Siemens

Heat Treat Induction Systems Go Online at Energy Group

/ ENERGY HEAT TREAT, FEATURED NEWS, INDUCTION HEATING EQUIPMENT NEWS, INDUCTION HEATING NEWS

A notable provider of vacuum melting systems recently supplied two vacuum induction melting systems to the power and gas division of a power company.

Retech Systems LLC, a subsidiary of SECO/WARWICK Group, provided two vacuum induction melting (VIM) systems for Siemens Power and Gas division.

Retech’s technologies have been applied to melting, refining, casting and atomizing reactive and refractory metals, such as Titanium and its alloys, super alloys, and rare earth metals. Retech VIM furnace systems are used for applications including automotive, consumer, aerospace, and energy utilizing equiax, directionally solidified, or single-crystal investment castings.

Retech Vacuum Induction DS Furnace
Retech Vacuum Induction DS Furnace

One vacuum induction melting directional solidification/single crystal/equiax pitless (VIM DS/SC/EQ) combo casting furnace and one vacuum induction melting directional solidification/single crystal (DS/SC) solidification casting furnace system were installed in Siemens’ new plant. In addition to the two VIM furnace systems already supplied, two more pitless DS/SC VIMs will be supplied later this year.

Retech designs pitless DS/SC Furnaces in hopes of reducing or eliminating costs, time, disruptions to facility production, and confined space entry to pits required with the installation of the new pitless VIM furnaces at the facility.

Earl Good, VP – Global Vacuum Melting, Managing Director Retech Systems LLC
Earl Good, VP – Global Vacuum Melting, Managing Director Retech Systems LLC

“The melting systems that Retech is delivering to Siemens, incorporate industry leading special design features such as: a reliable and maintenance friendly design ideal for faster and more flexible operation, superb process control for repeatability and high yields, as well as Retech’s new pitless mold elevator that can be utilized on Directional Solidification/Single Crystal furnaces,” said Earl Good, VP – Global Vacuum Melting, Managing Director Retech Systems LLC.

 

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Inauguration Day For Siemens’ Newest Turbine Blade Factory

/ ENERGY HEAT TREAT, FEATURED NEWS

Siemens has officially inaugurated the new rotor blade factory for offshore wind turbines in Hull, UK, in an event attended by the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Greg Clark and representatives of the local community. The site at Alexandra Docks has been transformed in under two years from a derelict industrial wasteland to a busy high-tech manufacturing hub. Now, the state-of-the-art factory has completed the first 75-meter-long blades which are currently stored on racks on site. Shipping to the first offshore wind project Race Bank is expected in early 2017.

“Our new factory in Hull which we are today officially inaugurating is located in one of the most significant markets for offshore wind power and will produce rotor blades for our 7 and 8-megawatt wind turbines,” said Michael Hannibal, CEO Offshore of Siemens Wind Power. “The new manufacturing plant is part of our efforts to establish offshore wind power as a key pillar of a sustainable energy mix in Europe. At the same time we are creating 1,000 attractive jobs here and thereby supporting sustainable regeneration in the Humber region.”

With its partner Associated British Ports (ABP), Siemens is investing £310 million in Hull to create a world-class center for offshore wind manufacturing, assembly and logistics. The centerpiece of the investment, the wind turbine blade factory, is now fully operational. The full Alexandra Dock site, including a new harbor for pre-assembly and load-out of wind turbine components, will be fully on stream in 2017. Siemens had employed almost 700 people in Hull so far. A further 100 permanent staff are employed at Alexandra Dock working for Siemens’ suppliers and additional recruitment up to a total of 1,000 people will continue into 2017 as the site becomes fully operational. Hundreds more jobs have been created during construction and in the supply chain.

The new production site has an area of 540,000 square meters, including an area reclaimed from a wet dock. The new factory itself covers 40,000 square meters and has an optimized material flow based on the Siemens Production System (SPS). Storage, supply chain and assembly work are interconnected with modern database systems to produce 75–meter-long rotor blades for offshore wind turbines of the seven and eight-megawatt class.

Offshore wind manufacturing sites such as Hull in the UK or Cuxhaven in Germany are efficiently linked by new transport vessels and embedded in Siemens’ logistics concept with the goal to leverage innovation and industrialization on the way to lowering the costs of offshore wind energy. A key element of the concept is an improved transport solution, utilizing dual-purpose transport vessels to avoid both heavy component lifting through innovative Ro/Ro handling and cost intensive shipping of heavy components.

There is a growing market for wind turbines designed for erection off shore. Offshore wind power plants are currently being built primarily in the North Sea and Baltic Sea off Europe’s northern coastline. However, wind power projects are being developed in other regions as well, such as along the East Coast of the United States and in Asia off the coast of China and Taiwan.

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Siemens Celebrates Commissioning of Power Project in Pennsylvania

/ ENERGY HEAT TREAT, FEATURED NEWS

Siemens and Panda Power Funds celebrated the commissioning of the Panda Liberty Power Project in Bradford County, Pennsylvania – an 829 megawatt natural gas-fueled power plant featuring Siemens advanced H-class gas turbines. Harnessing Marcellus Shale gas, “Liberty” is the first of two new Panda Power Funds generating stations to be commissioned in Pennsylvania this fall, with the Patriot Power Project in Clinton Township set to be dedicated in November. Combined, the two projects will be able to supply power for about two million households in large regional power markets, including Pennsylvania.

For “Liberty” and “Patriot,” Siemens’ scope of supply features advanced power generation technology, financing, and long-term service. The single shaft power plant blocks include two SGT6-8000H gas turbines, two SST6-5000 steam turbines, two hydrogen-cooled SGen6-2000H generators, and two heat recovery steam generators, along with the control system SPPA-T3000. The gas turbines and generators were manufactured at Siemens’ Charlotte Energy Hub, the global base for the company’s 60 Hz power generating equipment.

Siemens will provide maintenance and service for the main components associated with the gas turbine under a long-term service program. Parts, inspections, and scheduled service/maintenance, along with Siemens’ Power Diagnostics™ remote monitoring and diagnostics, are included in the comprehensive service agreement. For “Liberty,” Siemens Financial Services provided financing to aid in the project’s construction through a $50 million term loan.

“The commissioning of this highly-efficient power plant marks another milestone in our successful relationship with Panda Power Funds. This project demonstrates the full spectrum of Siemens’ portfolio, from our leading edge H-class technology, to financing, to service and maintenance,” said Martin Tartibi, Senior Executive Vice President, Energy Solutions Americas, Siemens Power and Gas. “As America continues to turn to cleaner-burning natural gas, we are proud that our world-class power generation technology can provide affordable, efficient and reliable power to about one million households – using the latest, most advanced emissions-control technology.”

“Designed to harness gas from the Marcellus Shale, this state of the art power plant represents the next chapter in Pennsylvania’s energy renaissance,” said Todd Carter, Chief Executive Officer of Panda Power Funds. “Working with Siemens over the last several years has proven they ‘walk the talk’ with their customer service and technological innovation, helping to bring online a world-class power asset in the Keystone State. We are very pleased to reach another important milestone in our collaboration with Siemens.”

The H-class technology in a single-shaft configuration, used in the “Liberty” and “Patriot” power stations, means that both the gas turbine and steam turbine are arranged on one shaft and drive the same generator. This design offers economic advantages as a result of low investment costs, excellent efficiency and a high degree of flexibility during operation.

The “Liberty” power project is one of seven for Siemens and Panda Power Funds in the United States, totaling over 5,800 MW. In addition to selecting Siemens to supply three Flex-Plants in Texas, Panda Power Funds chose Siemens to deliver three CCPPs in Pennsylvania – including “Liberty” and “Patriot” – and one CCPP in Virginia.

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