Today is the last day of the GT26 gas turbine end user conference in Madrid, Spain. With more than 160 end users attending from all over the world, the conference has obviously not only been intriguing, but timely as well.
As usual, most of the presentations and end user discussions are confidential. However, there is much that can be said about what has been going on in the last few days. It has all been about GT26!
Liburdi Evening Reception and the usual conference registration routines kicked off this year's last end user conference hosted and organised by GTUsers.com. It is always good to get to meet and greet your colleagues and to have a chance to a little chit-chat. Liburdi is the conference's Gold sponsor.
The actual opening words were delivered by Mr. Andy Marshall from RWE.
Full repair services, GT26 strategy and more
On Tuesday, November 29th and the first full conference day, Mr. Douglas Nagy presented value driven repair strategies for GT26 and various other engine types. It is possible to extend the life of parts with improved repairs and rejuvenation processes. Liburdi Advanced Repairs are a valid and cost effective alternative to making part replacement and acquiring new parts.
Remco Schipper from Engie talked about made modifications to improve Low Part Load (LPL) operation for better flexibility of operation fulfilling grid dispath requirements. After Remco's presentation, Advanced Valve Solutions showed how to improve power plant startup time and reliability of valves (no image).
Gareth Maslin and Ian Farrow from RWE explained the GT26 upgrades that RWE performed in order to prolong inspection intervals and shorten the warm startup time. Both features are essential in today's energy markets that require more flexibility and short reaction times.
Second conference day also firmly about GT26
Besides Liburdi, Ansaldo Energia was another conference sponsor/OEM. Vendors and OEMs have always the best chance of getting their messages and latest developments across in end user conferences, because end users tend to take the word of their peers' over that of vendors or OEMs. At the same time, OEMs get an opportunity to listen to what goes on in the field.
General Manager Fleet and Product Management Leone Tessarini opened the GT26 conference's Ansaldo Energia Day. He gave a full picture of Ansaldo GT26 fleet status, strategy, and platform development. The second full conference day also witnessed a successful end user day with a number of technical presentations and discussions. These are the pivotal moments in end user conferences and where their real value lies.
Vendor exhibition and GT26 art
General Manager James Davies (on the right) from EthosEnergy Auxiliaries and Components is explaining EthosEnergy's capabilities for special fule nozzle repairs. The GT26 user conference Vendor fair gave end users the opportunity to talk with alternative service providers.
At GE dinner, the participants were introduced to an artistic vision of what a GT26 turbine looks like. Actually, both OEMs, GE and Ansaldo, presented the capabilities, technical improvements and upgrades for Gt26 fleet.
So, today marks the end of gas turbine end user conferences organised by GTUsers.com in 2016. There will be exiting end user conferences by GTUsers.com available in 2017. In fact, registration is already open for the first one, which is a Frame 6FA user conference in April.
To find out more about upcoming end user conferences and to register, please visit www.gtusers.com.