The Turnaround
“Andy, there’s never been a unit we shut down that we haven’t started back up”
- Ed “Round Man” Powell
There is nothing like a refinery turnaround. You shutdown part of the refinery for scheduled maintenance, repairs and improvement projects. When it’s down you’re not making money - tremendous pressure. Planning starts years in advance and work progresses 24x7 for weeks to get back online ASAP.
Working turnarounds was a highlight early in my career; I loved it. As an engineer it’s an opportunity to climb through process equipment, gaining a better appreciation of the equipment and processes, and making investments to improve operations. And then there are the unplanned issues you encounter challenging you to think on your feet and develop a solution within a narrow time window.
I was very fortunate to have many great mentors during my career. When it came to turnaround planning and execution - Ed “Round Man” Powell. Invariably, about halfway through when parts were strewn about and it seemed like nothing was coming back together, the career dissipation light in the corner of my eye would start flashing bright red. Ed was a reassuring influence - putting his hand on my shoulder with some choice words of encouragement, always with a left-hand twist or two, and most that can’t be repeated here. One of those reassurances - “Remember Andy, they can kill ya’, but they can’t eat ya’. That’s illegal.” He was also exceptional at letting you know when you were the root cause of the problem.
We just completed a major turnaround on Kaja. Loads of repairs and upgrades we identified earlier this year on our shakedown sail through the Caribbean:
• Added solar panels
• Converted a water tank to a fuel tank
• Upgraded the electrical system
• Completed the 1,000 hour service on the engine
• Converted some ‘dead space’ into storage
• Modified a few sails
• Chased leaks in the deck
• Added StarLink
• Plus loads of other projects
There were a few times in there I had flashbacks to those early days. Ahhh! Is it going to come back together? Will we be ready? Ed passed away several years ago, but I thought about him often this summer and his pearls of wisdom. True to form, it all came together and we’re ready to go. As we would say in the refinery, we go “oil in” on Thursday as we sail south to Hampton, VA - the first step in our journey around the world.
HeeJung and I are very grateful for all the folks that made it happen - M Yacht Services & Rigging, Marine Electric Systems, BayShore Marine, North Sails Annapolis, Annapolis Rigging, and Steady Seas. Couldn’t have done it with you guys! Thank you!