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Forum Topics / Forum Moderators / Moderator Bio
John Downing serves as the moderator of the
Governing Protection & Control Systems forum. Mr. Downing is an extremely experienced controls systems engineer who began his career in the US Navy where he gained extensive experience installing, commissioning, operating and maintaining gas turbine systems, at numerous facilities. He presently wears three hats with his company,
Turbine Controls & Excitation Group Inc. (TCEXG): Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Director of Sales and Marketing and Senior Turbine Controls Engineer.
Some positions Mr. Downing held in the US Navy included: Engineering Plant Operations Supervisor, Gas Turbine Electrical Shop Supervisor, Main Engine Room Mechanical Supervisor and Director Engineering Dept. Training. At the end of Mr. Downing’s US navy career he served as the Smart Start Program Director at the Navy Family Service Center in Washington D.C.
After leaving the Navy Mr. Downing joined the General Electric Company and worked mostly as a lead Start-up Engineer. Some of his notable projects included:
- Installation of 7FA OPFLEX controls upgrade at multiple sites
- Upgrade 3 MK III+ SAX Steam Turbines controls to MK VI control system
- PSEG Linden Energy Center, Linden, NJ
- 4-7FA gas turbines, combined cycle, duel fuel
- 2 D-11 steam turbines
- MK VI control system with LCI and EX2000
- Los Angeles DPW re-powering, Long Beach, CA
- 2-7FA gas turbines, combined cycle,
- duel fuel & MK VI control system with LCI and EX2000
- Keyspan Ravenswood, Long Island City, NY
- 1-7FA gas turbine, combined cycle, duel Fuel
- MK VI control system with LCI and EX2000
- HGP inspection of 4 GE frame 5 gas turbines
- Fairless Hills Energy Project, Fairless Hills, PA
- 4-7FA gas turbines, combined cycle, gas only
- 2 D-11 steam turbines
- MK VI control system with LCI and EX2100
- Con Ed Ocean Peaking Power, Lakewood, NJ
- 2-7FA gas turbines, simple cycle, gas only
- MK V control system with LCI and EX2000
- DLN 2.6 combustion tuning and performance test
Some of Mr. Downing’s notable recent large projects with TCEXG, for a variety of large utilities and IPP’s, both in the Americas and overseas, include:
- Caithness Long Island Energy Center, Yaphank, NY
- Siemens 501F CI, HRSG Inspection, ST Borescope, ACC
- Blade replacement and many other BOP jobs.
- TransCanada Ravenswood, New York City
- 7FA turbine major, calibrations and restart
- NAEA, Ocean Peaking Power, Lakewood, NJ
- Install and commission various VFD upgrades to reduce parasitic load reduction
- MK V engineer, design and install custom code to control VFD’s, Cooling Water Fans and generator heaters.
- NAEA, Ocean Peaking Power, Lakewood, NJ
- Engineer various VFD upgrades in support of parasitic load reductions at a multi 7FA simple cycle plant
- Sengkang Indonesia
- Investigate and perform an RCA for an insurance company as to the cause of damage to a Siemens CT that was shut down due to the loss of the T-3000 control system.
- Caithness Long Island Energy Center
- Construction completion, commissioning and startup of a Siemens 501FD combined cycle plant
