Energy & O&M Glossary
Short, clear definitions of terms frequently used in energy plant operations, O&M and EPC processes.
O&M
O&M (Operation & Maintenance) covers all post-commissioning processes of an energy plant: maintenance, fault response, performance tracking and field operations.
EPC
EPC (Engineering, Procurement & Construction) is the contract and management model covering the turnkey construction of a plant.
Solar Plant (PV)
A solar power plant converts sunlight into electricity via photovoltaic panels.
Performance Ratio (PR)
The ratio of a plant's actual output to its theoretical maximum output; the key indicator of plant efficiency, expressed as a percentage.
SCADA
Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition; the control system that collects and monitors production, alarm and status data in real time.
Availability
The ratio of time a plant or equipment is ready to produce to the total time; low unplanned downtime means high availability.
Predictive Maintenance
Anticipating failures before they occur by analysing sensor and field data; reduces unplanned downtime and production loss.
Preventive Maintenance
Maintenance performed at set calendar or usage intervals before equipment fails.
Progress Payment
In EPC projects, the approved payment document issued based on completed work quantities.
Inverter
The device that converts DC from panels to grid-compatible AC; a critical component of solar plants.
MTBF
Mean Time Between Failures; the average operating time between two failures, measuring reliability.
MTTR
Mean Time To Repair; the average repair/response time for a failure, reflecting operational efficiency.
Downtime
The period a plant or equipment cannot produce; unplanned downtime directly causes revenue loss.
ERP
Enterprise Resource Planning; software that manages accounting, inventory, procurement and HR in one system (e.g. Logo, Netsis, SAP).
MWp
Megawatt-peak; the peak (installed) power of a solar plant under standard test conditions.
Handover
The formal transfer of a plant from the EPC construction team to the O&M operations team.