GPHE visual condition assessment delivers major cost-cutting and reliability gains for a petrochemical plant

A major U.S. petrochemical plant operates 70 gasketed plate heat exchangers across multiple applications. To improve reliability and spare parts management, the company partnered with Alfa Laval to conduct a visual condition assessment covering equipment condition and inventory status. The assessment formed the basis for a targeted maintenance and optimization plan.

The challenge

During the on-site heat exchanger inspection, several issues were identified. First, many GPHEs had gasket lifetimes that were already exceeded, increasing the risk of leakage or failure. In addition, a substantial proportion of the spare parts inventory was close to end of shelf life, leading to potential waste and unnecessary financial costs. Finally, critical GPHEs lacked essential spare parts, raising downtime risks, while noncritical units had accumulated excess parts unlikely to be used within the next decade.

Our solution

To address these issues, Alfa Laval recommended a maintenance and spare-parts strategy for the GPHEs:

• Immediate use of available gaskets to prevent inventory waste
• Spare parts optimization to ensure plate packs were available for critical heat exchangers
• Reduction of excess stock for non-essential units
• Implementation of a structured inventory management system to maintain ideal stock levels, prevent shortages and support long-term cost control

This proactive approach ensures that spare parts remain within their usable lifetime and that maintenance resources are allocated where they create the highest operational impact.

Results

With the completed visual condition assessment for GPHE, the petrochemical plant now has full visibility into the condition of all heat exchangers and a data-driven plan for proactive maintenance.

• Enhanced equipment reliability due to timely gasket replacement and improved maintenance planning
• Reduced operational risks by ensuring critical GPHEs have the necessary spare parts
• Lower maintenance costs through optimized inventory and reduced scrapping of expired spare parts
• Improved budgeting and lifecycle planning with a clear, long-term maintenance roadmap

Outlook

By implementing Alfa Laval’s recommendations, the plant has strengthened both reliability and cost efficiency. Through proactive GPHE maintenance, smart inventory management and continuous heat exchanger inspection, the company is positioned to avoid unexpected failures and maintain stable, efficient operations.