- My Forums
- Tiger Rant
- LSU Recruiting
- SEC Rant
- Saints Talk
- Pelicans Talk
- More Sports Board
- Fantasy Sports
- Golf Board
- Soccer Board
- O-T Lounge
- Tech Board
- Home/Garden Board
- Outdoor Board
- Health/Fitness Board
- Movie/TV Board
- Book Board
- Music Board
- Political Talk
- Money Talk
- Fark Board
- Gaming Board
- Travel Board
- Food/Drink Board
- Ticket Exchange
- TD Help Board
Customize My Forums- View All Forums
- Show Left Links
- Topic Sort Options
- Trending Topics
- Recent Topics
- Active Topics
Started By
Message
Operators....how long did it take to qualify
Posted on 5/30/15 at 2:00 pm
Posted on 5/30/15 at 2:00 pm
On your first unit? What kind of unit were you running? What is a reasonable time to learn something like utilities?
Posted on 5/30/15 at 2:07 pm to LSUPhreaK
quote:I illegally practiced around the neighborhood in my siblings' cars and my parents' cars for about a year before I sat for the written test at age 14 1/2. Mom* had a '70 Sedan deVille, dad had some kind of GM shitbox (Regal or something), sibs had a '73 Impala and a '74 Maverick. I took Driver's Ed and got my unrestricted license following passing that class and the practical at the end of the class.
On your first unit? What kind of unit were you running? What is a reasonable time to learn something like utilities?
I would think a year is reasonable to learn to operate a motor vehicle, I'm not familiar with it being called "utilities" but whatever.
*No pics, think Heddy Lamarr in the mid '40s.
This post was edited on 5/30/15 at 2:10 pm
Posted on 5/30/15 at 2:10 pm to LSUPhreaK
Depends on the type of plant you work at. Some plants just want you to know flow paths and valve ailment while others want you to know that plus set points, start ups/shutdowns etc. it could take anywhere from 6 weeks to a year.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 2:15 pm to LSUPhreaK
I got on with a small refinery and qualified in the FCC (Fluidized Catalytic Cracking) unit in 6 months I think. I was in the process of qualifying on my second unit when I decided I couldn't take the shift work anymore. Plus the people on my shift were miserable old farts and I was afraid the plant was going to blow up at any moment. I quit and went back to school. Not sure if all plants are like that one but you could qualify in as little as 6 months but you had a deadline to qualify. Can't remember if it was a year or 18 months.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 2:50 pm to LSUPhreaK
Ours is 250-500 hours to pre-certify(work by yourself) then 1000-1500 hours to certify and move on to something else. All depends on the unit.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 2:51 pm to JonTheTigerFan
My refinery requires a minimum of 6 months in a unit before you can take it alone. You have a full year to meet those requirements.
We try to start new operators in larger or more complex units because your maximum time to qualify in each unit becomes less and less as you get your promotions and pay raises.
Some units are harder than others.
If your learning utilities and you have to learn all phases of the process it can take the full 6 months.
If you have cooling towers, boilers, Co-gens, air compressors, De-alks, softeners, etc. You should expect it to take a bit.
Remember that the utilities are the heart of the refinery and you have to know what to do in a outage without hesitation. For this reason we normally don't start new operators in our utility section.
Good luck
We try to start new operators in larger or more complex units because your maximum time to qualify in each unit becomes less and less as you get your promotions and pay raises.
Some units are harder than others.
If your learning utilities and you have to learn all phases of the process it can take the full 6 months.
If you have cooling towers, boilers, Co-gens, air compressors, De-alks, softeners, etc. You should expect it to take a bit.
Remember that the utilities are the heart of the refinery and you have to know what to do in a outage without hesitation. For this reason we normally don't start new operators in our utility section.
Good luck
Posted on 5/30/15 at 2:51 pm to JonTheTigerFan
Seems like it took about two months. Hard to remember 16 years ago. Chlorine unit. The cell part. Not much to it. Shitty company that really didn't focus on training too much. Work for much better company now. First post here took about 3 months. 4,000 lb hydrogen pressure but small. I went all in though, brought material home. Practiced drawings at home. Now most new employees take 3 to 5 months to qualify. Best advise I can give you is hire in, keep your mouth shut except to ask intelligent questions and don't take the picking personal.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 3:19 pm to LSUPhreaK
2years associate plant tech
2years plant tech
Sr plant tech after 4 years
After retirements Lead equipment operator in year 14. (similar to a shift supervisor)
This is in a steam turbine power plant.
2years plant tech
Sr plant tech after 4 years
After retirements Lead equipment operator in year 14. (similar to a shift supervisor)
This is in a steam turbine power plant.
This post was edited on 5/30/15 at 3:22 pm
Posted on 5/30/15 at 3:26 pm to lurkr
Don't worry, You will be OT baller status before you know it. Start looking for money counting machines soon.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 3:32 pm to Geaux1
quote:
Don't worry, You will be OT baller status before you know it. Start looking for money counting machines soon.
This.
Oh, but you'll have to deal with working every fricking weekend, putting in a zillion hours of overtime, never being able to do shite, and Jody. Don't forget about Jody.
This post was edited on 5/30/15 at 3:33 pm
Posted on 5/30/15 at 3:44 pm to LSUPhreaK
I was able to run the board in 12 months. First in my unit to do so. Got my masters degree and didn't have to worry about it anymore. Be smart go back to school.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 3:51 pm to lnomm34
quote:
Don't forget about Jody.
Hell, most of us would like to shake Jody's hand.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 3:58 pm to LSUPhreaK
I work In a vinyl unit, our unit is broken down to 4 outside jobs and 2 board jobs. It takes 6-9 months to qualify in an outside job and probably about a year to qualify each board. You get your raise every 9 months so you have to be qualified in a new outside job within 9 months.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 3:59 pm to LSUPhreaK
You should qualify before you reach 6 months. But it may take less time, depending on the unit. Why are you worried about the time limit?
Posted on 5/30/15 at 4:04 pm to Enadious
I work in a polyolefins plant so compared to the rest of you, the things I do are cake.
For board operators, it's a year though.
For board operators, it's a year though.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 4:11 pm to LSUPhreaK
It depends on the plant, but like most have said 3-6 months on the first job. Especially if it is your first operations job, it may take a little longer learning all of the policies and procedures. Just don't rush it. Actually knowing the unit will be better than qualifying a few weeks sooner and being unsure of yourself when the console operator calls you to do something. I have only been in distillation units, so I can't really say about utilities. Seems like it would be easy enough though.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 4:19 pm to LaplassTiger
3 months, ethylene unit
Posted on 5/30/15 at 5:08 pm to Enadious
I believe I'm progressing nicely, it's fairly easy at this point. They've given me 3 months. Eyes and ears always open.
Posted on 5/30/15 at 8:40 pm to Prominentwon
quote:
I work in a polyolefins plant so compared to the rest of you, the things I do are cake.
You think you have it easy, try and work in a LNG terminal. I feel like I'm stealing sometimes lol
Popular
Back to top
Follow TigerDroppings for LSU Football News