Digital Control System Upgrade Gives Hydropower Plant New Life

Upgrading automation systems can often extend the life of power generation facilities by decades while reducing downtime, improving operations, and reducing required maintenance. The Maggotty plant in Jamaica offers one such example.
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Many power generation facilities have equipment in good running order with many years or even decades of potential service life remaining, but operation is limited by the plant automation systems, which typically have much shorter service lives. Obsolete automation systems fail too frequently and are hard to support, causing excessive downtime. They are also very difficult to tie into other computing systems, which can hinder operational improvements and regulatory compliance.

Read more at http://www.powermag.com/digital-control-system-upgrade-gives-hydropower-plant-new-life/?printmode=1