The Reliability of Gas Turbine Powered Compressor Units

Abstract

This paper describes British Gas Corporation (BGC) experience of the operating reliability of aircraft gas turbine powered compressor units utilized in the gas transmission system. The complex nature of the system has led to the design of computer based simulation models to identify the relationship between operating reliability and spare unit provisioning. The need to achieve particular reliability levels has led to the specification in contracts of quantified reliability criteria which are both measurable and achievable. There seems a clear need for national or international standards for reliability specification. BGC is introducing operational and defect data collection systems to identify areas of weakness in current plant and to provide a feedback to the manufacturer.