Remote Plant Performance Monitoring for Ethylene Plant
Problem
Ensuring overall plant performance and individual system and equipment performances are crucial for achieving production targets, yield optimization, energy efficiency, and profitability in an ethylene plant. However, existing plant monitoring practices, predominantly based on Distributed Control Systems (DCS), lack real-time insights from the massive data generated. Many companies resort to static tools like Excel spreadsheets or in-house tools, which limit their analytical capabilities and fail to provide dynamic plant behavior insights and actionable recommendations. This presents challenges in improving plant health, asset performance, carbon emissions reduction, and safety.
Approach
To overcome the challenges of limited real-time insights and static tools, the ethylene plant adopted Algo8’s remote plant performance monitoring solution. The following approach was implemented:
- Real-time Performance Monitoring: The DCS and traditional monitoring systems were migrated to Algo8’s remote plant monitoring, enabling 24/7 real-time monitoring of overall plant performance, individual system efficiencies, and equipment operation.
- Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and Intelligent Digital Twin: The application utilizes KPIs to assess the plant’s health, system efficiency, and equipment performance. It also employs an intelligent digital twin, replicating the plant processes visually, to raise real-time alerts and monitor critical parameters.
- Root Cause Analysis with Data Science: The solution leverages data science techniques for drilldown to the root cause of any issues detected during monitoring. This enables the identification of underlying problems affecting plant health and efficiency.
- Real-time Alerts and Reports: Algo8’s remote monitoring application automatically raises alerts and generates reports for management review whenever any plant or asset health issues or operating parameters exceed acceptable limits. This facilitates prompt decision-making and corrective actions.
- Generative AI for Actionable Recommendations: The application employs Generative AI, particularly ChatGPT, trained with contextual data and knowledge management, to provide actionable recommendations. These recommendations aid in improving plant performance and making data-driven decisions.
Benefit
The implementation of Algo8’s remote plant performance monitoring solution resulted in substantial benefits for the ethylene plant:
- Increased Margins: The application delivered a 3-5% increase in margins through enhanced efficiency, reduced operational costs, and optimized resource utilization.
- Gains in Production/Yield: The ethylene plant achieved a 1-1.5% gain in production and yield due to better process control and early detection of issues.
- Energy Consumption Reduction: The remote monitoring solution facilitated a 5-10% reduction in energy consumption, contributing to improved sustainability and carbon emissions reduction.
- Improved Collaboration: The application enabled optimal use of off-site and local specialist pools by providing real-time insights to relevant stakeholders, promoting effective collaboration for issue resolution.
Impact
By adopting Algo8’s remote plant performance monitoring, the ethylene plant experienced significant financial benefits:
The solution added $8-10 million in annual benefits, including $6.5 million from increased production and yield and $1.5 million from decreased energy consumption. This not only improved the plant’s profitability and productivity but also contributed to its sustainability and operational efficiency.