Power Plant Communications, Industrial Drawings, and Sketching

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering plant communication protocols, legal operating log requirements, maintenance work procedures, industrial diagram interpretation (PFDs, P&IDs, Plot Plans), and engineering sketching principles.

Two-Way Radio

A high-powered transceiver system serving as the primary verbal communication channel between the control room and field operators, operating on identical assigned frequencies.

Base Station

A high-powered radio transceiver unit typically situated in the plant control room to communicate with mobile operators.

Five by Five (Radio Communication)

A standard operational response to a radio check indicating that the transmission is strong and clear.

Emergency, Emergency, Emergency

A formal radio transmission phrase used to immediately halt and preempt all ongoing radio traffic due to an urgent plant situation, synonymous with "Break, Break, Break".

NATO Phonetic Alphabet

A standardized radiotelephone spelling alphabet (e.g., Alpha, Bravo, Charlie) utilized in verbal transmission to prevent mishearing critical letters and designations.

NATO Phonetic Numbers

A standardized set of number pronunciations designed for verbal clarity over radio channels, including "WUN" ($1$), "TOO" ($2$), "TREE" ($3$), "FOW-ER" ($4$), "FIFE" ($5$), "SIX" ($6$), "SEV-EN" ($7$), "AIT" ($8$), "NINER" ($9$), and "ZEE-RO" ($0$).

Plant Logbook

A formal, legally binding record mandated by provincial boiler and pressure vessel regulations to log operating events, equipment tests, and shift activities; it contains strictly verifiable facts and is admissible as evidence in a court of law or Coroner's inquest.

Operating Logsheets

Formal shift documentation (reading sheets) recording critical operational parameters such as temperatures, pressures, flows, levels, and chemical analyses to monitor trends and establish legal operating history.

Preventative Maintenance (PM)

A scheduled maintenance program comprising inspections, servicing, testing, and parts replacement designed to detect developing flaws and prevent breakdowns rather than operating in a run-to-failure mode.

Routine Maintenance

Regularly scheduled day-to-day operational tasks, such as alternating standby pumps, fire pump startups, placing turbines on barring gear, and testing steam traps.

Emergency Maintenance

Unscheduled, reactive maintenance required to address sudden equipment failures, often referred to as "crash" maintenance.

Work Request

A formal submission created by operating or maintenance personnel specifying equipment defects, preliminary troubleshooting, isolation requirements, drawing coordinates, and execution priority.

Equipment Record Card

A record tracking the foundational engineering and procurement data for a specific piece of equipment, including catalog number, power rating ($\text{kW}$), voltage, operating speed, and manufacturer specifications.

Equipment Repair Record

A comprehensive maintenance history log documenting all past repairs, replacement components, suppliers, labor hours, and maintenance costs associated with a specific machine.

Line & Equipment Opening (LEO) Permit

A safety work permit issued by operations authorizing maintenance personnel to breach or open piping and process equipment that contains or has contained hazardous fluids or stored pressure.

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)

A formally controlled, formatted step-by-step document directing personnel on how to execute specific plant tasks safely and uniformly, developed using job safety analyses ($\text{JSAs}$), manufacturer manuals, and environmental parameters.

Electronic Master (P&ID)

The primary digital computer-aided design file of a Piping and Instrumentation Diagram kept in a secured database, modifiable only with designated owner authorization.

Print Master (P&ID)

A secured, uneditable read-only PDF version of a plant P&ID hosted on an accessible network server for employee review and printing.

Process Flow Diagram (PFD)

A simplified, unscaled schematic displaying the major equipment items, principal process flow streams, operating temperatures, pressures, and primary control instrumentation of a plant system.

Piping & Instrumentation Diagram (P&ID)

A comprehensive, unscaled schematic showing all mechanical piping, line sizes, process vessels, control loops, safety relief devices, valves, and instrumentation connections.

Title Block

A standard drawing section in the lower right-hand corner containing administrative and technical metadata, such as drawing title, owner, drawing number, scale, and reference prints.

Grid System (Drawing)

An alphanumeric coordinate border system on complex engineering drawings enabling users to locate specific components or tie-in points precisely.

Revision Block

A designated table on an engineering drawing that tracks engineering changes, revision numbers (beginning with Revision $0$ upon initial issue), description of alterations, and sign-off dates.

Material Balance Drawing

A diagrammatic mass-accounting document accompanying a PFD that specifies the composition, molecular weight, flow rates, temperature, and pressure of process streams in terms of $\text{mols/d}$ or $\text{mol}\,\%$.

Construction Drawing

A precise, to-scale engineering drawing showing exact physical dimensions across multiple views (plan, elevation, section) alongside material and design data tables for equipment fabrication.

General Arrangement (GA) Drawing

An overall layout drawing that depicts the spatial relationships, boundaries, and primary dimensions of system assemblies without individual component tagging.

Block Plan

A high-level diagram where geometric shapes represent overall plant operations or chemical process units rather than individual mechanical equipment, with internal fluid streams omitted.

Electrical Single Line Schematic

A specialized technical diagram illustrating electrical connections, distribution voltages, breakers, switches, and motor control centers using single lines and electrical symbology.

Equipment Layout Drawing (Plot Plan)

A scaled engineering drawing that maps out the geographic placement of equipment on a plant site, indicating battery limits, pipe racks, elevations, and true or plant North.

Equipment Diagram

A detailed graphical illustration presenting a cutaway or exploded pictorial view of an individual mechanical component and its internal assemblies.

Centre Line (Sketching)

A light line drawn along the axis of symmetry of an object from which sketch proportions, hole locations, and heavy object outlines are referenced.

Dimension Line

A thin line terminated with arrowheads that indicates the span between two extension lines and encloses a numeric measurement value.

Orthographic Projection

A drafting method of representing a three-dimensional object in two dimensions by projecting perpendicular views, requiring at least two views to fully define the object.

Section Lining (Cross Hatching)

Parallel lines drawn typically at a $45^\circ$ angle across an imaginary internal cut surface to highlight interior components and distinguish adjacent materials.

Break Line

A drafting symbol used across elongated uniform rods, shafts, or structural members to indicate that a continuous section has been omitted to save drawing space.

ASME A13.1 Flammable Fluids Label

A pipe marking convention featuring black text on a yellow background, reserved for fluids that produce vapors capable of burning in air (e.g., ammonia).

ASME A13.1 Combustible Fluids Label

A pipe identification scheme consisting of white text on a brown background, assigned to fluids that can burn but do not meet flammable criteria (e.g., diesel fuel).

ASME A13.1 Toxic and Corrosive Fluids Label

A pipe marking standard using black text on an orange background, specified for hazardous fluids that cause severe chemical injury or toxicity (e.g., sulfuric acid).

ASME A13.1 Fire Quenching Fluids Label

A piping label standard featuring white text on a red background, designated exclusively for sprinkler and firefighting supply lines.

ASME A13.1 Other Water Label

A piping label convention displaying white text on a green background, designated for non-firefighting waters such as boiler feed water or cooling water.

ASME A13.1 Compressed Air Label

A pipe marking scheme utilizing white text on a blue background, applied to pressurized air, vapors, or gases that do not fit toxic, combustible, or flammable classifications.

Single Line Sketch

A rapid plant tracing format where process piping runs are depicted with single lines without indicating wall thickness or exact pipe diameter, commonly used by operators to memorize system flowpaths.