Case Study: Rotek reduces steam turbine rotor inspection downtime with Maplesoft's Maple

Maple Drastically Reduces Downtime of Steam Turbines by Improving the Ultrasonic Testing of Rotor Blades

Rotek, the maintenance branch of Eskom in South Africa, needed a way to design a pre-inspection simulation model to reduce the time required to inspect the last stage blade roots in the low-pressure section of steam turbine rotors. They worked with Maplesoft and used Maple technical computing software to better plan ultrasonic testing and minimize costly turbine downtime.

Using Maplesoft’s Maple, Rotek created a precise model of the ultrasonic inspection routine, verifying optimal equipment settings and the most critical shot locations before testing began. The result was a major improvement in inspection efficiency: rotor inspection time dropped from 7 days to 2 days, significantly reducing downtime and inspection costs.