Why Plants Struggle After Commissioning — And How Targeted Engineering Support Makes the Difference

A plant’s commissioning phase is always a critical milestone.

It marks the transition from build to operation — but too often, it also marks the beginning of a long cycle of unplanned downtime, reliability issues, and frustrated engineering managers.

At BIA Engineering Ltd, we frequently get called in to support plants that are already operational — but not running as they should.

The pattern is consistent:

• Commissioning teams focus on achieving handover milestones

• Temporary overrides and workarounds are used to “get the plant running”

• System tuning and proper optimisation get delayed or neglected

• Once the handover team leaves, the operations team is left dealing with unstable performance and frequent reliability events

This is where we come in.

Bridging the Gap Between Commissioning and Stable Operation

Our role is to provide targeted engineering support to bridge this gap — helping plants move from post-commissioning instability to reliable, efficient operation.

This means:

• Identifying critical path issues that were masked during commissioning

• Reversing inappropriate temporary changes and restoring proper control logic

• Correcting instrumentation and control issues that degrade long-term performance

• Working collaboratively with plant teams to embed practical, maintainable solutions

We don’t take over plant operations — we work with engineering and maintenance teams to build internal capability and ensure stability is restored.

Case Example: Waste Grab System Optimisation

At a major energy recovery facility, BIA Engineering Ltd was brought in to resolve chronic problems with the waste grab control system.

During initial commissioning, temporary control logic was implemented to achieve functional handover — but it left the system fragile and prone to failure.

Operators were experiencing constant breakdowns and struggling with insufficient diagnostics. The risk of damage to major mechanical components was high.

Our team:

• Conducted a full review of the control system logic and physical integration

• Designed improved fail-safes and diagnostic features to protect equipment

• Implemented modifications in phases to validate performance improvements

• Empowered operators with improved visibility and fault recovery capability

The result was a vastly more stable and reliable system — reducing downtime, protecting assets, and restoring operator confidence.

Why It Matters

For Engineering Managers, plant performance is what counts — not commissioning reports or milestone charts.

BIA Engineering Ltd helps plants recover from the inevitable gaps that occur during commissioning, delivering practical, proven engineering solutions that build lasting operational resilience.

If your plant is still chasing stability after commissioning — or if you want to avoid these problems before they occur — we can help.

Engineering solutions beyond expectations means closing the performance gap and ensuring your plant runs as it should.