WCW24

The commissioning phase of any greenfield or brownfield project is typically the most stressful. Contractors, engineers, and owners need to come together to prove the system's functionality and safety before it is handed over to operations. While everyone involved typically has good intentions, conflicts can easily arise regarding design issues, scope of work, and expectations. Without proper planning and control of the work, this can lead a project to drastically slip in both schedule and budget. This presentation will focus on the commissioning of the automated control system and how it relates to other trades and stakeholders involved in the site. A case study from a complicated commissioning project for a new water treatment plant in Saskatchewan will be presented to point out the successes and the lessons learned. As part of the case study analysis, aspects of proper commissioning planning, testing requirements, contractor coordination, best practices, and documentation will all demonstrate how to avoid the common pitfalls of the start-up and testing phase. This information will shed light on the challenges faced by system integrators and how they can be overcome with proper planning and coordination. It will also demonstrate the proper testing strategies and steps to fully validate a complex control system so that operations can take it over with confidence.