A book of this size would not have been possible without the support of several friends and well wishers. The least that a grateful author can do is to thank them in person and acknowledge their contributions for wider appreciation. Likewise, several organizations have lent help by allowing their pictures to be incorporated, which greatly enhances the utility of this book; any author feels happy when he can openly acknowledge and record such generosity.

The following manufacturers, leaders in their respective fields, have readily supported the author with their proprietary illustrations for which he is very thankful.

Several photographs have been lent by Brian Nissen of Power magazine. Her Majesty’s Stationery Office in London was also very prompt in granting permission for a few pic­tures in Chapter 3.

Although organizations are in principle supportive, many times it is a hopeless task, particularly with large MNCs, to reach the right person in the right continent and country. For this and the other help, I am indebted to Swapan Chakraborthy (L&T-MHI), Satish Kumra (Thermax), S. S. Rao (Doosan Babcock Energy Limited), and Nirajan Sastry (ISJEC John Thompson). Dr. von Wedel came to my rescue with pictures from AE&E Lentjes GmbH, Germany.

Several chapters have been reviewed by my former colleagues, and very valuable comments were offered. I shall be failing in my duty if I do not thank S. Padmanabhan (Doosan Babcock Energy Limited), S. Chandrasekhar (L&T-MHI), Arindam Bose Thakur (Alstom), and Frank Leuschke (AE&E Lentjes) for their time, interest, and support. The contribution of Chandramani Bansode needs to be acknowledged for painstakingly reviewing the calculations. Finally, Y. M. Joshi deserves special mention for all the help he rendered in correcting the proofs.

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