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'A' for effort on DTE-Rouge powerhouse outage

Date Posted: December 9 2005

A new and improved Unit 3 at DTE Energy's River Rouge Power Plant is up and running.

The 275-megawatt unit was shut down and underwent a $28 million outage to replace some aging components. The Washington Group International managed the project, directing its subcontractors and about 280 construction workers at peak employment. Some 78,00 man-hours were worked utilizing two shifts.

"We got an 'A'-draw on the tradespeople, they did excellent work," said River Rouge Power Plant Construction Manager Larry Garrett, of the Washington Group. "We needed to get this pulled off in the time frame allotted to us, and they did it; they did an excellent job."

Garrett said the 12-week outage finished five days ahead of schedule.

The work involved re-tubing of the boiler's re-heater, and the installation of 12 new coal mill feeders, relining and installing a new cap on the exhaust stack, installation of a new main unit transformer, installation of new precipitator controls and power cables and switchgear, and blade replacement in the low-pressure turbine.

"The part of the boiler we replaced really takes a beating," Garrett said, adding that the trades "basically tore out the top half of the boiler" during the project, and installed a replacement. "It wasn't construction, it was re-struction, if that's a word," he said.

Jim Vago of Boilermakers Local 169, the site representative for the Washington Group, said the building trades workers faced the usual difficulties in the powerhouse, including cramped quarters, difficult areas to rig equipment, and a gritty and noisy work environment. "All in all it was a good outage," he said the day before the revamped boiler was set to be re-fired. "The Washington Group and DTE have been good people to work for."

Coal-burning Unit 3, originally built in 1958, is the third of three boilers built at the plant. DTE owns two of the units, the third is operated by another company. DTE's Unit 2, another coal-burner, is scheduled to undergo a smaller-scale outage at the plant next spring.

Major subcontractors on the project include Northern Boiler, Safeway Scaffolding, International Chimney, Duke and Duke, Phillips Services and Nedrow. 

THE DTE ENERGY River Rouge Power Plant Unit 3 boiler was extensively renovated by the building trades, the Washington Group, and several subcontractors. The work included relining and installing a new cap on the nearest exhaust stack in the photo.
WELDING A SKIN casing on the Unit 3 boiler at the DTE Energy River Rouge Power Plant is Jamie "Rat" Ratliff of Boilermakers Local 169.