Big Data is big at PSM! We are very close to a milestone with one of our most successful products – AutoTune. First implemented to maximize operating profile through changing climate conditions, AutoTune’s patented self-learning algorithms ensure emissions and combustion dynamics within a safe range. This capability is just one part of our Digital as a Service (DaaS) portfolio, as customers continue to need help in finding the ‘hidden value’ buried in their power plants. More recently, AutoTune has been extended to add new valuable capabilities to customer GT’s. From Peak+ in ERCOT being used to maximize profits from grid peak demands in Texas on 7F’s, to Fuel Gas Temperature control being used by a 3x9E plant in the Netherlands to burn up to 25% H2 in their LEC-III™ combustor system, the demand for our DaaS is increasing dramatically.
Beyond AutoTune, PSM also offers a selection of controls-logic based optimization and flexibility modules: from Virtual Flame Scanners on our LEC-III™ and the OEM’s DLN-1 for enhance reliability, to allowing less than 10 minutes to grid synchronization with FlexStart and over 60% higher ramp rates with FlexRamp on OEM 7F and 501F units. These modules are all part of our FlexSuite package which can be tailored to the exact needs of the gas turbine operator today and allows for future upgrades as market conditions change.
Today, we include AutoTune and various FlexSuite modules with all of our major plant upgrades such as GTOP or FlameSheet™, enhancing the value of that upgrade to the Customer. This year, AutoTune will reach over 100 installations and total over 1.5M hours of operational experience, to become one of our highest volume products to date!
Now to build on our success. A joint team from Service Engineering, Product Engineering and Information Technology are focusing on Advanced Data Analytics & Artificial Intelligence, following a successful feasibility study alongside our existing Monitoring and Diagnostics (M&D) service. By combining PSM’s extensive domain expertise in gas turbine design and operation, and with the proven AI expertise of our industry-leading partner, we look to augment and enhance our existing capability. The next phase will expand our focus on select plants, to full “digital twins” of our entire 7F monitored fleet for our customers to test the system capabilities on a much larger scale, developing KPI dashboards and teaching the system how we react to plant issues. The project further develops our existing Smart Limits which have been developed by our own M&D experts over the past few years, with the objective of fully predictive diagnostics and predictive maintenance capabilities.
The power of data is very much alive at PSM and will continue to grow as we integrate more advanced technologies across our organization!
