Turning on a light bulb or watching television is something members of UK plc take for granted. Whether relaxing at home, taking advantage of the latest consumer gadget or when hard at work in the office, we are all responsible for the consumption of ever larger amounts of electrical power – often with little thought to its source of generation.
Centrica’s Kings Lynn Power Station – located on the Willows Business Park in Saddlebow – is one such source. Following a three-year build period, the plant’s operation began in December 1997 under the expert guidance of TXU Management. The facility was subsequently acquired by British Gas Group company Centrica in October 2001.
The station’s modern gas turbine and triple-pressure heat recovery steam generator feeds 325 MW of power into the UK’s national grid, fulfilling the needs of commercial and domestic consumption alike.
The technical specifications for the site comprise one single shaft combined cycle design consisting of: a single Siemens V94.3 gas turbine with electrical generator, one triple pressure heat recovery steam generator, a single steam turbine that’s coupled to the generator via a self-synchronising clutch and one air-cooled condenser comprising 16 cooling modules (fins/tubes/fan) arranged in a four-by-four configuration. Connection to the 132,000 V electrical distribution system.
The plant operates using gas from Transco’s national transmission system.
Need for security overhaul
Since the plant opened, it has been protected by a mix of security measures including – as you might expect – a basic CCTV system. However, due to the number of years the original system had been in service, and the resultant wear and tear, Centrica management decided to embark on a comprehensive overhaul of the installation.
Subsequently, Jason Buck – information systems manager at Kings Lynn for Centrica Energy Operations Ltd – drew up a document detailing how the new system would be used. Buck then invited several companies to tender for the project.
After close scrutiny, Buck chose Panasonic Premier Integrator Reflex Systems of South Yorkshire. “Reflex was commissioned on the basis of a comprehensive and competitive tender bid,” Buck tells SMT.
During the tender process, Steve Ward – technical projects director at Reflex – liaised heavily with Buck to qualify his expectations of the new surveillance system. Eventually, a Panasonic-based CCTV solution was specified and commissioned to fulfil the varied needs of the power station.
Reflex’s surveillance solution commenced service in May 2006. Following a comprehensive site audit, the company installed WV-CW860 dome cameras to provide maximum external scene coverage. Of most importance here are the potentially sensitive areas around the plant, including the gas and steam generating building, the car park, the water demineralisation plant, water pumping station, auxiliary cooling tower, the workshop buildings, the gas storage area and, last but not least, the gates to the compounded site.
Steve Ward explains: “Right from our initial site surveys, it was clear that Jason and his team required crystal clear images of the site, day and night. Although they had not experienced any specific problems, they were acutely aware of the sensitivity of the site to trespassers, both from a security and Health and Safety perspective.
“We installed WV-CW860 dome cameras to allow them to take full advantage of the units’ 22x zoom lens, high-speed panning and Super Dynamic II technology. The domes employ a day/night-switching mode allied to an extremely capable 510 TV lines resolution, allowing Centrica staff effective visual monitoring to pinpoint and identify individuals even in very low-light conditions.”
Perimeter security in focus
Supplementing the fully-functional PTZ positions are 18 WV-CP480 Super DIII fixed cameras. Contained in their own weatherproofed housings, the WV-CP480 cameras employ Super Dynamic technology to provide auto back focus and automatic colour. They also offer black and white switching along with 128x dynamic range correction for fast, accurate reactions to contrast changes in any viewed scene – a worthy feature among the constantly changing light conditions around the industrial structures at the Kings Lynn facility.
Providing comprehensive surveillance coverage of the perimeter of the site, the system also generates important visual identification of individuals using the access-controlled turnstiles within the plant’s fence line. Thanks to Reflex’s efficient and economical camera layout, operators’ surveillance capability from the cameras extends beyond the boundaries of the Kings Lynn site to include the surrounding land and its arterial roadways.
Both the WV-CW860 domes and WV-CP480 cameras are also deployed within the interior of the Kings Lynn Power Station. Monitoring the gas and steam turbine room, the cameras afford Control Room operators extensive process control information and visual verification of issues raised by the control equipment.
Operations technician Will Hopkins explains: “Using the surveillance technology we’ve chosen means that we can visually monitor any part of the site without leaving the Control Room. This improves the efficiency of our staffing operation, and has proven to be a real asset in our Health and Safety monitoring.”
Images from the cameras are transmitted to two control points. The first is located in the main reception area within the administration building. From here, reception staff can monitor visitors as they approach the facility’s main gate, visually verifying expected visitors and their vehicles, and assisting with any general enquiries. If necessary, visitors can be tracked from the moment they enter through the front gate, right up to their arrival in front of the reception area.
The second control point is housed within the Control Room building and is integrated with the main Kings Lynn Power Station control console, allowing Centrica staff complete surveillance over the site in liaison with general plant control. Images from the system’s cameras are transmitted to Panasonic WJ-HD 316A 16-channel digital video recorders, programmed to record 120 images per second. The playback quality allows operators to review crystal clear images of the facility if and when necessary.
WV-CU650CJ/B system controllers afford video playback and review while helping to manage the system’s WJ-SX150A camera switching matrix. “The CCTV operators use the control equipment in different ways,” adds Will Hopkins. “The ambidextrous and intuitive joystick design allows all of our operators to be instantly ‘at home’ with the system control functionality, which is pretty vital.”
Any incidents occurring during the production procedure can be directly investigated from the Control Room. Any alarm within the facility may be verified using the surveillance technology – from a perimeter detection to production issues.
CCTV as management tool
“The surveillance system has been extremely useful during our scheduled outage periods,” continues Hopkins. “Every power supplier has a designated offline period for maintenance and, during these periods, we can have a large amount of third party contractors onsite. With the new surveillance technology at our fingertips, we’re able to ensure Health and Safety procedures are adhered to at all times.
“We can also check on service progress, in respect to human and vehicular traffic around the site. We can even observe the works progress right down to individual engineer level. It’s extremely versatile.” Reflex Systems has provided Centrica’s Kings Lynn Power Station with a flexible surveillance solution that’s not only integrated with the access control system but actively complements the mix of other on-site security measures. The CCTV system has proven to be a pivotal instrument, providing an effective site management and Health and Safety tool.