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Enhanced Energy-from-Waste Personnel Training

Craig Kedrowski

An enhanced training program will lead to more effective and knowledgeable personnel at EFW facilities. This cAn bE AccomplishEd WiTh ThE insTAllATion oF An inTErAcTivE TrAining sysTEm.

The efficienT operaTion of energy-fromwaste (EFW) facilities often correlates to the performance of the personnel. In turn, the personnels performance is directly correlated to the knowledge obtained during their training. In the past, the designer conducted most training in both a classroom and field situation. In the classroom, the theory behind how everything works was typically explained, while in the field the practical preventative maintenance and hands-on experience was obtained. However there are multiple problems with this type of approach, such as how do you monitor what each person is learning? How do you ensure that everybody actually pays attention? How do you deal with people learning at different speeds? Why in todays world of technology computers, Internet, etc.shouldnt there be a more efficient way for training personnel? An enhanced training program will lead to more effective and knowledgeable personnel at EFW facilities. A new type of training program, known as an

interactive training system (ITS), uses five sections to teach the facilities personnel the most efficient way to operate their EFW facility. The five sections include: (1) scientific and engineering basics, (2) general plant descriptions, (3) operation and maintenance procedures, (4) health and safety issues and (5) simulator. This split allows the personnel to learn at their own pace, familiarize themselves with details, monitor other trainees progress, provide hazard and safety training and practice without damaging equipment, along with many other benefits. This article will discuss the ITS in personnel training at EFW facilities and how people can beneficially use this type of system for training managers, engineers, health and safety, operators, maintenance and all other personnel at EFW facilities.

The Interactive Training System (ITS)

Its a familiar story for managers: the nagging uneasiness that costly incidents could shutdown your plant, or the concern that an accident might trigger regulatory investigations, plus the knowledge that trouble may have been avoided with on going personnel training. Although conventional training courses provide the basics, they generally do not provide workers with the opportunity to share experience among them. And how do staff members benchmark their skill level? An ITS is a self-paced tutorial geared toward all personnel: shift, maintenance, administration, plant management and, of course, new hires. In addition to theory, it also features many practical elements, such as the use of the operation and maintenance (O&M) manuals because improving training quality and providing it at regularly scheduled intervals reduces the likelihood of incidents. When dividing training into the five different sections mentioned above, trainees can select four degrees of difficulty depending on their level of training. The content of each section can be modified, extended or tailored at any time; thus training is not static, but instead reproduces real-word circumstances.

Figure 1: Typical ITS operation and maintenance screen (ITS Riverside, 2010). Figures courtesy of Hitachi Zosen Corporation and its
subsidiaries.

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enhanced energy-from-Waste personnel Training

The installation of such a system can be performed in a relatively quick timeframebetween one and six months depending on the number of sections requiredand does not require the facility to be shutdown during implementation.

Scientific and Engineering Basics

The scientific and engineering basics section is the beginning section of the program. This section describes the different types of chemicals, the periodic table, typical terms, symbols, abbreviations, etc. This section provides the trainees with all the basic information to be able to use the system effectively.

General Plant Description

Figure 2: Typical ITS question (ITS Riverside, 2010).

The general plant description provides a block flow diagram illustration of the facility along with the necessary process flow information. Additionally, it provides pictures of the different pieces of equipment along with a description of how the equipment is designed to perform, so that when the training is conducted in the field the trainee will recognize the piece of equipment. Finally, this also provides an overview description of how the whole process ties together and the reasons why everything is structured in such a way.

Operation and Maintenance Procedures

The operation and maintenance section is the heart of the training material. This section is divided into each portion of the facility, such as primary air, fabric filter, etc. and within each of these sections provides the trainee with

information regarding what to expect and what needs to be performed for each system: (1) basics, (2) process, (3) configuration, (4) functions, (5) startup, (6) normal operation, (7) shutdown, (8) hazards, (9) malfunctions and (10) maintenance. The material in each section is typically presented in written format with pictures (see Figure 1, page28). Once the trainee is comfortable with everything they learned in this section, then they can elect to take the test (see Figure 2). The testing allows the managers to track the progress of each employee and make sure they are keeping up-to-date and learning the material.

Health and Safety

The health and safety section increases the trainees awareness of safety within the facility. In this section, the basic overview of safety items such as lockout/tagout, confined spaces, etc. are explained to the trainee. Additionally, this section goes a step further in that it points out on the diagram where the key areas of concerns are for safety and what the trainee should do in order to avoid injury to themselves (see Figure 3).

Simulator
The simulator section allows the trainee to practice what they have learned during training on the control system without having the risk of personnel injury, equipment damage and/or downtime due to operator error. The simulator is set up to look similar to the control system and the trainer will randomly select preprogrammed scenarios that commonly occur at an EFW facility. The trainee is then responsible for identifying what is occurring and making the necessary changes in the control system such that stable operation occurs. The current simulator has almost 100 different pre-programmed scenarios to choose from and additional ones can be added.

Improving the Bottom Line

So as the emphasis on efficiency and availability of EFW facilities increase, it is important to take advantage of every opportunity to improve the bottom line because, at some facilities, being down for just a single day can cost upwards of a quarter of a million dollars. The installation of an ITS system offers the following advantages:
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Figure 3: Typical ITS health and safety screen (ITS Riverside, 2010).

A tutorial content that is built around training topics that are customized to the facilities needs. In workshops, employees can modify the program to match onsite requirements so that they can integrate their own experiences. Each employee can identify knowledge gaps and take advantage of interactive training to fulfill them. Thanks to its modular structure, the program can be readily adapted to various scenarios. The cost/benefit ratio pays off because the program reduces ongoing training expenditures, costly operating interruptions, and the occurrence of accidents can be minimized. The program can be customized to your plant and your staff and expanded at any time. Your staff members can use an ITS to brush up on a topic whenever they have time to spare. The employees will quickly find their way around the program and benefit from its simplicity. As time progresses, EFW facilities will desire to increase availability and efficiency to make a profit. This can be accomplished with the installation of an interactive training system. | WA Craig Kedrowski is a Senior Sales and Process Engineer for Hitachi Zosen Inova U.S.A. LLC (Norcross, GA). He has numerous years of experience in the fields of engineering, research, design, project management and others. He earned his BS in Chemical Engineering from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology. Craig can be reached at (678) 987-2510 or via e-mail at craig.kedrowski@hz-inova.com.
References PAMELA and ITS Information (2009). [Presentation]. Kedrowski, Craig. Norcross, Georgia, USA: AE&E Von Roll, Inc. ITS Riverside (2010). [Program]. Zurich, Switzerland: AE&E Inova AG. Von Roll ITS the Interactive Training System (2000). (1st ed.) [Brochure]. Zurich, Switzerland: Von Roll Umwelttechnick AG. 2011 Waste Advantage Magazine, All Rights Reserved. Reprinted from Waste Advantage Magazine. Contents cannot be reprinted without permission from the publisher. WasteAdvantage Magazine December 2011
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