PROCESS DESIGN
Is the design of processes for desired physical and/or chemical transformation of the material, bringing together all of those components needed.
Process design can be made for new facilities or it can be the modification or expansion of existing facilities.
Process design documents serve to define that components fit together. These are the basis in communicating ideas and instruction to other engineering specialties, to external regulatory agencies, to equipment vendors and to construction contractor.
In order of increasing detail, process design documents include:
- Block Flow Diagrams (BFD); Very simple diagrams composed of rectangles and lines indicating major material or energy flows.
- Process Flow Diagrams (PFD’s): typically more complex diagrams of major unit operations as well as flow lines. They usually include a material balance, and sometimes an energy balance, showing typical or design flow rates, stream compositions, and stream and equipment pressures and temperatures.
- Piping and Instrumentation Diagrams (P&ID’s): Diagrams showing each and every pipeline with piping class (carbon steel or stainless steel) and pipe size (diameter). They also show valves along with instrument locations and process control schemes
- Specifications: Written design requirements of all major equipment items.
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Process designers also typically write operating manuals on how to start-up, operate and shut-down the process.
CONCEPTUAL ENGINEERING
Also referred to as Pre-Project Planning (PPP) or Front-End Engineering Design (FEED), is the process for conceptual development of processing industry projects.
Conceptual Engineering refers to including robust planning and design early in a project’s lifecycle (i.e., the “Front End” of a project), at a time when the ability to influence changes in design is relatively high and the cost to make those changes is relatively low. It typically applies to industries with highly capital intensive, long lifecycle projects (i.e., hundreds of millions or billions of dollars over several years before any revenue is produced). Though is often adds a small amount of time and cost and effort required to make changes at a later stage in the project.
It also typically uses a Stage-Gate process, whereby a project must pass through formal Gates at well defined milestones within the project’s lifecycle before receiving funding to proceed to the next Stage of work.
FEL Stages
It is common industry practice to divide Front-End Loading activities into three stages: FEL-1, FEL-2, and FEL-3. For each stage, typical deliverables are listed below.
FEL-1 |
FEL-2 |
FEL-3 |
- Material Balance
- Energy Balance
- Project Charter |
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- Preliminary Equipment Design
- Preliminary Layout
- Preliminary Schedule
--Preliminary Estimate |
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- Purchase Major Equipment
. Specifications
- Definitive Estimate
- Project Execution Plan
- Preliminary 3D Model
- Electrical Equipment List
- Line List
- Instrument Index |
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