Whether on construction sites around the world or in companies – commissioning engineers test systems, look for errors, find solutions and ensure quality. In their work, engineers are often confronted with the unplanned. That's what makes the job so interesting, say commissioners
“The most exciting day of commissioning is the beam baptism,” says Martin Seerig, “when, for example, a large, complex component, such as a turbine blade, is welded for the first time on a new system.” The 29-year-old has been working for the medium-sized mechanical engineering company pro-beam systems GmbH, which specializes in electron beam and laser technology, at the Neukirchen near Chemnitz location for two years. The commissioning and process engineer studied materials engineering at the TU Freiberg and came to pro-beam for an internship semester. His job: Seerig puts systems into operation for customers, for example for welding components, drilling, hardening or processing surfaces that are used in the automotive industry, aerospace and also energy technology. He therefore often travels abroad for his employer, especially in the USA.
Commissioning engineers like Seerig build up a broad knowledge of a system through their work. As the name suggests, they put systems into operation and are often the last instance before a finished and functioning system can be handed over to the customer. Testing the system, looking for errors, finding solutions, ensuring quality is part of the job profile. “Commissioning engineers also have to take care of things that cannot be planned in advance,” says Jean Haeffs, managing director of the Production and Logistics Society of the Association of German Engineers (vdi).
For Seerig, commissioning a system takes around six weeks to three months, depending on the size and project. It is only used after the technical commissioning, after the machine has been set up, the control and programming have been put into operation and the motor is rotating in the right direction - in short: "after the machine's capability has been ensured." Seerig then takes over the so-called "technological commissioning". , i.e. calibrating the machine and checking the target functions. “Basically, it’s like a CNC machine,” says Seerig, “only we don’t have a tool, but rather an electron beam that is used for welding, for example. And I am responsible for ensuring that this electron beam works as it should.”
When Seerig is with the customer, he usually has a week to familiarize himself with the machine and then carry out various tests. The requirements and functional specifications serve as a guide for working with the system. His tasks include, for example, welding components himself using the system. In total, Seerig has put six systems into operation in the past two years, two at automotive companies and the largest at a research center.
What’s exciting about the job? “There are always new, large facilities and the work is very international,” says Seerig. He spends almost half of the year traveling abroad; he is responsible for customers and has to learn how to deal with employees, familiarize himself with the machine and sometimes assert himself. Communication skills are required, as are analytical thinking and a goal-oriented way of working: after all, the deadline has to be kept.
There are commissioning engineers in companies in many areas, although the requirements for this job profile vary depending on the size and complexity of the respective systems. “Commissioning engineers are often trained through on-the-job training,” says Haeffs from vdi. “Since there is usually a high proportion of electrical and automation technology involved, you need specialist skills in automation, process technology and increasing production and manufacturing.”
The following applies: the larger a system is, the greater the commissioning effort. “Once a certain size is reached, the commissioning engineer takes on a key function,” says Haeffs, “because the system, which usually consists of various system parts, can only be assembled and tested in its entirety at the customer’s premises.” Commissioning engineers can, for example, be responsible for commissioning entire power plants or be responsible for huge systems in a production facility, which in turn are made up of hundreds of individual systems that follow one another and each of which has to be put into operation individually and coordinated with one another. Commissioning engineers are often the “man on site” for their companies, i.e. they have an intermediary position between customers and their own company. The job description often includes traveling a lot and accepting flexible working hours.
Waste incineration plants (incineration plants) are a specialty of Istvan Bonnyai, who works as a project and commissioning engineer for the engineering services company Ferchau Engineering in Munich - and also travels a lot abroad. The 43-year-old, who studied mechatronics at the Augsburg University of Applied Sciences as part of the Bundeswehr's career development service, has already put a larger incinerator into operation in Turin, Italy, and two in England; Most recently he spent four months in Toronto, Canada. Bonnyai's deployment there was originally supposed to last ten weeks, but there were delays due to adverse weather conditions, with temperatures reaching minus 40 degrees.
“When I come to a commissioning,” says Bonnyai, “everything is usually finished and connected so I can get started straight away. In Toronto, however, due to the delays, I initially took on the tasks of an assembly engineer. As a commissioning engineer, it was my job to first check whether all sensors, i.e. all devices that send a signal to the controller, and all actuators, i.e. all devices that receive a signal from the controller, are correct are connected and working.”
Some devices then had to be set accordingly, i.e. parameterized. After this was done, the automatic operation was checked with certain tests and it was checked whether the interaction of all components worked. The waste incineration plant then had to run for 400 hours in trial operation without any problems before it was accepted by the customer. Acceptance was then the task of the main commissioning engineer for the entire construction site.
“Every project is exciting,” says Bonnyai, “but the assignment in Canada was special for me because I also took on the tasks of a project engineer and, for example, programmed the entire control and visualization.” Bonnyai soon travels to Greece A new area of application awaits him, a complex air conditioning system in the clean rooms of a pharmaceutical company. “The job of the commissioning engineer is varied. I don't sit in the office, but get to know other cultures and people," says Bonnyai. "Actually, something new is always happening, because errors or problems during commissioning never occur twice. And that’s the challenge: There’s always something new to solve and I’m constantly learning.”
Not every commissioner has to be an engineer. Christoph Gaebel also has something to say about always new challenges, working in adverse weather conditions and an interesting workplace.
Once a month, Gaebel flies by helicopter from Emden to the substation of the Global Tech I (GT I) offshore wind farm, which is located approximately 100 kilometers off the German coast in the North Sea. The 29-year-old master of electrical engineering is currently working there as a responsible electrician (VEFK) in network management; He was previously commissioning manager of the substation for GT I. “We monitor the network,” says Gaebel, “see how many wind turbines are feeding in electricity and control the constellation of the park.”
The substation is the “heart” of the wind farm: This is where the electricity from almost 80 wind turbines flows together and the 33-kilovolt medium voltage is converted to 155-kilovolt high voltage by four large transformers. The operator of the transmission network “collects” the electricity here via two large cables. The manufacturer put the systems, for example the transformers, into operation; Gaebel and his colleagues accompanied and supervised the commissioning. Before commissioning, it was determined “how the test programs should run,” explains Gaebel, “i.e. how the different systems should work together.” Ensuring the stability of the system is now one of Gaebel's tasks in network management. “For example, we use our own measurement data to analyze how our system reacts in an extreme case,” explains Gäbel. “In such a case, the network management is responsible for continuing to supply the park’s internal network and the wind turbines with voltage.”
Whether at the substation or when working on a wind turbine in the sea - Gaebel has to adapt to changing conditions. “The weather always thwarts our plans for offshore work. “That’s what makes my work particularly exciting,” he says, “there’s actually no everyday routine here.”
Photo: photocase.de
Whether on construction sites around the world or in companies – commissioning engineers test systems, look for errors, find solutions and ensure quality. In their work, engineers are often confronted with the unplanned. That's what makes the job so interesting, say commissioners
