Strengthening reliability across critical rotating equipment
| Location | United Kingdom |
| Industry | Refining |
| Key Services |
Overview
An ageing UK refinery initially partnered with Sulzer to address recurring issues with pump reliability. What began as a focused engagement grew steadily, as Sulzer demonstrated its technical value and built trust on site. Over time, the scope of support expanded to include turbomachinery and generator services - delivered by specialist teams working together across disciplines, with increasing coordination and consistency.
The result: improved reliability across critical assets, reduced downtime, and a trusted partnership grounded in capability and performance.
CRITICAL ASSET TYPES
ON-TIME DELIVERY
EXTENDED PUMP LIFESPAN
THE RESULT
The Challenge
By 2018, the refinery was facing mounting challenges with its ageing pump fleet - many units had been in service for over 40 years, with obsolete components and demanding process conditions.
The in-house team was lean, and large, complex pump overhauls were difficult to manage internally. As part of a broader site maintenance contract, Sulzer was brought in to provide specialist pump support, selected for its technical expertise, on-site capability, and proven track record with challenging applications.
At the time, the scope focused strictly on pumps. But over the following years, Sulzer’s on-site team consistently delivered results and demonstrated broader capabilities. As trust deepened, the refinery began to draw on Sulzer’s wider expertise - ultimately expanding support to include turbomachinery and generator services.
The Solution: scalable long-term partnership
Pumps: building the foundation
Sulzer established an on-site pump workshop and deployed a dedicated team to handle ongoing repairs and performance upgrades:
- Advanced coatings significantly extended pump reliability and service life
- Reverse engineering of obsolete components reduced OEM dependency
- On-site support and knowledge-transfer built customer team autonomy
This success laid the groundwork for Sulzer to take on broader rotating equipment responsibilities.
Turbomachinery: turnaround execution
During a planned turnaround, Sulzer proposed a faster, lower-cost repair-over-replace strategy, an alternative to OEM recommendations. This approach led to Sulzer being awarded full turnarounds on two major machine trains:
- Hot gas expander, air blower, steam turbine
- Recycle compressor and ancillaries
Key elements of delivery:
- One team, one lead coordinated all turbomachinery services
- Technical depth through regional engineering support from Aberdeen and Venlo
- Local execution from UK-based service centers with strong HSE execution
- Complex scope completed on time, meeting safety, quality, and technical KPIs
This streamlined approach reduced complexity and risk during a critical shutdown.
Generator: preventing failure before it happens
A 25-year-old generator, part of a drivetrain Sulzer had already serviced, showed early signs of vibration and thermal stress.
Inspection and response:
- Underlying faults identified - insulation breakdown, intermittent shorts, and rotor damage
- Precision welds on critical components
- High-quality rotor rewind and machine reassembly
- Restored stability at 3,000 rpm, avoiding catastrophic failure
This intervention protected thousands of production hours and extended the generator life.
Outcome
What began as pump support evolved into a trusted partnership across all three critical classes of rotating equipment - pumps, turbomachinery, and generators - with Sulzer delivering technical upgrades, lifecycle support, and expert project execution at every stage.
The result: lower operational risk, extended asset life, and a trusted single-source partner for critical rotating equipment.
