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ExxonMobil Chemicals
An ExxonMobil manufacturing facility desired to implement technology that would lead to
improvements of product quality and the overall percentage of on-spec product. Improving the
operation of the chemical reactors was identified as a key to increasing the productivity and
profitability of the manufacturing facility. A technology platform was required to provide operators
the information and automation that could increase efficiency. The technology platform required
the following elements:
ILS worked with them to develop and deploy the platform that fit their needs. Two applications
that have increased the productivity and profitability are described below.
SQC Diagnosis and Control
Based upon SQC, diagnosis rules operators had standard operating procedures (SOP) to change
the process to tighten product quality. The difficulty was receiving and processing the off-line and
laboratory measurements with real-time measurements, and then implementing corrective
action. The new platform automatically collects laboratory measurements as they become
available. The laboratory measurements and processed to ensure they are valid with respect to
expected limits and timestamp. The laboratory measurements are then displayed with respect to
the SQC limits. If there are any violations the laboratory measurements, real-time measurements
and the current equipment configuration are automatically processed through the SOP to provide
an operator with recommended, corrective, process actions. The operator can choose to adjust,
implement or disregard the actions. This SQC based application has streamlined the process of
observing and reacting to product quality deviations. This process is now consistent, measurable
and improvable between different operating personnel.
Supervisory Recipe Based Control - ISA S88
ILS offers a highly flexible ISA S88 recipe-based control platform. ILS S88 platform will not limit
the possibilities and can include customization and 3extension to meet specific needs. This
includes customization for HMI/GUI, rule-based reasoning, and incorporation of models. ILS S88
can interface with enterprise software and other database ranging from Microsoft Access to
Microsoft SQL Server and Oracle.
ExxonMobil chemical operates a facility that can produce several different grades of products with
different equipment configurations. The reactors often are started and stopped and during
production the rate/grade may be changed. The facility wanted to streamline and automate the
routine operating procedures that were manually performed. The goal is too reduce off-spec
product during these operating transitions. This is accomplished by automating the routine tasks
that operators would have to perform. From this consistent basis a framework is available to
continually improve the operational steps and reduce off-spec. The new platform provides a
highly flexible recipe based, sequential control environment based upon the ISA S88 standard. In
addition, to sequential control the sequential structure combines both implementing process
actions and monitoring operating conditions. This provides operators both knowledge of the
action to the process and response from the process. The final recipes are based upon grade
and equipment configuration and include operator interaction, material and energy balances and
process monitoring. This application has reduced the operator the burden of routine tasks and
allows them to focus upon the overall process and unexpected disturbances. The process
engineer has a consistent platform with performance data from the process to continually improve
the operation of the reactors.
Biological Process Development Facility (BPDF)
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Biological Process Development Facility (BPDF) is a leading
research laboratory in the development of vaccines and therapeutic agents from recombinant
proteins. The BPDF provides public and private sector clients with process research and early
manufacturing of new therapeutic molecules for human clinical testing.
The BPDF offers state-of-the-art equipment, pilot-scale facilities and expert scale-up assistance
that is time and cost effective. BPDF is uniquely qualified to offer this assistance, offering facilities
and personnel that can optimize an entire process from the bench top to the final bulk product.
A large portion of the BPDF's work is in the development of vaccines against biological warfare
agents and products that can be used as therapeutic countermeasures to treat people who have
been exposed to biological agents.
The BPDF provides these advantages in vaccine/therapeutic agent development:
- Recognized as the leading expert in the recombinant expression system ( Pichia pastoris ),
which is used to express the Botulinum vaccines
- One of the few University facilities working in the area of recombinant proteins for vaccines
against biological warfare agents
- Focuses on Phase I/II clinical material, allowing rapid development of new processes and
production of therapeutic proteins
An ExxonMobil manufacturing facility desired to implement technology that would lead to
improvements of product quality and the overall percentage of on-spec product. Improving the
operation of the chemical reactors was identified as a key to increasing the productivity and
profitability of the manufacturing facility. A technology platform was required to provide operators
the information and automation that could increase efficiency. The technology platform required
the following elements:
- A platform to unify multiple unrelated data sources
- Ability to automate and deploy heuristics and rules-of-thumb
- A platform to supervise other automation software/hardware
- Ability to add and customize graphical user interfaces (GUI) for reactor
operators/technicians - A flexible platform that can be developed and maintained by on-site engineers
- Automated SQC diagnosis and operator recommendation based upon laboratory and real-
time data - Sequential, recipe-based based upon the ISA S88 guidelines
ILS worked with them to develop and deploy the platform that fit their needs. Two applications
that have increased the productivity and profitability are described below.
SQC Diagnosis and Control
Based upon SQC, diagnosis rules operators had standard operating procedures (SOP) to change
the process to tighten product quality. The difficulty was receiving and processing the off-line and
laboratory measurements with real-time measurements, and then implementing corrective
action. The new platform automatically collects laboratory measurements as they become
available. The laboratory measurements and processed to ensure they are valid with respect to
expected limits and timestamp. The laboratory measurements are then displayed with respect to
the SQC limits. If there are any violations the laboratory measurements, real-time measurements
and the current equipment configuration are automatically processed through the SOP to provide
an operator with recommended, corrective, process actions. The operator can choose to adjust,
implement or disregard the actions. This SQC based application has streamlined the process of
observing and reacting to product quality deviations. This process is now consistent, measurable
and improvable between different operating personnel.
Supervisory Recipe Based Control - ISA S88
ILS offers a highly flexible ISA S88 recipe-based control platform. ILS S88 platform will not limit
the possibilities and can include customization and 3extension to meet specific needs. This
includes customization for HMI/GUI, rule-based reasoning, and incorporation of models. ILS S88
can interface with enterprise software and other database ranging from Microsoft Access to
Microsoft SQL Server and Oracle.
ExxonMobil chemical operates a facility that can produce several different grades of products with
different equipment configurations. The reactors often are started and stopped and during
production the rate/grade may be changed. The facility wanted to streamline and automate the
routine operating procedures that were manually performed. The goal is too reduce off-spec
product during these operating transitions. This is accomplished by automating the routine tasks
that operators would have to perform. From this consistent basis a framework is available to
continually improve the operational steps and reduce off-spec. The new platform provides a
highly flexible recipe based, sequential control environment based upon the ISA S88 standard. In
addition, to sequential control the sequential structure combines both implementing process
actions and monitoring operating conditions. This provides operators both knowledge of the
action to the process and response from the process. The final recipes are based upon grade
and equipment configuration and include operator interaction, material and energy balances and
process monitoring. This application has reduced the operator the burden of routine tasks and
allows them to focus upon the overall process and unexpected disturbances. The process
engineer has a consistent platform with performance data from the process to continually improve
the operation of the reactors.
Biological Process Development Facility (BPDF)
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln Biological Process Development Facility (BPDF) is a leading
research laboratory in the development of vaccines and therapeutic agents from recombinant
proteins. The BPDF provides public and private sector clients with process research and early
manufacturing of new therapeutic molecules for human clinical testing.
The BPDF offers state-of-the-art equipment, pilot-scale facilities and expert scale-up assistance
that is time and cost effective. BPDF is uniquely qualified to offer this assistance, offering facilities
and personnel that can optimize an entire process from the bench top to the final bulk product.
A large portion of the BPDF's work is in the development of vaccines against biological warfare
agents and products that can be used as therapeutic countermeasures to treat people who have
been exposed to biological agents.
The BPDF provides these advantages in vaccine/therapeutic agent development:
- Recognized as the leading expert in the recombinant expression system ( Pichia pastoris ),
which is used to express the Botulinum vaccines
- One of the few University facilities working in the area of recombinant proteins for vaccines
against biological warfare agents
- Focuses on Phase I/II clinical material, allowing rapid development of new processes and
production of therapeutic proteins
