagues during the implementation of this project. Lastly, I received daily updates on the latest technology in electrical engineering through subscription to the electrical engineering online magazine.
- The software that I used in this career episode was AutoCAD Electrical that enabled me to come up with the electrical schematic diagram and circuit design features. This software was critical because it helped me with the intelligence in the procedure of designing the circuit and creation of the electrical schematics more efficiently and quickly.
- The technique that I introduced in this career episode was the resettable fuse. This type of fuse can be used for many times without replacing them because they operate by opening the circuit when excess current pass through it and reconnects itself after specified time. They are called the Polymeric positive temperature coefficient device and protects against excess current. In addition, resettable fuse are suitable for areas where it is difficult to do manual replacement regularly and saves the cost of purchasing a new one.
- I was working with three subordinates on this project who was electrical technicians; we worked as a team with the leadership of the senior electrical engineer. I assigned the subordinates equally amount of tasks without discrimination to build them to gaining experience. They were all reporting to me hence we had some meetings during this project to discuss the project progress and iron out the challenges encountered.
- I worked indirectly with suppliers regularly during this project especially during the initial stage of this project, whereby I was the person who gave them the specifications of the Flood Lights and Helideck Perimeter Lights. I was also part of the team who was a task with evaluation of all offers from the vendors so as to get the best quality of the supply at affordable prices. Lastly, all the technical questions from the suppliers were directed to me to get the right answers since I was the person who had all the details about this project.
- The economic decision that I made during the Supply and Installation of Helideck Perimeter Lights & Flood Lights was in overtime. Instead of increasing the number of days spent at the site, I decided to request management to allow us to work extra two hours every day. The project could have been installed for more than five days considering that the site teams were given a daily allowance, and the client could have been disappointed with extension.
- I observed safety precaution on this project because all the installations were done above the ground; we were given permit by the client that allowed us to erect scaffolds that assisted use in climbing the mast to the location of the lights. We used safety belts, gloves, overalls among other protective gears to prevent excess injuries in case of an accident. I also ensured that there were no electrical components left at the site after completion of the project to avoid formation of electronic wastes.
- We had site meetings regularly with the team, so as to discuss issues arising from the project installation. During this meeting, I was the one who did the presentation on various topics that were related to the project of lights installation. The software that I used during the presentation was Microsoft power point in conjunction with the display screen and the projector. Other presentations that I did was to the client and vendors
- I prepared various reports as a way of communicating in this project, for example, the progress reports that was used to communicate progress to the management. I also did the documentation of data sheets, certificates and technical documentations given to the client at the end of the project. The documented reports were also kept for future reference of what was done during the project implementation.
- I gained a lot of experience in this project on how to carry out installation of electrical lighting in high locations above the ground. I also learned how to use the scaffolding to climb the electrical masts that could not have been possible without this aid. Another experience that I gained on this project was on how to use the safety belt that was a must, I addition, I managed to acquire leaderships skills since I was working with subordinates.
- This project was implemented successfully, and its objectives were achieved that includes the supply and installation of the Helideck Perimeter Lights & Flood Lights. The goal of improving the lighting in the client premise was also achieved. Furthermore, the project was completed within the specified time, budget and within the specifications. Lastly, my subordinates were also happy since I gave the chance to show their skills
Summary
As an electrical engineer, I managed to run this project successfully because all its objectives were achieved, it also improved by expertise and experience because of the challenges encountered. The perimeter and flood lights installation was completed within its specification, and I managed to apply all my knowledge that I have obtained throughout my career. I managed to respond quickly to suppliers and my team whenever there was an issue thus the success of this project.
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