PAS goes live at Yallourn

The ongoing development of Sage Technology’s Permit Administration System was a key factor in its implementation at TRUenergy’s Yallourn power station this month.

PAS was initially passed over for a competitor product when Yallourn decided to move from a paper-based permit to work system four years ago. However, a delay in implementing the other PTW system prompted Yallourn to review its decision and PAS came up trumps.

“When we bought the first electronic PTW system four years ago, it met our criteria better than PAS did at that time,” Operations’ Performance Manager, Gene Ipenburg said, “But when we reviewed our choice with the intention of implementing it, we found that PAS had progressed further and now has the features we need, while the other product had some shortcomings.”

TRUenergy went live with PAS across the Yallourn power station in August.

In recent months the team at Yallourn has built the plant index database of more than 30,000 items of plant. The comprehensive plant index is a vital component of PAS, ensuring that rigorous cross-checking of permits, isolations and restorations is effective in preventing a potentially dangerous breach.

Personnel have also undergone training in the use and operation of PAS.

“TRUenergy Yallourn will have about 100 authorised issuing officers and 400 to 500 authorised permit recipients over time,” Gene said, “They have accepted PAS well because it was designed around the former SEC system.”

PAS was developed by Sage Technology in partnership with Loy Yang Power after a worldwide search failed to find a computer-based PTW system that met LYP’s stringent safety requirements. It has since been installed in a number of major plants around Australia and in Indonesia.

“The greatest benefit for TRUenergy is that it enhances safety with relatively minor changes in our work practices,” Gene said, “PAS gives us more cross-referencing and a tag verification process in an electronic format rather than the old manual system where someone could inadvertently miss a conflict.”

Gene also believes that the growing number of PAS sites in the Latrobe Valley offers a safety benefit for contractors who work across multiple sites.

“It gives them greater consistency so that they do not have to learn new systems at each site,” he said.

Gene said working with Sage Technology had made it easier to achieve the PAS implementation. He said Sage was quickly and easily available by phone, email and site visits and resolved issues or requests from TRUenergy rapidly.

“As for PAS itself, I’m yet to see another electronic PTW system that is even as good as PAS. This is the product that other manufacturers need to look at if they want to be competitive,” he said.