Maintenance, Repair and Operations Feature Library

Operations Engineer's library catalogues editorial features going back five years.

Access to all archive material is free to all, including non-members of IPlantE (the Institution of Operations Engineers) or BES (Bureau of Engineer Surveyors), under the umbrella of SOE (Society of Operations Engineers). However, to discover the many benefits of becoming an SOE member, please click here.

18/07/2022 Blue, green or both? Decyphering hydrogen generation options The government has doubled its target for hydrogen production, from five to 10GW by 2030, as part of its new Energy Security Strategy. But how ready is UK industry? By Tom Austin-Morgan » Read More

18/07/2022 Minimising the risk of temperature control equipment summer downtime While the UK wasn’t really renowned for heatwaves, nearly every year a number of days see spikes in temperature upwards of 30°C, putting additional strain on the temperature control equipment at manufacturing sites across. With these ... » Read More

01/07/2022 Engineer first class Ex-REME engineer Eddie McLellan IEng has won the ‘engineering excellence’ category of the 2022 Scottish Ex-Forces in Business Awards. Here, he recounts his career within, and without, the Armed Forces » Read More

24/06/2022 Monster keeps major infrastructure project on track A Sulzer Channel Monster has been a lifeline for a large-scale wastewater treatment project in Vác, Hungary. Faced with the need to keep a municipal wastewater treatment plant in operation during a EUR 14.5 million upgrade, Hungarian ... » Read More

24/06/2022 Delivering high-quality solids – without any mix-up Ever present in the chemical processing industry, solid mixing and blending are among the most crucial operations that influence end product quality. By avoiding under- and over-processing, manufacturers can deliver superior chemicals ... » Read More

22/06/2022 Reducing pump maintenance with liquid gaskets and adhesives For those operating in processing sectors such as paper, power generation, chemicals, sugar, mining and oil and gas, adopting a proactive maintenance strategy is key to eliminating common failures modes and extending the useful life of ... » Read More

14/06/2022 Identifying equipment issues in gas flaring Flaring is used to manage the associated gas produced as a co-product during oil extraction, routinely or as the result of an unscheduled event. Routine flaring can be a significant source of greenhouse gas emissions. Non-routine flaring ... » Read More

14/06/2022 Offshore, off carbon To reduce their carbon footprint, many offshore operators are converting their drilling rigs to run on electricity. We look at the whys and wherefores, and how this might work in practice. By Brian Wall » Read More

14/06/2022 Life among the cobots Designed to perform tasks in collaboration with workers, the use of cobots is rapidly expanding. Where do they compete and align with industrial robots – and, of some growing concern – with their human ‘co-workers’? By Brian Wall » Read More

01/06/2022 The rail detective: profile of former RAIB chief inspector Simon French Simon French OBE, chief inspector of the Rail Accident Investigation Branch, retired on 31 March 2022 after nearly 18 years at RAIB and 40 years in rail (to be replaced by Andrew Hall, formerly deputy chief inspector). On his penultimate ... » Read More

01/06/2022 Now showing Maintec returns to the NEC 8-9 June, with two days of conference presentations in two theatres, and more than 50 exhibitors. Products, organised alphabetically by selected exhibitors, are profiled below » Read More

17/05/2022 Rising up to the challenge The post-Grenfell Building Safety Bill aims to alter substantively how the welfare of high-rise buildings is managed – but the late-stage removal of the building safety manager role has caused some misgivings. By Brian Wall » Read More

17/05/2022 The carbon footprint of heating and cooling Heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) is responsible for most of the greenhouse gas emissions from buildings, and a very significant share of all human-induced climate change. Its carbon footprint is largely a result of the ... » Read More

17/05/2022 Beyond REACH What does a government-imposed delay to the implementation of UK REACH regulations mean for chemical plants and their supply chains? By Steed Webzell » Read More

13/05/2022 The internet of pumps Smarter control of wastewater pump networks transforms performance, reliability and cost-efficiency, according to pump supplier Sulzer » Read More

19/04/2022 Inspection: screening for danger Simulants and an array of training devices are helping to prepare operatives in the battle to detect explosives, drugs, IEDs and other threats, such as the radioactive materials still inside the Fukushima and Chernobyl nuclear reactors. » Read More

19/04/2022 Risk FACtor Flow-accelerated corrosion is an important effect that can result in catastrophic failures in high-pressure and high-temperature pipe systems. It is therefore critical that it is properly managed. This involves feedwater chemistry control, ... » Read More

19/04/2022 Tackling the challenges of data Digitalisation projects aim to connect sensors to machines and then use that data to monitor, analyse, and control the process. The currency in this market is data, and only if it is organised and managed properly can any gains be made. ... » Read More

19/04/2022 Auditing and standardising inventory The benefit of a spare parts strategy has as much to do with accurate and efficient records – clean data – as it does with the parts themselves. By David Thompson, MRO spares parts specialist, Ramsoft » Read More

19/04/2022 Digital together: project profiles Two projects supported by the UK Digital Catapult both involve reconfiguring a slow manual measurement process, recording the results digitally, and inserting that information into other digital systems. It’s a template for digitalisation ... » Read More

19/04/2022 Inside vibration sensors Condition monitoring of mechanical equipment – anything with rotating, oscillating or otherwise moving components – relies on vibration measurement. The sensors that pick up vibration have their own requirements. By Toby Clark » Read More

19/04/2022 The post-COVID rise of pre-fabricated plants The urgent need for COVID vaccines spurred the use of modular, pre-fab laboratory spaces. Can the same structures equally benefit industry? The urgent need for COVID vaccines spurred the use of modular, pre-fab laboratory spaces. Can the ... » Read More

19/04/2022 I&C project profile: Lisi Aerospace A Rugby aerospace fastenings manufacturer is half-way through reengineering its high-volume production. So innovative is the work that the company has obtained part government funding. So keen is it that even the global pandemic hasn’t put ... » Read More

19/04/2022 All hands to the (heat) pump To meet the government’s net zero target, 19m heat pumps must be installed by 2050. That means that heating installer numbers must now grow, and keep on growing. Tom Austin-Morgan looks at what is being done to achieve this. By Tom ... » Read More

19/04/2022 A basic guide to legal liability When something goes wrong on site there are usually two routes by which legal liability could follow: contract and tort. By Susan Hopcraft, partner, Wright Hassall » Read More