Application to Other Plant Improvements

Abstract

Translate Article

Debottlenecking is defined as increasing capacity by eliminating limitations in the process with a minimal amount of investment. It has sometimes been referred to as “brownfield” investment as opposed to “greenfield” investment. A comprehensive hydraulic review is a critical part of a successful revamp of any plants in chemical process industry—to ensure the process fluid can smoothly move from one place to another. Deep down, the plant owner was aware that the Engineering Procurement and Construction (EPC) contractor conflicted with the industrial best practices. In principle, the plant was still under the EPC contractor's account until the completion of commissioning. Contractually, the plant owner could only comment/review but had no legal right to intervene during the commissioning. While this dilemma is understandable, the plant owner probably should have been more aggressive at an earlier point as abnormal operating techniques were observed.