Every piece of equipment in a facility has its limits. These limits are known as integrity operating windows (IOW). Working outside these limits can be dangerous and can cause initiate corrosion that will promote equipment damage or failure.
This is an essential step in ensuring optimal reliability, availability and profitability of critical plant equipment.
IOWs can be set on any number of parameters. The most common are limits on temperature or pressure that equipment must perform under. They can be established around any damage mechanism that can affect a piece of equipment.
To implement IOWs properly, it is important to have an IOW plan in place for each piece of equipment. These plans should describe what to do if a piece of equipment exceeds its IOW and how quickly a response needs to happen. They also set out ways to keep equipment within its IOW.
Advantages of IOW
- Assisting in understanding effects of change in process parameters
- Identifying high temperature damage mechanisms
- Isolating areas of potential for environmental cracking
- Increasing safety,reliability,availability and profitability
One of the more important standards covering IOWs is API RP 584 – Integrity Operating Windows. It sets out the guidelines for creating an IOW plan, how to implement IOW limits on different types of equipment, and more. Members of our staff play a key role in developing new technologies.