Steam Gas Turbine Design Expert Witness

BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
CAREER EXPERIENCE

Expert’s career has been dedicated to the design, manufacture and operation of turbomachinery used by the marine, electric utility and process industries since 1971. He has engineered steam turbine product lines and components while a steam turbine engineer at Westinghouse Electric (Lester, PA) including large second generation low- pressure and high-pressure steam turbines for nuclear power plants (up to 1300 MW) and also while at Terry Corporation (Windsor and Niantic, CT) including steam turbines used to drive auxiliary (emergency) feed pumps in nuclear power stations. In 1993 he formed an independent turbomachinery engineering company, Foster Cove Engineering, Inc. which in 1998, was incorporated in Rhode Island. He has concentrated on failure investigation, project management, and redesign for efficiency and reliability upgrades of turbomachinery – primarily steam and gas turbines used by the electric power generation industry. His extensive design experience has been applied to support the insurance industry with investigation and mitigation of large losses. He has been actively involved in litigation including mediation, arbitration and preparation for trial for matters involving steam and gas turbines and other turbomachinery.

He has recently been involved with (1) failure investigation of an HP nozzle block in a double auto extraction 33 MW steam turbine generator located in North Carolina, (2) failure investigation of a nozzle block in a 250 MW steam turbine generator located in Canada, (3) failure investigation of a steam turbine HP stop valve stellite seat in a 300 MW combined cycle plant with subsequent foreign object damage resulting located in Texas, and (4) failure investigation of two parallel trip and throttle valves on an 80 MW steam turbine generator resulting in significant property damage.

He has contributed to the development of large steam turbines (up to 1300 MW) for the nuclear power generation industry while employed as a design engineer at Westinghouse Electric Corporation. He managed product development programs with responsibility for several new steam turbine product lines while at Terry Corporation.
He was associated with Imo Industries from 1988 to 1992 with concentration on engineered components and specific focus on projects related to fluid film bearings, turbomachinery blading, steam turbine repairs and reapplication of turbomachinery in the electric utility industry. He became Product Manager – Steam Turbines for Conmec, Inc., a diversified turbomachinery consulting and manufacturing company in 1998 thru 2000. This additional exposure to large mechanical drive steam turbines has broadened his experience base.

He developed and presents a large steam turbine design and major maintenance seminar designed for electric utility engineers. The seminar has been presented 30 times worldwide. He has also developed a seminar for electric utility engineers and power project developers dealing with ultra-supercritical steam conditions where pressure and temperature exceed 5000 PSIG and 1300F. Emphasis was placed on performance/efficiency, selection of suitable materials and coatings, finite element analysis for heat transfer, distortion control and life prediction.

His diversified interests in the fields of mechanical engineering have resulted in a proven track record dating to 1971.

EDUCATION:

Wentworth Institute of Technology, Mechanical Design Technology, 1966 – 1967 University of Rhode Island, BSME 1971
University of Pennsylvania, MSME graduate courses, 1971 – 1974 University of Rhode Island, MBA, 1988

EMPLOYMENT:

1971 to 1975, Westinghouse Electric Corp, design engineer for new product development used in nuclear power generation plants.

1975 to 1988, Terry Corporation (division of Ingersoll Rand and Dresser Rand), increasing responsibility as (a) design engineer including new product development and testing, failure investigation, (b) Nuclear Products Manager including new product design and qualification, (c) Engineering Manager – Niantic Division, new product design for turbines used by the US Navy, service life extension programs and support of engineering for the Terry GmbH division in Germany, (d) General Manager – Niantic Division including profit and loss responsibility for this vertically integrated steam turbine design and manufacturing facility.

1988 to 1992, Centritech, Imo Industries, regional manager for engineered products sold to the power generation industry. These products included fluid film bearing, steam and gas turbine blades and vanes, upgrade and rerate of steam turbines.

1993 to Present, Foster Cove Engineering, Inc., president and technical director of an independent turbomachinery consulting company with focus on failure investigations of steam and gas turbines for power generation plants and insurance companies.

1999 to 2000, Conmec (division of Dover Industries), Steam Turbine Manager for steam turbine upgrades and rerates for the petro-chem industry. This was a position I held to increase my knowledge of large mechanical drive steam turbines.

AFFILIATIONS:

American Society of Mechanical Engineers, ASME Fellow

American Society of Testing and Materials, ASTM, Committee Member for Centrifugal Pumps (prior affiliation, no longer active)
Registered Professional Engineer, RI 5303
Tau Beta Pi and Pi Tau Sigma, Engineering Honor Societies

PATENTS:

Steam Turbine Valve, Ingersoll Rand Company
Exhaust Flow Guide for Steam Turbines, Westinghouse Electric

Case Assignments

1. Delay/Disruption claim, International Commerce Commission arbitration. Hired by Siemens AG (Germany) who is part of consortium for design and construction of a nuclear power plant in Finland. Foster Cove Engineering prepared input for an expert report which was completed in four submittals from 2011 to 2015. I testified in London UK .
2. Mediation in 2010 between Aurora Energy LLC located in Fairbanks Alaska v. James L. Fox and independent service provider who carried general liabilty and professional liability insurance for supervising the overhaul and general repair of steam turbines and generators. I was hired by Aurora Energy to support their claim that the services provided by Fox were deficient and caused economic hardship to the utility. The matter was settled in mediation in the utility‘s favor. I did not need to testify but my report was the basis of the arguments presented by Aurora’s legal team.
3. I was hired by Dykema Gossett PLLC, the legal firm representing Ford Motor Company. I provided consultation services to review key events during an incident on Ford property where a steam turbine failed due to destructive overspeed resulting in loss of life. I do not know the final resolution of this case.
4. I was hired by Squire Sanders to provide expert testimony in an International Commerce Commission arbitration brought by ENEL Green Power against the El Salvador Power Company Inversiones Energeticas in 2009. I prepared an expert report and testified to the tribunal during the arbitration proceedings in Panama City, Panama. I was advised that my side lost the arbitration on a “technicality”.  ENEL Produzione, S.p.A. and ENEL Green Power, S.p.A. v. Inversiones Energéticas, Sociedad Anónima de Capital Variable and Comisión Ejecutiva Hidroeléctrica del Río Lempa (2010)
5. I was hired by Fluor Daniels International (thru Aptech Consultants) to provide expert testimony to a US (NYC) arbitration panel. The case involved a construction claim for delayed delivery of a power plant constructed in Saudi Arabia by Fluor Daniels with General Electric supplied power island equipment. I concentrated on the steam turbine generator portion of the project during my testimony. I do not know the final outcome of the proceedings. (Ref: Fluor Daniel Intercontinental, Inc., et al. v. General Electric Company, et al., American Arbitration Association
6. An asbestos case with loss of life. I provided an expert report for the defendant’s attorneys. The case involved loss of life due to mesothelioma. The client I represented manufactured sheet style gasketing materials until the late 1960’s and my expert report stated that this style of gasket material was encapsulated and did not easily release asbestos fibers and did not use asbestos fibers which are damaging to human life. The attorneys were able to get my client released from the lawsuit.
7. A case involving loss of control of a large steam turbine generator (500 MW +) installed and upgraded in Florida. I prepared for trial by reviewing documents dealing with the testing and operation of the plant during commissioning which is when the turbine generator suffered extensive damage due to an overspeed event. I represented the sub-contracting company and its insurance company. I am not aware of the outcome of the litigation. I did not complete an expert report nor did I testify.
8. An arbitration between two electric utilities where one utility made the decision to upgrade a large steam turbine generator and the second utility (which I represented) did not believe they had an obligation to pay its portion of the upgrade. I prepared an expert report which supported my client’s position and the matter was settled before the arbitration went to the tribunal.
9. An arbitration between an electric utility and a contractor where the contractor supplied repaired steam turbine bearings which failed during operation causing loss of revenue and additional cost to repair the 450MW steam turbine generator. I prepared an expert report for the attorneys representing the insurers and the utility in 2010 and the matter settled in 2011 prior to presentation to the tribunal.
10. A mediation between an industrial manufacturer and a turbine repair company where the manufacturer claimed that the repair was substandard and required too long to complete. I represented the turbine repair company’s general liability insurance company. The matter was settled in mediation with my client (the insurer) paying a substantially reduced amount than originally claimed by the manufacturer. I attended the mediation and testified.
11. An arbitration in the UK involving failure of a low pressure steam turbine after the sale of a 15 to 20 year old power plant. I worked for the previous owner who sold the plant. I provided consulting services including review of documents, attended conference calls with the attorneys and provided guidance on requests for information. The matter settled in 2013 prior to presentation to the tribunal.
12. A case in Hawaii involve subrogation by the insurer for a Hawaii based utility. I wrote an expert report for use by the insurer’s attorneys (Foran Glennon, Chicago). Case settled before trial in September, 2015 in the insurer’s favor.
13. A mediation in Singapore involving a steam turbine repair company from Scotland and geothermal power generation company from the Philippines. I represented the power company which claimed substandard repairs which resulted in failure of the steam turbine and significant economic loss to the power company. I provided convincing expert testimony which contributed to timely settlement of my clients claims.