Tips to avoiding the stress of shutdown

Mark Hierons, industrial operations director at plant and equipment hire specialist, Hewden, offers a few tips on the key areas to establish when embarking on a site shutdown - considering how the choice of equipment provider can help ensure the project runs to schedule

Even when site shutdowns are scheduled far in advance, they are still one of the most stressful periods for plant engineers and project managers. And, with costs under constant scrutiny, managers and site supervisors must ensure that they have the right partnerships, right equipment and above all, the necessary planning in place before committing to what could otherwise be a lengthy and costly process.

Right people for the job One area where the pressure of securing a workforce and resource can be eased is in choosing the right equipment rental partner to provide support during the shutdown period. Almost every significant plant shutdown leads to a demand for extra specialist equipment such as access platforms, explosion-proof lighting, industrial forklift trucks, compressors, pumps, power generation, cranes and various types of welding and hand tools, so having an equipment specialist on hand can be beneficial.

In addition, as shutdowns often lead to hundreds of contractors and sub contractors working on site, temporary villages may need to be built to provide multiple accommodation units, canteen areas, drying rooms, offices, clocking stations, showers and other amenities. With a high number of personnel on site, radio communications is also another key area to consider.

Such equipment is readily available from many rental specialists and, in the past, normal practice was to 'pick and mix' from many different hire companies to fulfil specific product requirements. However, this approach leaves the plant manager to coordinate the hire and off-hire of each piece of equipment, chase up kit that fails to appear, deal with equipment failure and repair or replacement, as well as negotiating hire extensions when the inevitable overruns occur.

It's therefore not surprising that many plant managers now look to create framework or partnership agreements whereby the full hire management system for a specific shutdown or turnaround project is contracted to one supplier.

What you need, when you need it On a typical shutdown site, there is a vast quantity of equipment to organise and manage, before thought is even given to how long it is required, when and where. By contracting this full hire management process to one lead supplier, logistical difficulties can be minimised. The lead company will supply a significant percentage of the hire equipment from its own range but will also take full responsibility for sourcing and managing the equipment required from approved third party specialists.

Add to this the efficiency of a 'single point of contact' and managers can immediately alleviate the strain of coordinating the equipment and any third party suppliers by making one simple phone call - suitable for any equipment hire emergency, whatever the time of day.

Invoicing and payment With labour and the appropriate resources secured, the next step is to determine whether the chosen provider is easy to do business with; in short, whether its administration routines and accounting practices will avoid additional complexity for the shutdown team.

One of the biggest pitfalls in the hire/offhire period is invoicing and payment. This is more apparent when the shutdown has concluded, and many of the subcontractors have been moved onto new sites, as at this point it can be easy to lose the continuity of the management system. In addition, there is the time consuming process of checking the agreed hire rates and hire periods, ensuring all discounts and rebates have been applied and ensuring purchase orders and invoices match.

Therefore, establishing if the rental provider can offer any payment options to help manage administration, processing time and cash flow can have numerous benefits.

One way in which a significant amount of accounts' processing time and cost can be reduced is by using a consolidated invoice service. Hewden, for example, offers this service to all customers that hire a large volume of equipment. This means that customers receive just one invoice a month.

Safety is paramount In an industry where site hazard and risk are under constant review, it is imperative that all partners and suppliers share and adhere to any health and safety regulations. Before any contracts are signed and before any equipment reaches the site, plant managers should establish which accreditations the potential rental specialist holds.Working with a hire company that has achieved these accreditations provides the reassurance that certain minimum standards for safety, quality and performance will be met.