I am a new commer to this forum. We have a single MS5001P GT with MARK-II control system. Back in 1998 the company bought MARKV (IDOS) system to replace the original control system. Unfortunatly we couldn't replace the system till today. Now we have decided to replace the MARKII system and two options are under consideration.

1) BUY & Install A NEW MARKVIe system
2) Upgrade IDOS MARKV to MARK <HMI> and install

The second option is quite cost effective as we already have MARKV hardware + Panel + IDOS <I> and to my understanding the feature of both MARKVIe and MARKV (HMI) are mostly the same except ARCNET. Any contrasting views???? What about MARKV spares availbility timelines???

 

Welcome to the community!

There are a LOT of things to consider. Will you be trying to perform the retrofit yourselves, or will you obtain the services of GE or one of their packagers to perform the retrofit? I would venture a guess that GE wouldn't be able to supply someone, since they don't seem to have many people left with <I> skills, and engineering support for Mark V seems to be pretty thin as well. Trying to do this on your own without some kind of factory support or knowledgeable field support would be very difficult, not impossible, but really difficult.

Supposing you could get competent help, the Mark V is no longer in production. GE has said they will offer spares for only a few more years, but there are sources of spare parts (one of the advertisers here on control.com, Gas Turbine Controls, for example). So, that's one issue that should be considered.

The availability of Mark V-experienced and knowldegeable field support people is dwindling, and that should also be a consideration. GE or one of its packagers probably has the largest field force with Mark V experience, but it comes at a price (cost).

You could use the <I> with IDOS, but the issue there is the ARCnet card. The ISA-bus ARCnet cards are no longer available, and when it dies the options are limited and without some kind of back-up or spares, you could be out of operation for some time.

You could obtain an <I> to GE Mark V HMI replacement from GE or one of its packagers, but that's expensive and the reports of problems during <I>-HMI conversions are widespread and troubling.

There have been several posts on control.com from three companies who claim to have complete <I> replacements. You could contact them for information and assistance with the operator interface issue.

I don't know if the Mark Ve would be an option from GE, if they would support a retrofit using an old, but unused Mark V and upgrading it to Mark Ve and performing the retrofit and commissioning. This would require a new HMI since the Mark Ve no longer uses ARCnet cards. I would have to believe it would be very, very expensive.

Buying a new Mark VIe system would probably be more cost-effective on many fronts. It would be installed by GE or the packager supplying the system; it would come with a compatible HMI; it would have the widest availability of field support and for the longest time, and it would have a warranty period for support (which the Mark V probably would not); it would have the longest time period for spares availability (since it's the newest control system offering).

These are a few of the considerations. Gas Turbine Controls would probably buy the Mark V and <I>, and you could recoup some of your investment that way. Or, you could part it out yourself on eBay if you wanted the hassles (and there WOULD BE hassles!).

Hope this helps! Let us know how this progresses.

 

In reply to your posting, CSE Engineering offers our Windows based, IBECS for Turbine Control <ITC> HMI as a low cost, direct replacement for the GE SpeedTronic Mk IV <D>, Mk IV SmartRemote , Mk V <I> and Mk V HMI operator interfaces.

The <ITC> system utilizes state-of-the-art, off-the-shelf hardware/software technology to communicate directly to the Mk IV and MK V. The <ITC> system supports Stagelink communications utilizing a non-OEM proprietary ARCnet card and does not rely on, or use, DOS, IDos, Cimplicity, TCI, or CimBridge.

The <ITC> system capabilities include: Full monitoring and control, Complete Mk V Tools (Control Constant Modification, AutoCal, EEProm Utility, Logic Forcing, View Tools, Pre-Vote Display, Quick Sheet Display & Dynamic Real Time Rung Display), Unit-Specific data synchronization (no more sneaker net), Real-time and historical data trending, Automated reports, and More.

The <ITC> system also provides native protocol gateway communications via Modbus (Serial/TCPIP), Allen-Bradley CIP and DF1, GE FANUC Series 90, DDE, NetDDE, DirectNet, OSI PI, OPC (Server and Client), and many more.

For further details on the IBECS for Turbine Control <ITC> HMI, visit:
http:\\cse-eng-inc.com, http:\\info-itc.us

or email: sales [at] cse-eng-inc.com

 

To assist with your decision, I can confirm we would be pleased to purchase the MKV from you to help generate cash towards a MKVIe.