The Commissioning Process: A Step-by-Step Guide

by Paul Turner | Jun 15, 2020 | CSU | 12 comments

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Commissioning process helps to achieve the project goals. Have you ever
wondered how large complex projects are commissioned and started up?
There is a lot that goes on behind the scenes! Each project is different and
must have a unique plan to achieve the desired outcome. However, the
overall process to plan, commission, and startup a project is similar in each
case. Let’s review the steps for commissioning and startup. For additional
information, you can also check this article out to help you set your projects
up on success Project Mindset Lifecycle

Step 1 – Planning

There are several activities that take place off-site prior to the commissioning
team mobilizing to site during the design and construction phases of a
project. During design and construction, the schedule and sequence of
activities during commissioning are used to define the required construction
milestones, in order to plan the project schedule. The construction
milestones then define the required design milestones. From this sequence
of milestones, the project team is then aware of what activities need to be
compete and by when to ensure all the project components come together
as a final system for testing.

The commissioning team is defined during the design/construction phase, to

determine the core members of the commissioning team as well as the
support resources required from elsewhere on the project. An important
group to ensure are part of the commissioning team is the Owner’s
operations team, as commissioning activities are the best opportunity for the
Ops team to learn about the systems and become familiar with the new
operating requirements prior to taking over the systems. Other members of
the commissioning team are the electrical/mechanical/automation key
discipline leads, consultant subject matter experts (SME), contractors,
vendor reps, and owner’s reps. Roles and Responsibilities of the people who
are involved in commissioning is one of the lessons in our courses, check it
out here Commissioning Academy: Full System Commissioning

Commissioning documentation is defined and prepared in advance of the

commissioning phase. This includes the test plans and test procedures to be
executed during commissioning, and checklists required, as well as
drawings. It is critical that the construction team deliver an accurate set of
red-line drawings to the commissioning team in order that the correct
installed configuration of equipment in the field is accurately documented.

As construction is completed and equipment installation is complete, the

construction and commissioning teams will perform a walkthrough to identify
any contract deviations or deficiencies, and list all items on a deficiency
tracking list. Deficiencies are then classified as Type-A, Type-B, or Type-B,
identifying when each must be complete. Type-A is a showstopper, and must
be complete before proceeding to the next activity. Type-B does not need to
be addressed immediately and does not impact subsequent activities, but
must be rectified prior to handover to the owner. Type-C deficiencies are
minor defects and are agreed by the owner to be rectified after handover to
the owner.

Contractor document deliverables are defined, such as O&M manuals and

training plans, to be delivered during the commissioning phase.

Any specialized test equipment or special tools are defined and procured
prior to commissioning. If the constructor is required to provide any
specialized equipment, this is defined as well.

Methods to gather test results need to be determined, either as data logging

systems or manually recorded. Often there is a significant amount of
information produced during commissioning, and a plan to gather, analyze,
and report on the test results needs to be determined.

The stakeholders of the project will need to be informed on the

commissioning progress, what is going well, and any issues encountered.
What information needs to be conveyed and to who should be agreed to by
all stakeholders prior to the start of commissioning.

And last but not least, safety management systems need to be established
prior to commencing any commissioning activities, learn more about safety
here Safety During Commissioning. The energy isolation procedures, also
known as Lock Out Tag Out (LOTO) process, needs to be established and
points of contact identified as responsible for the process.

Step 2 – Factory Acceptance Testing

During the design and procurement phase of the project, a critical step prior
to equipment delivery to site is Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT). FAT
verifies that the equipment is designed per specification before leaving the
factory, where any issues discovered are much easier and cheaper to fix,
rather than delaying testing until equipment is installed on-site.

FAT can consist of hardware verification such as dielectric testing of major

equipment, or panel wiring of any control cabinets. FAT can also consist of
integrated testing, where automation or protection/control logic is loaded
into the hardware and verified for correct design and functionality. If this is
specified in the contract, then this must be done before the equipment
leaves the factory. Because field devices and wiring do not exist in the
factory bench testing, interfaces will need to be simulated. Integrated FAT is
the most thorough verification, and reduces schedule risk, in order that any
errors are discovered prior to site testing. But this requires that the
automation design be completed in advance. It is important during the
procurement that schedules be planned to allow sufficient time for this to
take place, as often the panel wiring and field device designs are not
completed, and logic is difficult to complete without the full hardware
design. However, thorough FAT will always make on-site commissioning go
much better if it is known in advance that the hardware delivered to site
already works with the logic design.

Step 3 – Mechanical Completion

Mechanical completion occurs at the end of construction once equipment is

installed. There is often a formal handover process with forms required to be
signed confirming that equipment is installed per the design. The
construction team and commissioning team will perform a walkthrough to
inspect the installation and confirm there are no deficiencies. Any
deficiencies are noted and added to the deficiency list, with associated
classification. Confirmation of basic installation is confirmed, such as valves
installed in the correct direction, and all wiring point-to-point checks and
megger tests have been completed. P&ID drawings are traced in the field to
ensure all air/oil/water auxiliaries are available. The construction team will
verify that drawings are marked up (red-green drawings) to indicate the as-
installed condition, and mechanical completion is the point in time when the
red-line drawings are delivered to the commissioning team.

At each mechanical completion, a deficiency list is generated and any Type-A

deficiencies rectified before moving into the pre-commissioning phase.

Project Professionals

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Commissioning Process – Step 4 – On-Site Commissioning

Upon mechanical completion of each portion of the work, and deficiencies

agreed to, pre-commissioning activities can then commence.

For mechanical systems, pre-commissioning activities consist of cleaning and

flushing of pipes, pressure testing, and leak testing. Any rotating equipment
such as a pump are bump tested, which means rotating for the first time on
site to verify current draw, pressure, and flow rates. There may be an initial
run-in period of motors and pumps to verify vibration and heating/cooling as
well as confirm no infant mortality issues.

For electrical systems, pre-commissioning activities consist of panel

energization, communication checks, loop checks (internal and external), and
verification of any wiring to the central control room if required.

More detailed electrical checks of automation or control/protection circuit

may be required, to confirm that any minor updates since FAT are uploaded
to equipment, and that the correct protection settings are applied to
protection devices. Current injections are done on any current transformers
to verify correct polarity and calibration prior to applying primary power to
major equipment. Pre-commissioning checklists are completed for each
piece of equipment, and may be witnessed by consultant SME to verify tasks
are being completed.

As each equipment pre-commissioning is complete, new deficiencies are

added to the deficiency list (existing from FAT or mechanical completion
walkthrough), categorized, and all Type-A deficiencies rectified.

Following completion of pre-commissioning checklists, commissioning can

begin. Commissioning is the on-site process to verify that equipment has not
been damaged during shipping since the FAT was completed. All field
devices are installed at this point, so field wiring is confirmed to be correct,
and a subset of FAT tests are repeated to ensure the equipment can
communicate to all field devices and that equipment is calibrated.

Mechanical commissioning consists of dry commissioning and wet

commissioning. Dry commissioning confirms proper function of mechanical
systems without process fluids, while wet commissioning adds the process
fluids and chemicals to confirm operation.

Electrical commissioning consists first of pre-energization safety. When

equipment is first energized as a system, it may be that construction is still
taking place next to equipment currently under test, and it must be ensured
that power is safely isolated from any equipment installations. Once
isolations are confirmed, equipment racks are powered up and system
integration can occur. The field devices are verified to be correctly reflected
on HMI screens, and that control of field devices can be done from the
central control location. End-to-end communications are verified as accurate
and reliable.

Once all mechanical and electrical components are complete, system

commissioning can begin, where all the electrical and mechanical equipment
works together as a system for the first time. Auxiliary systems are brought
online followed by major apparatus, and interfaces are verified for all
equipment. It is now that all the systems are available and ready for startup
of the plant processes. Commissioning checklists are completed and
witnessed by consultant SMEs. Similar to previous stages, the deficiency list
is updated with any newly discovered deficiencies, and all Type-A
deficiencies are rectified prior to moving to the next steps.

Commissioning Process – Step 5 – Process/System Startup

At this stage, the plant process can now be started. This could consist of a
power transmission system, boilogical nutrient removal system, or any other
industrial plant manufacturing or specialized system.

Mechanical process are slowly started, and piping is configured for the initial
operating scenarios. Flows are started and monitored to ensure correct
operation.

Electrical interfaces are verified and power is slowly ramped up to operating

levels.

Automation is executed and fault scenarios are tested and verified. Read this
article to learn more about automation, watch the discussion video and learn
from Question and Answer portion The Correct Way to Commission
Automation Systems

The equipment undergoes analysis at each stage to ensure the plant process
is operating as specified. The Consultant SME and Owner reps are present to
verify correct operation of the plant process. The plant is not up and running
and functioning as a system – ready for fine-tuning to optimize the process.

Commissioning Process – Step 6 – Performance Verification

Any fine tuning of the plant process operation is conducted by the

commissioning team with consultation with the consultant SME and with the
owner. Once tuned, the contract may require a trial period where the plant
process is expected to operate uninterrupted for a period of time. This could
be 24 hours or 30 days for example, dependent on the contract
requirements. Should the system operation be interrupted, the trial period
starts over. Once the trial period is completed successfully, the Provisional
Acceptance Certificate (PAC) is issued to the contractor. The contract may
also specify a performance guarantee period, where the plant processes are
expected to meet certain contractual criteria over a period of time. The
performance guarantee period may have commercial impacts dependent on
the performance achieved. Once the performance guarantee period is
complete and commercial impacts have been determined, the Final
Acceptance Certificate (FAC) is issued to the contractor.

Commissioning Process – Step 7 – Operational Readiness

As the project approaches the in-service date, it is beneficial to the owner to

prepare the operations team for eventual handover and operation of the new
systems. In fact, it is best to have the owner’s operations staff involved in
the commissioning process, as this is a great time for them to learn about
the new systems and ask the experts who are on-site testing the systems
any questions that they have. The operations staff have a vested interest in
the operation and maintenance of the systems, and are often the best to
manage any document management systems or setup of asset management
systems. A soft handover approach is best to prepare operators as opposed
to waiting to the end of the project, passing a bunch of new information to
operators, and the project team leaving site. Please check this article to learn
more about Operational Readiness

Training is a key deliverable for the operating individuals to obtain from the
project. Contracts will typically define the training that the contractor is
required to provide. Training sessions should be arranged prior to
commissioning activities in order that operators have some experience with
the new systems prior to being asked to work with the new systems. Please
feel free to check our in-depth training here Commissioning Academy: Full
System Commissioning

The owner will typically have an established asset management system. If

this is a first new system for the owner, an asset management system may
be a new system being established. The asset management system contains
information on each asset, the hierarchy of installation, nameplate data for
each, preventative maintenance requirements, and warranty information.
The warranty period may require more specific maintenance requirements in
order to maintain warranty, and this needs to be implemented in the asset
management system for future demonstration of compliance to maintenance
requirements to the contractor. The asset management information is
contained within a software package that generates work orders for required
maintenance tasks and records of completed tasks. The project team may
be responsible to provide the information package containing all asset
information to be loaded into the asset management system for continued
use by the operating team.

The warranty period begins once each piece of equipment is placed in

service, or at issuance of PAC, dependent on the contract requirements. The
warranty period typically lasts from PAC to FAC, and can be one, two, or five
years, dependent on contract requirements. Some equipment may have
extended warranty, such as battery systems, or others, than extend longer
than the project warranty duration. The warranty period is when any Type-C
deficiencies are rectified by the contractor. As well, processes are required
for the owner to request any changes or service to the system, as the
contractor must be involved in any changes to the system to ensure the
warranty is not voided by unknown changes.

Project Completion

Once FAC is issued, the project officially comes to a close. If designed,

installed, and commissioned well, the assets should last for many years into
the future.

As you can see, there is a lot involved in commissioning and starting up an

industrial plant. It can be a complex initiative, but is the best part of the
project as you get to see the original design come to life! If the above steps
are applied to each project, complex projects can be broken down and these
industry best practices applied at each step. Even though each project is
different, these above steps can be applied with the unique aspects of each
project incorporated into each step. The commissioning process does not
have to be overwhelming when approached using the above steps.

Thanks, and good luck in your commissioning career!

Paul Turner, P. Eng, PMP