How to become a Power Plant Operator 2024

Power Plant Operator Control, operate, or maintain machinery to generate electric power. Includes auxiliary equipment operators.

Power Plant Operator is Also Know as

In different settings, Power Plant Operator is titled as

Auxiliary Operator
Control Operator
Control Room Operator
Multicraft Operator (MCO)
Operations and Maintenance Technician (O & M Technician)
Plant Control Operator
Power Plant Operator
Station Operator
Unit Operator

Education and Training of Power Plant Operator

Power Plant Operator is categorized in Job Zone Two: Some Preparation Needed

Experience Required for Power Plant Operator

Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.

Education Required for Power Plant Operator

These occupations usually require a high school diploma.

Degrees Related to Power Plant Operator

Training Required for Power Plant Operator

Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees. A recognized apprenticeship program may be associated with these occupations.

Related Ocuupations

Some Ocuupations related to Power Plant Operator in different industries are

What Do Power Plant Operator do?

Monitor power plant equipment and indicators to detect evidence of operating problems.
Adjust controls to generate specified electrical power or to regulate the flow of power between generating stations and substations.
Control power generating equipment, including boilers, turbines, generators, or reactors, using control boards or semi-automatic equipment.
Regulate equipment operations and conditions, such as water levels, based on instrument data or from computers.
Take regulatory action, based on readings from charts, meters and gauges, at established intervals.
Start or stop generators, auxiliary pumping equipment, turbines, or other power plant equipment as necessary.
Inspect records or log book entries or communicate with plant personnel to assess equipment operating status.
Control or maintain auxiliary equipment, such as pumps, fans, compressors, condensers, feedwater heaters, filters, or chlorinators, to supply water, fuel, lubricants, air, or auxiliary power.
Clean, lubricate, or maintain equipment, such as generators, turbines, pumps, or compressors, to prevent failure or deterioration.
Communicate with systems operators to regulate and coordinate line voltages and transmission loads and frequencies.
Record and compile operational data by completing and maintaining forms, logs, or reports.
Open and close valves and switches in sequence to start or shut down auxiliary units.
Collect oil, water, or electrolyte samples for laboratory analysis.
Make adjustments or minor repairs, such as tightening leaking gland or pipe joints.
Control generator output to match the phase, frequency, or voltage of electricity supplied to panels.
Place standby emergency electrical generators on line in emergencies and monitor the temperature, output, and lubrication of the system.
Receive outage calls and request necessary personnel during power outages or emergencies.
Examine and test electrical power distribution machinery and equipment, using testing devices.
Operate or maintain distributed power generation equipment, including fuel cells or microturbines, to produce energy on-site for manufacturing or other commercial purposes.
Operate, control, or monitor equipment, such as acid or gas carbon dioxide removal units, carbon dioxide compressors, or pipelines, to capture, store, or transport carbon dioxide exhaust.
Operate, control, or monitor gasifiers or related equipment, such as coolers, water quenches, water gas shifts reactors, or sulfur recovery units, to produce syngas or electricity from coal.
Operate, control, or monitor integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) or related equipment, such as air separation units, to generate electricity from coal.
Analyze the layout, instrumentation, or function of electrical generation or transmission facilities.
Diagnose or troubleshoot problems with gas collection systems.
Monitor well fields periodically to ensure proper functioning and performance.
Operate landfill gas, methane, or natural gas fueled electrical generation systems.
Prepare and submit compliance, operational, and safety forms or reports.
Repair or replace gas piping.
Trace electrical circuitry to ensure compliance of electrical systems with applicable codes or laws.
Verify that well field monitoring data conforms to applicable regulations.

Qualities of Good Power Plant Operator

Oral Comprehension: The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
Oral Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
Problem Sensitivity: The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing that there is a problem.
Deductive Reasoning: The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
Near Vision: The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
Inductive Reasoning: The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
Information Ordering: The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
Written Comprehension: The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
Speech Recognition: The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
Selective Attention: The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
Perceptual Speed: The ability to quickly and accurately compare similarities and differences among sets of letters, numbers, objects, pictures, or patterns. The things to be compared may be presented at the same time or one after the other. This ability also includes comparing a presented object with a remembered object.
Speech Clarity: The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
Auditory Attention: The ability to focus on a single source of sound in the presence of other distracting sounds.
Finger Dexterity: The ability to make precisely coordinated movements of the fingers of one or both hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble very small objects.
Flexibility of Closure: The ability to identify or detect a known pattern (a figure, object, word, or sound) that is hidden in other distracting material.
Written Expression: The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.
Time Sharing: The ability to shift back and forth between two or more activities or sources of information (such as speech, sounds, touch, or other sources).
Control Precision: The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
Category Flexibility: The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
Far Vision: The ability to see details at a distance.
Visualization: The ability to imagine how something will look after it is moved around or when its parts are moved or rearranged.
Arm-Hand Steadiness: The ability to keep your hand and arm steady while moving your arm or while holding your arm and hand in one position.
Manual Dexterity: The ability to quickly move your hand, your hand together with your arm, or your two hands to grasp, manipulate, or assemble objects.
Depth Perception: The ability to judge which of several objects is closer or farther away from you, or to judge the distance between you and an object.
Fluency of Ideas: The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
Originality: The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
Hearing Sensitivity: The ability to detect or tell the differences between sounds that vary in pitch and loudness.
Multilimb Coordination: The ability to coordinate two or more limbs (for example, two arms, two legs, or one leg and one arm) while sitting, standing, or lying down. It does not involve performing the activities while the whole body is in motion.
Reaction Time: The ability to quickly respond (with the hand, finger, or foot) to a signal (sound, light, picture) when it appears.
Visual Color Discrimination: The ability to match or detect differences between colors, including shades of color and brightness.
Response Orientation: The ability to choose quickly between two or more movements in response to two or more different signals (lights, sounds, pictures). It includes the speed with which the correct response is started with the hand, foot, or other body part.
Rate Control: The ability to time your movements or the movement of a piece of equipment in anticipation of changes in the speed and/or direction of a moving object or scene.
Speed of Closure: The ability to quickly make sense of, combine, and organize information into meaningful patterns.
Extent Flexibility: The ability to bend, stretch, twist, or reach with your body, arms, and/or legs.
Stamina: The ability to exert yourself physically over long periods of time without getting winded or out of breath.
Trunk Strength: The ability to use your abdominal and lower back muscles to support part of the body repeatedly or continuously over time without "giving out" or fatiguing.
Dynamic Strength: The ability to exert muscle force repeatedly or continuously over time. This involves muscular endurance and resistance to muscle fatigue.
Gross Body Equilibrium: The ability to keep or regain your body balance or stay upright when in an unstable position.
Static Strength: The ability to exert maximum muscle force to lift, push, pull, or carry objects.
Speed of Limb Movement: The ability to quickly move the arms and legs.
Mathematical Reasoning: The ability to choose the right mathematical methods or formulas to solve a problem.
Number Facility: The ability to add, subtract, multiply, or divide quickly and correctly.
Gross Body Coordination: The ability to coordinate the movement of your arms, legs, and torso together when the whole body is in motion.
Wrist-Finger Speed: The ability to make fast, simple, repeated movements of the fingers, hands, and wrists.
Glare Sensitivity: The ability to see objects in the presence of a glare or bright lighting.
Sound Localization: The ability to tell the direction from which a sound originated.
Spatial Orientation: The ability to know your location in relation to the environment or to know where other objects are in relation to you.
Memorization: The ability to remember information such as words, numbers, pictures, and procedures.
Night Vision: The ability to see under low-light conditions.
Peripheral Vision: The ability to see objects or movement of objects to one's side when the eyes are looking ahead.
Explosive Strength: The ability to use short bursts of muscle force to propel oneself (as in jumping or sprinting), or to throw an object.
Dynamic Flexibility: The ability to quickly and repeatedly bend, stretch, twist, or reach out with your body, arms, and/or legs.

Tools Used by Power Plant Operator

Absorbers
Adjustable hand wrenches
Adjustable widemouth pliers
Air compressors
Air filtration mask
Air heaters
Air samplers
All terrain vehicles ATV
Analog panel meters
Annunciators
Attemperators
Backhoes
Belt conveyors
Blowers
Boiler gauge glasses
Brushless direct current DC motors
Bucket elevators
Catalytic sensors
Chain conveyors
Circulating fluidized bed CFB boilers
Claw hammers
Coal dryers
Combustible gas monitors
Combustion engines
Combustion turbines
Condensers
Conductivity probes
Control boards
Cooling towers
Dataloggers
Desktop computers
Diesel driven generators
Digital panel meters
Digital readouts
Dry scrubber systems
Dump trucks
Electrical switch gear
Enclosed flares
Excitation systems
Fin fan heat exchangers
Fire tube boilers
Flow meters
Flow monitoring equipment
Flow transmitters
Flue gas desulferization systems
Gas detectors
Gas generators
Gas leak detectors
Geothermal binary turbines
Grease dispensing guns
Grease guns
Hand sampling pumps
Hard hats
Heat pumps
Heat recovery steam generators
Igniters
Impact crushers
Infrared analyzers
Level transmitters
Limit switches
Mainframe computers
Micro anemometers
Motor compressors
Multiple gas monitors
Notebook computers
Oil filters
Oil guns
Open flares
Orifice plates
Oxygen analyzers
Panel boards
Personal computers
Phillips head screwdrivers
Plate exchangers
Portable gas-powered generators
Power transformers
Pressure gauges
Pressure transmitters
Pressure valves
Pulverizers
Purge pumps
Rotameters
Screens
Screw conveyors
Selective catalytic reactors
Selective non-catalytic reactors
Self-contained breathing apparatus
Shell and tube heat exchangers
Signal converters
Skid steer loaders
Soot blowers
Steam condensers
Steam distribution systems
Steam driven turbogenerators
Steam gauges
Steam turbines
Straight screwdrivers
Switch yard equipment
Temperature sensors
Temperature transmitters
Touch screen monitors
Transformer controls
Turbine flow meters
Unit governors
Utility trucks
Vacuum pumps
Vibration monitors
Water filters
Water gauges
Water heaters
Water pumps
Water samplers
Water softeners
Water treatment equipment
Wet scrubbers

Technology Skills required for Power Plant Operator

Computerized maintenance management system CMMS
Continuous emissions monitoring systems CEMS
Distributed control system DCS
Email software
Emerson Ovation
Gas field monitoring system software
General Electric Mark VI Distributed Control System DCS
General Electric Mark VI Integrated Control System ICS
Interlock shutdown systems
Landfill gas analysis software
Landtec System Software LFG Pro
Microsoft Access
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Office software
Microsoft Outlook
Microsoft PowerPoint
Microsoft Word
Operating system software
Operational Data Store ODS software
Safety instrumented system SIS software
SAP software
Siemens Power Plant Automation SPPA
Siemens Teleperm
Supervisory control and data acquisition SCADA software
Teknik Segala OSI Plant Information PI System
Web browser software
Yokogawa FAST/TOOLS

US Universities

How to become Power Plant Operator in 2024