Eastham Refinery is now maximizing load quantities with Emerson’s terminal automation solution. Photo courtesy of Eastham Refinery.
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Integrated solution combines logistics management and distributed control systems to drive greater up-time and reduce operating costs to help the U.K.’s largest bitumen operation achieve Top Quartile performance
HOUSTON (May 2, 2019) – Eastham Refinery Ltd., located on the Wirral Peninsula in the U.K., selected Emerson to design and implement its terminal automation system to cost-effectively enhance system reliability and availability for bitumen loading operations at the refinery’s Eastham Terminal. The scalable, enterprise-level midstream logistics management solution based on Emerson’s TerminalManager™ software and DeltaV™ distributed control system (DCS) is helping the terminal achieve its goals of digitally transforming its operations and accelerating on a path toward Top Quartile performance, achieving operational and capital performance within the top 25 percent of peer companies.
“We have transformed how we operate with Emerson’s solution,” said Doug Watt, senior process engineer of Eastham Refinery Ltd. “Our previous system resulted in many operator interventions on a daily basis. Today, there are practically zero interventions due to the reliability of our new system, leading to a significant reduction in downtime and maintenance costs. The accuracy and performance of Emerson’s solution have also helped us maximize tanker load quantities and minimize the potential for safety incidents. As a result, loading delays that were commonplace are no longer a burden and our customer service levels have significantly improved.”
“Operational challenges are common in terminals and lead to losses in productivity and profitability,” said Pedro D’Ascola, vice president and general manager for remote automation technologies at Emerson. “Addressing critical system and asset availability issues requires modernization, and our integrated solution is enabling optimization at the Eastham site. Operators can now access real-time inventory levels and other operational data on demand to minimize costly errors and delays.”
Eastham Terminal is an example of how Emerson helps customers identify operational challenges to develop a highly effective automation strategy that can lead to Top Quartile performance. By performing in the top 25 percent of their peers, terminals can improve shareholder value through asset optimization and greater operational efficiencies.
Emerson’s terminal automation solution for Eastham Terminal includes TerminalManager software for management of terminal operations and commercial activities and the DeltaV DCS for accurate blending control and movement.
