r/instrumentation

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My client operates a small 3.5 MW steam turbine manufactured in the 1980s and is currently upgrading their control systems. Turbine is connected with the compressor.

One of the proposed upgrades is to use the pressure drop across the turbine as an indication of turbine load. This would require installing pressure sensors at the turbine inlet, which, in turn, would involve drilling pressure taps into the turbine casing. Since this can be both costly and technically challenging, we are evaluating whether this approach is justified.

My questions are:

How common is it to use differential pressure across a steam turbine as a load measurement?

What are the general recommendations for locating inlet pressure taps and pressure sensor arrangements?

Are there alternative pressure measurement locations or methods that are generally considered more suitable for estimating turbine load?

Any experience or recommendations would be greatly appreciated

Hey there, just been curious how many new people we have coming into the industry.

If you are new, please share a little about your experience and how long you've been in!

Title basically.

I am a water plant operator and the I&C tech (self taught, no degree) is leaving soon so I want to get more involved in troubleshooting PLCs, SCADA, Networking and installation of sensors/transmitters/actuators I dont have much knowledge outside of calibration, any tips ?

If an operator did the seitch i would really like to know how you did it and what was your experience!

I’m currently a second year going into my 3rd this September. And my end goal is to go oil and gas in instrumentation. I currently work at the Amrize plant in Exshaw and want to know how I can transition into a role that will let me get into my second ticket. I’m 21 and live in Calgary. Any and all advice is helpful. Thank you

I checked out both programs, despite being both a 2-year diploma, there is a big difference in total costs: NAIT(25,605.36 CAD) vs SAIT($15,349), NAIT costs more than $10k!!!

Can you explain the huge difference in costs?

I also heard NAIT includes a mandatory co-op and much better job market for grads in Edmonton than Calgary? Is this true?

Plus I have a previous bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, how easy is it for each school to transfer course credits to this program?

Has anyone gotten an interview for instrumentation for DOW apprenticeship in houston? My status says interview but I have yet to recieve an invite for an interview. What I have seen so far is operators getting interviews and offers already.

I'm currently working in aviation shipping department looking into instrumentation for a good career. From what I've looked at so far everyone seems to enjoy it the only problem most people are saying its difficult to find jobs especially in the south. I would be having to drive 45 min to an hour for classes since its in a different city so I want to make sure this is a good investment.

https://mybrcc.edu/academics/technical-education/nccer-instrumentation-level-4.php -This is a link to the school as well If this is a good program.

I'm a Canadian high school student deciding between instrumentation, electrical, and eventually possibly OT cybersecurity. My goal is a stable career with around CAD $110k mid-career. I have a few questions:

1. If you were starting over today, would you still choose instrumentation?
2. What surprised you most about the job after becoming a journeyman?
3. How difficult was it to find your first apprenticeship or job?
4. Is the job market actually shrinking, or is that something students worry about more than people in the industry?
5. What percentage of your work is troubleshooting versus calibration, maintenance, and installation?
6. How physically demanding is the job after age 40?
7. If you wanted to move into automation, controls, or OT cybersecurity later, how useful has your instrumentation background been?
8. If you could give one piece of advice to an 18-year-old entering the trade, what would it be?
9. (IMPORTANT) f I complete an electrical apprenticeship first, does that significantly improve my chances of being sponsored as an instrumentation apprentice compared to applying directly?

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Hi everyone,

I'm from India and have **1.7 years of experience as a Calibration Engineer** in an **NABL-accredited calibration laboratory**.

and completed my B.Tech in Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE)

My experience includes:

* Electrical instrument calibration

* Site calibration and customer support

* Preparing site and laboratory calibration reports

* Using Microsoft Excel (including VLOOKUP) for calibration documentation and reports

* Working with calibration certificates and maintaining documentation

* Basic knowledge of pressure calibration

* Exposure to ISO/IEC 17025 requirements

* Participated in an NABL audit during our laboratory accreditation process

I'm currently looking for a new opportunity and have a few questions:

1. Based on my experience, what salary can I realistically expect in India?

2. Which job roles should I apply for besides Calibration Engineer?

3. Which industries usually offer the best salary for someone with my background (Oil & Gas, Pharma, Manufacturing, Power, Automation, etc.)?

4. Are there any skills or certifications that would significantly increase my salary?

Any advice from experienced professionals would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

Hi everyone, I had my IFFCO Instrumentation Engineering exam scheduled from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM. I tried logging in about 30 minutes before the exam, but I wasn’t able to access the portal. It kept showing “System Under Maintenance.”

Is anyone else facing the same issue? Also, has anyone received any email or official update regarding a rescheduling of the exam?

I want to transition to instrumentation as fast as possible, and by taking either of those two I can find a stepping stone which will potentially raise my chances of getting into instrumentation through a sponsorship. From your previous experience, should I take eletrical or take the technologist diploma at SAIT? Which one is better for faster entry into instrumentation?

Hi, I am a Grade 10 student and I have a question for those who used to be eletricians but pivoted to instrumenatation. Planning to go into instrumentation but the places around me don't exactly offer instrumentation jobs for the RAP (Registered Apprentice Program). If I worked as a eletrician for around 300-400 hours, should I expect that I can easily pivot to instrumentation with my eletrician experience? Would I still be considered a green apprentice and could I easily find a instrumentation company that will be willing to sponsor me? I would appreciate any insights.

Just some background info (if this helps:

- 96 in science

- 90 in math

- Robotics for 5 years

- Co founder of a small phone repair business

Hey all, i'm having a hard time deciding between taking a nuclear power plant internship or not, I wanted to see what people with experience in the industry think.

I'm currently in my second semester of Instrumentation at TSTC in Waco. Right now I'm working as a NETA testing intern doing electrical testing on equipment for data centers (breakers, transformers, primary injection, insulation resistance, etc.), so I already have some industry experience.

A few days ago I got offered an I&C internship at Comanche Peak Nuclear Power Plant. The only downside is that I'd have to take a semester off, which would push my graduation from August to December.

I'm trying to figure out if delaying graduation by four months is worth it. Part of me thinks I already have an internship, so maybe I should just finish school and start working sooner. But I also keep hearing that nuclear experience carries a lot of weight.

For those of you already working in instrumentation:

• Is a nuclear I&C internship valuable enough to justify delaying graduation by four months?
• Does having two internships (NETA + nuclear) make a significant difference compared to having just one?
• From a hiring perspective, is graduating in December instead of August a disadvantage?
• If you were in my position, what would you do?

I'd really appreciate any advice or personal experiences. Thanks!

I currently work as a maintenance tech in a semiconductor fab. I only recently learned of instrumentation, and listening to a few guys describe their job, it sounds more or less like what I do.

I have really been eyeing going into a union apprenticeship. I love my job, but I don’t want to job hop so much to get good pay. Also benefits are considered good but still can’t afford to use them when I need them. Always been pro union and pretty set on joining.

Trying to decide between HVAC and electrical. I’m wondering which is better to go into if I would like to end up in an instrumentation kind of roll? Would love to hear especially from people who may have the job of hiring instrumentation techs. All things equal, would you rather hire someone with an HVAC background or electrical? Or which is most common? Seems like in some areas these jobs are UA and some they are IBEW.

Thanks in advance

I heard that instrumentation can take a heavy toll on a individual's body, and as I am interested in instrumentation I would like to know whether it is a good idea to pursue this trade for 20+ years. Would it take a heavy toll on your body with constant FIFO schedules? Should I pivot to a white collar role by pursuing a university degree (Business Technology Management at TMU so I can go into a OT auditing role) after a few years in instrumentation? I would appreciate any insights.

For everyone that works in waste water, water purification or any municipal organization, how do you guys go about recruiting new techs? We want to start getting a few new guys (so hopefully a few stick around). Most people in our shop are either family of someone or people who know someone. We can get electricians out of the local union but techs we're lost. i was thinking of going to some local colleges that teach instrumentation, but how do i convince a 20yr old to pass up $30-40+/hr. Im in south Louisiana so we're competing with chemical plants & refineries. thanks for any advice!

Sales rep asked me to demo a Trex2. I can't tell the difference from the look of it, just wondering your guys thoughts.