Automation in Petroleum Refining Industry
Industrial
Automation technology is an integral part of our Refineries. The
evolution of process automation has been driven by the specific
requirements of process industry from time to time. The development of
digital instrumentation technology and control systems have also
contributed heavily to this evolution. Industrial Automation today is
an enabling technology for production efficiency and operational
excellence of the Refining sector. This article outlines the current
scenario of the Refining industry, the key drivers for further use of
Industrial Automation and emerging possibilities for board room to
plant floor integration.
Impact of the Global Economic meltdown
Major
world economies are badly hit by recession and consequently the Oil
Refining industry will witness it's fair share of turmoil and
uncertainty. The economic meltdown is an opportunity for the Industrial
Automation companies to understand future challenges, improvise and be
ready to deliver fresh value added benefits to their partners in the
Oil Refining Industry. Industry experts assess the future based on the
following indicators:
- Decline in oil exports.
Some recovery demand is expected in 2010, but it is forecast that it
will be several years before world oil demand reaches the levels
projected prior to the recession.
- Obama's energy proposals will reduce imports of refined products into the US market.
- Demand slowdown from the domestic transportation sector, but this should pick up again as the GDP grows.
- Crude
and market prices have held back so unless there is a clear trend
favoring better ROI, new investment in exploration programmes and other
development projects are likely to stay on hold for some more time.
- Climate
change and environment protection attention has now moved from fringe
to centre-stage. The tighter norms and graded incentives for reduced
carbon emissions in both the industrial and transportation sector will
force refineries to make products in line with the dynamic changes in
market expectations.
- Corporate sustainability reporting will strengthen. 'Eco Friendly Certification' of refining processes may not be far away.
- The 'right to clean air' will call for delivering ultra-clean fuels for zero-emission vehicles
- The
focus on reducing or eliminating emissions which are considered harmful
to the environment has now moved to marine bunkers offshore. The IMO
agreement in October 2008 to reduce the maximum sulphur content could
lead to switchovers from fuel oil to gas oil.
- Many refineries are not configured to supply the changing composition of the oil demand barrel.
As
a result, new plant investments in this sector will be selective and
CEOs will undoubtedly turn attention towards Efficiency and
Flexibility. That's the direction that every business leader is
steering their company culture toward right now. Given the current
economic climate and the uncertainty about how the long the recession
will last, this is a time when organizations need to respond fast and
do more with less, and no industry is an exception. Companies like
Reliance and the National Oil Companies that have grown every year for
more than a decade, learning how to operate under more constrained
circumstances is not always that easy. At the same time, the need to be
more efficient and agile drives us all toward sharper focus on what is
important and what can truly move the needle in terms of meeting
customer needs and taking market share. Of course, engineers need to be
innovative, but they also need to be efficient and use real-time,
accurate and reliable systems.
Industrial
Automation provides the relevant solutions, tools and real-time
strategies that companies that adopt in making their plant, people and
processes more efficient and productive under rapidly changing demands.
Automation systems help refineries improve their business through:
Rationalization of man power; Increased throughputs; Reduced give-away;
Reduced energy consumption; Better response to market demands and
changes; Effective use of offsite areas through scheduling and
automatic line-up systems; Reduced losses; and Decision support systems
that work on minimal time-to-intervene constraints.
Future Outlook
Market
signals do not occur in isolation. Companies from every corner of the
globe constantly pursue competitive advantage by trying to deliver
innovative product within windows of opportunity that can quickly close
to less agile performers. While innovative product offerings provide an
entry point for establishing market success, world-class companies
understand that the economic success of their product design
innovations depend on effective performance by their manufacturing
operations.
The introduction of
conventional and reformulated ethanol blends, boutique gasolines, ultra
low sulfur diesel and biodiesels to the worldwide fuels markets has
turned blending into a highly technical process. Furthermore, because
of the multiple specifications that must be met simultaneously, the
difficulty of formulating gasoline and diesel blends has been expanded
by several orders of magnitude. Many refineries have major parts of
their business automated, starting from corporate planning at the
higher level, down to DCS and field instrumentation. However the
emerging need is of introducing flexibility to swing from diesel
production to gasoline and vice versa by changing feed mix, cut points,
process variables, change of catalysts etc.
Automation
enabled programs can be designed to provide complete descriptions of
gasoline and diesel blending operations, from long and short term
planning to executing and reconciling blends, laboratory and on-line
analyzer quality controls, blend profit optimization and environmental
considerations.
Integrated Reporting that is Real-time
Imagine
a scenario where a Chief Automation Officer is asked by the Business
Head to stop sending multiple sheet text reports. Instead he wishes to
browse through his plant, section by section or drills through the
records of safety or material wastage or energy conversion. Let us
examine possible queries the CAO would like to deal with:
- Are
we enhancing the Business relevance of our Plant assets? So what
Industrial Automation Technology is expected to provide is accurate and
real-time access to the measures of Plant availability, Plant
Productivity, Product Quality, Material Consumption, etc.
- Are
we improving on our eco-sustainability norms? Here again, what
Industrial Automation Technology will provide is accurate and real-time
access to the measures of Plant Energy Consumption, People Safety, Air
and Water Pollution.
If cash was
being generated or lost in the plant he would want that to be measured
on a real-time basis with gate-keepers. Likewise, the plant or facility
health, resource utilization and goal achievement are equally worth
being measured by the same criteria.
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A
complete integration will call for including many other aspects of
operation. But what will always count is the ability to analyze
immediately (i.e get the feedback of execution immediately into the
next planning cycle) with real data (no approximations). The use of
heuristics, thumb rules etc can disappear. |
As
“Manufacturing Execution Systems” become interoperable with “Enterprise
Planning Systems” there will be greater empowerment for product
managers, process managers and others to collaborate and work on truly
live data. This would lead to a closed loop between planning and
execution and create value by allowing quick automated decisions to be
communicated between Board Room and Process Equipment.
The
role of envisioning for global leadership would naturally emerge from
the plant and process owners. Industrial Automation technologists from
AIA member companies will wholeheartedly support any initiatives that
facilitate strengthening of competencies. We welcome such companies to
participate with AIA in any way they deem appropriate
About Automation Industry Association
Automation
Industry Association (AIA) was founded in 2004, by leading Industrial
Automation technology players in the country. It is a vibrant forum for
all automation companies in India spreading knowledge and creating
awareness levels that make a vital difference to the global
competitiveness of Indian industry. The association currently
represents industry leadership and insights from more than 50 high tech
companies focused on technology products and integrated automation
systems.
For more information on AIA please contact Anup Wadhwa, Director, AIA
at director@aia-india.org or visit www.aia-india.org
Last Updated : June, 2009
