Inspection
Work Planning

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Outage

A planned or unplanned period during which equipment, systems or facilities are taken out of service.

Definition

An Outage is a planned or unplanned interruption in the operation of equipment, systems or facilities to allow maintenance, inspection, repairs, upgrades or recovery from unexpected failures. Planned outages are scheduled to minimize operational impact, while unplanned outages result from equipment failures, process upsets or other unforeseen events.

Why It Matters

Outages provide the opportunity to perform maintenance, inspection and modification activities that cannot be completed during normal operation.

In Practice

Major planned outages often include preventive maintenance, statutory inspections, equipment replacements, plant modifications and commissioning activities before returning equipment to service.

Common Misuse

An Outage refers to any interruption of operation, whereas a Turnaround is a major planned outage involving extensive maintenance, inspection and project work.

Term Details
Synonyms:
Outage; Shutdown; Turnaround; Planned Outage
Classification:
Maintenance & Work Management
Concept
Intermediate
Applications

Maintenance Management; Operations; Asset Management.

Where It's Used

Power generation.; Oil and gas.; Petrochemical.; Manufacturing.; Utilities.

References

See It In VisualAIM

VisualAIM connects glossary concepts to the asset records, inspection histories, and workflows they describe.

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