• The Technology Renovation and Expansion Project of Shanghai Electric Environmental Protection Thermoelectric (Nantong) Co., Ltd. is Shanghai Electric’s first waste-to-energy incineration project 
• The project needed to keep the existing plant operating smoothly to maintain the livelihood of residents 
• The Shanghai Institute of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Co., Ltd. applied BIM 3D models to create a digital twin  

Project Overview 

The Technology Renovation and Expansion Project for Furnace No.1, No.2, and No.3 of Shanghai Electric Environmental Protection Thermoelectric (Nantong) Co., Ltd., located in Nantong City, Jiangsu province, is the first waste-to-energy incineration project performed by Shanghai Electric. The project is an example of comprehensive utilization of waste-to-energy incineration, which allows the waste to be reduced, recycled, and made harmless to the environment. The renovation and expansion project has played a significant role in improving urban infrastructure construction, upgrading urban environments, and promoting sustainable economic development. The project has significant environmental and social benefits as well and will greatly improve the living environment of residents and stimulate local economic development and employment once the project is operational.   

Challenge 

Shanghai Electric needed to build three new, 750-tons-per-day waste incineration mechanical grate treatment lines to replace the original fluidized bed waste incineration ones. They needed to keep the existing plant running smoothly to avoid garbage siege, heating supply breakdown, and other livelihood issues that a plant production suspension might cause. Some of the challenges that they faced included dealing with so many interactions between the old and new plants to keep the existing operation going in the process of technology renovation and expansion. In addition, the project was newly built at the original production site, so the available space was very limited and made the size of the new single building smaller compared with the conventional design. This situation also made the process layout of equipment, pipelines, and other materials extremely compact. To meet these challenges, they needed a robust and innovative solution that would facilitate the difficult design requirements.   

Shanghai Electric realized that they needed to adopt a BIM process with 3D digital design to create a digital twin that would help them increase design efficiency and reduce construction site rework that would otherwise delay the project and add unnecessary costs.  

Breakthrough 

After researching their options, Shanghai Electric chose to implement Bentley applications. They started with OpenPlant Modeler, which enabled them to solve over 600 clash problems in the design in advance and greatly reduce the design changes and construction rework, improve the quality of the project, and save CNY 2.4 million in installation materials and labor costs. At the same time, the 3D design greatly enhanced pipeline design depth, which does not appear in traditional 2D drawings. As a result, the introduction of BIM technology greatly improved productivity, and the installation period was shortened from the estimated five months to four months, with significant economic benefits brought about by the plant being put into operation one month earlier. Shanghai Electric also used OpenBuildings Designer to build a prefabricated component model library and a door and window component library, which they then used to design the building and develop manufacturing and construction plans. A rigorous component design allowed the team to perform detailed design analysis, refinement, and improvement. 

Bentley’s Navigator enabled a mobile display of the 3D model, making it easier to view the equipment and pipeline properties, as well as improve communication with the design institute, the construction contractor, and the owner. LumenRT enabled Shanghai Electric to generate model programs, which provided the designer, construction contractor, and owner with an immersive review. They also found a way to view the 3D digital model anytime, anywhere, using Bentley’s iTwin Services and cloud technology. During the construction process, they avoided the traditional manual count and review of work quantities, and they used the model to view the equipment and pipeline schedules, which became an important basis for preparing the construction budget and completion settlement. Meanwhile, they carried out the lifecycle management of project assets through the model to improve the operational management efficiency of enterprises. 

To effectively assist the design and optimization of the support hanger, Shanghai Electric used AutoPIPE to calculate pipeline stress and perform flange analysis and pipeline bracket design under dynamic and static load. In actual operations, AutoPIPE’s 3D thermal clash detection feature alerts engineers of thermal displacements in pipelines as they heat up to avoid costly plant shutdown. 

Lastly, Bentley’s ProjectWise enabled design team collaboration with BIM workflows throughout the entire process. Using ProjectWise greatly improved visualization of the design to make the structure of the plant more compact and the pipeline layout design more reasonable and attractive.  

Outcome 

Using Bentley’s innovative and robust solutions empowered Shanghai Electric to apply a correct BIM-based process for a digital twin of the project. By shortening the design cycle from two months to 45 days, they saved the design institute 31% in labor costs, reduced construction errors by 90%, and greatly improved accuracy. Using a BIM approach with the applications helped improve their overall design quality and depth by 50% and delivered a high-quality project while increasing the competitiveness of the design institute. Additionally, 3D models allowed them to produce accurate material statistics, which led to costs savings to the owner of about CNY 2 million in pipeline material costs. The 3D BIM design process using Bentley software helped Shanghai Electric complete the project 31 days ahead of schedule, which reduced the noise impact on the neighboring enterprises or residents by at least 10 decibels and improved the living environment and quality for the surrounding residents and enterprises.  

“We used Bentley software to manage the entire lifecycle of this project,” said Shigang Feng, dean of the Environmental Engineering Design Institute. “Bentley software was used in the initial collaborative design, pipeline stress analysis, prefabricated component library building, model building and assembly, pipeline collision detection, immersive review, and delivery of digital twin models. Using BIM technology based on Bentley software saved CNY 2 million in engineering costs for the project, and the project was operated one month in advance.” 

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