Outside track: Petchem engineers battling spare-parts shortages

Outside Track: ERJ reports on news & developments from across the wider process and manufacturing industries worldwide:

London – Spare parts sourcing for cooling, heating, steam and compressed air equipment is becoming more problematic for process firms in the UK and western Europe, claims a new Aggreko survey.

The company says that its poll of more than 600 engineers from the UK, Germany, France and the Benelux region revealed that, on average, over half of respondents were facing difficulties.

Furthermore, in the research carried out by partner Censa, most process engineers reported issues is sourcing spare parts for temperature control equipment at petrochemical plants and refineries.

Overall, the findings suggest that these issues, combined with increased seasonal demand later this year, could significantly disrupt operations, said Aggreko.

The statistics also found that ageing process and temperature control equipment was an issue in all sectors surveyed – the average age of current solutions was at least five years.

The firm’s petrochemical and refining sector leader – Europe Jordi Camanyes acknowledged that the European petrochemical sector was affected by a variety of fluctuating factors, notably rising feedstock costs and volatile oil & gas pricing.

“Yet certain constants remain, including that it will get colder in the winter. Petrochemical plants should therefore adapt their temperature control arrangements accordingly,” Camanyes cautioned.

“As our most recent reports clearly identify, the heating and cooling equipment currently used in refineries are of advanced age, with all the wear-and-tear and potential downtime that entails.

“[While] problems sourcing spare parts may create a more challenging situation, there are also clear opportunities for improvement.”

Additional pressures on equipment-upgrade budgets stem from sustainability-driven legislation, such as the EU’s ‘transition pathway for petrochemicals’ and new energy-efficiency directives, Aggreko further noted.

Report by Process Engineering, an associate publication of European Rubber Journal.