Power Plant Project Management

Jeffrey D Brandes

Hallettsville, TX ***** 361-***-**** *************@*****.***

Control Room Ops Manager, Power Plant Mgr., Start up and Commissioning

Introduction

Control operations management role with a great Energy company, such as Power Supply, Grid, or Generation Management. Recent education in Business/Project Management and Masters in Energy Management degree, along with 27 years of diverse power plant, utilities, and grid management experience would serve any company well. A diverse management team is invaluable, considering the changing environmental and political issues we face. Having been on the front lines with winter storm Uri, Jeff knows firsthand what it takes to keep the lights on.

Areas of expertise

• Management & Team Development

• Operations Process Improvements

• Procedure Writing

• Startup & Commissioning CRO

• Skilled in Instrument and Electrical Theory

• DCS, Computer Technology

• Historians & Power Scheduling

• MS office software

• Isometric/Single line/P&ID/Arrangement

• Environmental, Wastewater Management

• Electrical grid modernization theory

Professional Experience

South Texas Electric Cooperative - Sam Rayburn Power Plant

Managing Control Room Operations via direction from QSE, Plant Operations Manager and Manger of Power Supply March 2015–Present

3x1 with 3 GE LM6000, 1 Dresser Rand 41MW STG, along with the Associated HRSG/Boilers

2 GE Fame 5 simple turbines and 2 Caterpillar reciprocating engine/generators

Fulfilled a critical role in performing the operations of control systems and devices to monitor levels, temperatures, pressures, flow rates and transfer of products. I provide valuable leadership in keeping the Sam Rayburn plant online during Winter Storm URI.

Leadership: Managed fuel and electrical usage/load to our power plants. He managed job tasks and prioritization of work activities for operations and contractors, adhered to startup times, and efficiently took ownership for the accurate completion of all assigned tasks.

Process Improvements: Collaborated to create various electrical switching procedures for “Black Start” and/or emergency situations and worked to maintain updated reading sheets.

Operations: Managed and executed processes, maintained product quality, safety, and prevented environmental problems while identifying equipment requiring maintenance. Jeff conducts valuable shift relief to ensure effective communication and handoff to arriving shift team.

North American Energy Service & CAMS - Victoria Power Station WLE

Commissioning and Shift Lead, Control Room Operator CRO & Maint. Technician 04-2008–03-2015

Shift leader with a 1x1 Mitsubishi 501F CCTG and STG HRSG. approximately 300+ mw plant.

Leadership: Operations leader on the Victoria Power Station WLE repower project. VPS replaced an old boiler fired plant with a gas turbine to supply the existing 1950’s vintage steam turbine generator. Jeff mentored and trained fellow operators, leveraged skills and knowledge across shift team members and other shift teams to balance workload ensuring assigned tasks are completed by due dates.

Revenue: Created two excel based forecasting tools to predict when the system needed to start in order to have enough pre-warm up time for the STG based on energy needs and schedule, rather than a longer cold start or missed schedule..

Process Improvements: Created computer-based tools for power scheduling, reducing cycle startup times by 25%. Administered the “Red Tag Master” system for the plant. Developed tools, processes, and procedures to lock out/tag out for new GT/HRSG supply to the existing steam turbine generator. Tracked and utilized key performance metrics on shift that were applicable to optimize operations while identifying and addressing improvement opportunities. Trained and mentored peer operating technicians on computer our programs.

Operations: Operated the main equipment (GT and STG) and balance of plant equipment.

The Dow Chemical Co. and Union Carbide Corp. - Seadrift Plant

Cogen and Energy Systems Operator CRO 09-1997 – 04-2008

Leadership: Performed the function of the maintenance leader on shift, following our CMMS process, delegating work based on operator’s area of work each day.

Training and Mentoring: Rewrote the operations training and department technical manuals as an improvement project that was overdue for several years/decades. Followed various improvement projects throughout the site.

Operations: Certified on all utilities within the plant; cryogenic oxygen/nitrogen air separation plant, gas & steam turbines, water filtration systems and fuel systems, switch gear, transmission lines and waste water treatment reactor.

Safety: Recipient of the Union Carbine Excellence award for the prevention of major gas release from our Olefins 2 unit. A quick response helped to mitigate a major gas leak and prevent a Danbury reportable incident. Certified and contributed to the Fire and HazMat squads for the Union Carbine Seadrift Plant.

Budgeting: Budget team member for our plant where necessary decisions were made such as new small projects, scheduling of work, or delaying major turnarounds, to limiting operator overtime, etc., All this in an effort to keep our generation cost down for the site chemical plants.

Cost control electrical forecasting: Created a spread sheet that was weather, and generator curve based, as well as the sites expected electrical demand. This was used to forecast our tie-line import/export electrical needs more accurately 24/7 for the UCC Seadrift site. This helped our QSE make better decisions on powers sales and profit. Later incorporating into our Optimizer program and later into the Aspen energy scheduling program,

Industrial Construction Various Petrochem sites along the Texas Gulf Coast 1989-1997

Instrument & Electrical Foreman, Instrument Helper, and Journeyman - H.B. Zachry, @ E.I. DuPont De Nemours, with extensive process weatherization experience in both electrical and steam tracing, and field installation of instrumentation.

Vocational Teacher-Instrumentation & Control Mechanic Level 2 and 4 -Associated Builders & Contractors Merit Shop Training.

Instrument Helper, and Journeyman - Rabalais Electrical, Brown & Root USA, Brown and Root, Braun, and H. B. Zachry

Learning: Throughout a career in industrial construction, being a fast learner soaking up as much knowledge from his journeyman leaders as possible.

Leadership: Became a I&E foreman, in a short 5 years from a green hand in the instrumentation craft, and cross crafting to electrical craft due to work quality, work ethic and dedication to safety. This is a great example of where learning to cope with people that may be very different, but with an end goal in mind.

Budgeting: With-in the I&E Forman role, budgeting of man hours was the main single point of budgeting, as in getting a job done as planned with the allotted planned man hours. However, this was not all, doing the job as planned with the budgeted materials was the second most import item. A job walk-down with the estimator was usually warranted to make sure the materials and man hours were used efficiently.

Safety: Always a top priority was a job done safely, a high recordable incident rate was nothing that was desired by a customer as it showed higher chances of accidents or injury or death on the job site. Periodic safety meetings and job analysis, and audits were warranted.

Teaching: During the years at H.B. Zachry, @ DuPont, Victoria Texas, taking after-work courses in instrumentation craft and excelling, and later being asked to teach some of the classes to current employees and others that were interested in the Victoria, Texas area.

Education

Oklahoma City University

2022 – Present 2024 High Honors GPA 3.95

Master of Science in Energy Management

Columbia Southern University

2015 – 2019 SUMA CUM LAUDE, GPA 4.0

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration

Major in Project Management, Minor in Management, International Management, Finance, Human Resource

Associates of Science in Business Administration

Management Style

I find the biggest hindrance to success and good morale is not in the paycheck, rather the lack of communication and job training within a team. This is an area that constantly needs to be addressed by all concerned if we are to be successful. People should feel valued in other ways. I find that laissez-faire approach to management fails nearly 100% of the time in my career experience. If a problem arises, especially within the operator group, a strong leader must address the single individual problem and not the group hoping the group will use peer pressure to correct their peer. It leads to low morale, productivity, and more friction in the group.

Poor communication often leads to safety issues and accidents or rework. I am a natural leader in many respects which leads to my curiosity to find answers and to mentor younger or less experienced operators. My natural curiosity to learn has opened many doors, and I never want to stop learning something as it is good for long term cognitive function.

Skills

Team player

Decision maker

Problem Solver

Communicator

Empathy

Mentoring

Dependability

Negotiation

Procedure writing

Work planning

Project Management

Safe work Practices

L.O.T.O.

Budgeting/Treasury

Grid Modernization Principles

Volunteering

4-H FFA

Outside of his career Jeff served as Treasurer and Chief budget hawk for his church. When he took over, everything was paper and pencil. Jeff was able to move the entire church finances over to the Quicken computer program, and this really made things easier for many reasons and not just for meetings and building presentations. It was also for tracking expenditures, as well tracking individual tithing/alms for parishioner’s tax purposes. Jeff has also served as Chairman, Vice Chairman for 2 local livestock committees as well as project leader assisting 4-H and FFA students with their projects.

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