FG Wilson Engineering Ltd…Designed to Deliver More

FG Wilson Engineering Ltd is a truly global company with over 3,000 employees and 40 years of experience in the supply of diesel and gas generator sets. The FG Wilson product range from 5.5 - 2,500 kVA, includes open and enclosed generator sets providing prime and standby power - from standby domestic use, right up to power modules with the ability to operate as complete power stations supplying electricity to national grids.

FG Wilson serve and support customers all over the world through its Global Dealer Network. The UK has been a particularly strong market for them for many years. With the back-up of FG Wilson's power solutions team, Dealers can meet any power requirement, no matter how complex. One example of a project for which FG Wilson are providing power is the Royal London Hospital.

The Royal London Hospital has been one of London's landmark buildings since it's construction in Whitechapel in the East End of London since 1757. It has now been improved with a re-design by HOK, one of the world's most acclaimed architectural design firms. The new hospital features a cluster of inter-connected contemporary glass buildings, including two 18-storey towers and one ten-storey tower.

Redevelopment of the hospital got underway in May 2006, with completion of phase I scheduled for 2012, and phase II due to complete in 2014/2015. FG Wilson was appointed by contractor, Skanska as a design phase partner. Following this design phase, FG Wilson was appointed to supply and install high voltage generator sets.

FG Wilson's role in the project entailed the design, supply and integration of 11MVA of standby diesel generation to be incorporated into the 11kV network within a purpose built plantroom on the 18th floor of the tower.

To meet the stringent acoustical requirements, the design encompassed individual acoustic enclosures arranged within the plant room. This space included switchgear room, control suite, daily fuel service room, exhaust gas treatment and leak detection.

Due to the critical power demands of the hospital, there was a high level of resilience required in the design of all aspects of the scheme. This involved an N+1 arrangement of 5 number FG Wilson P2000 Generator sets. These generators comprise of the Perkins 4016 TAG2A Prime Mover coupled to a Leroy Somer LSA54 11kV Alternator.

To manage the complex nature of the control and distribution of the electrical power a Duty / Standby PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) and a network of remote input & output PLC outstations were implemented throughout the hospital buildings, interfacing through multiple HMI (Human Machine Interface) & SCADA (Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition) touch screen workstations. This high-level control system included generator control, neutral earthing resister control, HV synchronizing, fuel system monitoring and power management of the high and low voltage distribution system throughout the site.
One of the key elements of this project was the delivery of 2.1 MWe of critical power within 15 seconds of mains failure, whilst meeting the G3 performance class of ISO8528-Part 5.

To achieve this challenge, we incorporated the philosophy of 'Dead Bus Synchronisation'. This involves the start-up of the 5 generators together, and while running up between 1200-1500 RPM the excitation is switched on, allowing the gensets to synchronise together onto the bus bar, ready to accept load on voltage stabilisation.

Another complex aspect of the project was the detailed factory validation of the system prior to dispatch from the FG Wilson's manufacturing facility at Larne, Northern Ireland. This type of rigorous FAT (Factory Acceptance Test) allowed FG Wilson to flex the muscles of its Power Solutions team and their in-house resources.

As the project nears the successful completion of phase I, Ian Neville, Skanska's Operations Manager commented, "We are very pleased with the professional and high quality service that we have received from FG Wilson on this project."

Continuously innovating, FG Wilson has invested millions of pounds in recent years in their manufacturing facility in Larne, Northern Ireland. State of the art technology has been incorporated into new production lines and test facilities. The Larne site also encompasses Europe's largest hemi-anechoic chamber - providing advanced acoustic research and testing capability. The company also has manufacturing plants in Brazil, China, India and the United States.

FG Wilson's strength is in their Dealer network and in-house team of highly qualified electrical and mechanical engineers, whose power expertise includes:

• Advanced control and synchronisation systems
• PLC
• Remote cooling
• Exhaust silencer systems
• Room acoustic treatment
• Weatherproof and acoustic enclosures
• Specialist environmental protection
• High & Low ambient applications
• Factory and on-site testing
• Specialised commissioning

Find out more about FG Wilson or any of our Dealers.

Power to the people

How often do we think about where our electricity comes from? Rarely. We can take our power so much for granted because the National Grid PLC partners with industry leading power experts to ensure a continuous supply.

Green Frog Power supplies standby power to the National Grid via power stations throughout the UK. In turn, FG Wilson is working closely with Green Frog to provide occasional peak lopping power for up to two hours at a time (around 200 hours a year).

Following the award of a 15 year Short Term Operating Reserve (STOR) contract with National Grid, Green Frog selected a number of UK development sites - North East, Yorkshire and South Wales - for a series of fourteen 20MW power plants.

FG Wilson's relationship with Green Frog Power began two years ago when the manufacturer assisted with a malfunctioning 800kW test machine installed at Green Frog's Birmingham HQ. Having efficiently resolved the problem, FG Wilson was invited to quote for 214MWe of STOR equipment over the fourteen designated UK sites.

Jeremy Taylor CEO of Green Frog Power said:
"With a very large order for plant to fulfill we trawled through Europe and China seeking the best-priced equipment that was robust enough for our needs and we were delighted to find that a British manufacturer came top. Since placing our orders we have been very pleased by the quality and level of service from FG Wilson and Progress Group throughout our project."

FG Wilson's expertise in standby power helps Green Frog and the National Grid to regulate the supply and demand for power in the UK. As our increasingly technology dependent lifestyles place growing demand on the grid, STOR is a crucial requirement.

Phil Starr, project director of FG Wilson Dealer, The Progress Group, commented:
"FG Wilson provided invaluable assistance with this contract, obtaining special short term base load ratings from Perkins and answering a series of challenging technical questions relating to the installation of a large number of generators in a relatively small area. This was all delivered quickly and efficiently without which the project would have stalled."

As an ongoing project with an estimated lifespan of around 20 years, the Green Frog STOR project has already resulted in the creation of ten new jobs.

The challenges presented by the project have been numerous but in particular the handling of acoustics, airflows and underlying issues of electrical stability and fault protection have all been critical in ensuring this work has been a success from planning through to implementation.

Phil Starr added:
"This has been a challenging project from the outset but one which has allowed FG Wilson to really demonstrate the capabilities of its generator sets. The solution not only involved delivering the generator sets to meet intermittent and unexpected demands but also help shape the future direction of the business, anticipating future challenges and mapping out the best possible route forward."

Within hours of Green Frog opening its Hull site for service, a sudden surge in electricity demand prompted the National Grid to call them for emergency back-up. An output of 20MW was produced continuously for seventy minutes without incident, proving the success of this STOR project.

So next time you turn on the kettle during the ad break, be grateful to the many power experts involved in guaranteeing you a hot cuppa!