Case Study #1: Facility Decommissioning

CASE STUDY #1 - FACILITY DECOMMISSIONING

Project objective: Coordination of decommissioning of facility equipment, utilities, facilities, and associated assets.

Project description: Chicago Controls was requested to coordinate and assist in the decommissioning of a manufacturing plant scheduled to be closed. The plant had an extensive list of equipment (more than 1000 assets). Many employees had transferred to new jobs in advance of the plant closure and were thus not available to participate in the decommissioning.

Progress on the project had been slow due to personnel transfers and progress was behind the
decommissioning timeline. The timeline had been previously set and post-decommissioning commitments had been made. The timeline could not be changed due to previous commitments.

Chicago Controls project activities: Chicago Controls evaluated the decommissioning project status. Suggestions to expedite decommissioning processes were made to management. A template was created that systematized and facilitated activities. The template was consistent with corporate and industry standards. Specific categories on the template included Validation Master Plan update, Internal policy requirements evaluation, Calibrated instruments,
Preventive maintenance, spare parts disposition, and other factors. Additional activities addressing safety considerations, equipment cleaning, and other activities relevant to decommissioning were also added to the template. These activities were not required per corporate policy.

Results: The facility decommissioning project was completed ahead of schedule.

Customer benefit: There were two significant customer benefits in this project:

1. Decommissioning template. The newly created decommissioning template greatly facilitated decommissioning activities. Internal resources not generally familiar with decommissioning were able to assist in the project. The ease of use of the template was key to success. The template prevented inadvertent omission of decommissioning activities. The template also facilitated approval of decommissioning documents by Quality Assurance. The template enabled the project to be completed significantly ahead of schedule.

2. Additional activities. The additional activities performed with the decommissioning that addressed safety and other concerns were greatly appreciated by persons involved in plant closure. These activities may have prevented serious accidents.

Summary: The contributions of Chicago Controls enabled successful project completion ahead of schedule, within budget, and exceeding customer expectations.

"The work of Chicago Controls was excellent -- far exceeding expectations. We would have never finished this work within time and budget constraints without the contributions of Chicago Controls." - Plant Validation Manager