Solomon Associates Identifies Three Areas in Which Performance Optimization Produces the Greatest Increase in Profit
Dallas, TX (PRWEB) September 10, 2013 -- In a highly competitive energy market, refiners and chemical plant operators are tasked with creating significant profit improvements in a relatively short period of time. Solomon Associates, the leading performance improvement company for the global energy industry, has identified three areas in which managers can have a substantial positive impact on profit without large capital expenditures or a lengthy wait for a return on investment.
“Managers with limited time and resources must focus performance optimization on the areas that produce the biggest returns,” said Solomon Associates Project Manager Chris Bustamante. “In some areas, the time put into a performance optimization plan can dramatically reduce operating expenses or improve profitability.” Bustamante offered insights into the best areas on which to focus performance improvements:
• Energy Efficiency – Energy usage represents one of the largest operating expenses for an oil refinery or petrochemical facility, typically averaging approximately 50% of a site’s total cash operating expenses (OPEX). With such a large piece of the budget, improvements have the potential to significantly reduce OPEX. On average, Solomon’s Net Cash Margin Measurement, Management, and Maximization™ (NCM³®) assessment results in projects and process improvements that reduce overall energy consumption by at least 10–15%.
While such numbers may seem like a silver bullet to substantial cost reduction, Bustamante counseled that there is a comprehensive process and methodology behind those results. An accurate understanding of performance gaps and potential targets for energy improvement are based on insight into a facility’s energy management practices. This understanding provides the basis for addressing the performance issues that prevent a facility from achieving better performance. An unbiased and complete assessment allows identification of the strengths and limitations of an organization and facility, as well as the economic incentive to undertake improvements.
“Solomon’s recommendations focus primarily on improving work practices to reduce energy consumption without major capital investment,” added Bustamante. “We focus on improving energy management practices in a way that assures that the improvements achieved will be sustainable year after year.”
• Reliability and Maintenance – In developing improvement recommendations for its process industry clients, Solomon focuses on two primary strategic areas for optimization: mechanical availability and workforce efficiency. Bustamante said that while many companies believe that these areas can be addressed independently, they are actually closely interrelated. Solomon’s statistical analysis of its study participants’ performance shows that an improvement of 1% in mechanical availability results in a 10% reduction in maintenance costs. Conversely, arbitrary reductions in available maintenance resources result in losses in mechanical availability that lead to capacity reductions.
“Solomon’s NCM³ consulting methodology focuses on reduced work demand through improved system and equipment reliability,” said Bustamante. “Solomon has worked with a number of clients to reduce unpredicted work demands by 6% through implementation of rigorous incident investigation and subsequent action implementation. We’ve also seen outage losses reduced by 30% through scope control and outage-duration management.”
• Planning and Optimization – The challenge to maximizing margins for refinery/ petrochemical operations is to answer this vital question: “What is the best combination of crude and other raw materials purchases that best utilize the current processing capacity and flexibility to meet the products demanded in the marketplace while maximizing profit?”
Solomon believes that answering this question starts with an audit of all aspects of tactical planning for the upcoming 3-month period to see how work processes, tools, and organization meet the challenge. Solomon then uses benchmarking data and industry best practices to show where opportunities exist.
“This is an area in which you cannot overstate the value of highly experienced specialists who have completed numerous audits around the world,” said Bustamante. “Solomon typically identifies cost benefits for clients valued at US $25 million per year or more.”
To learn more about how Solomon can improve your company’s performance, contact Chris Bustamante at Chris.Bustamante(at)SolomonOnline(dot)com or +1.214.675.9655.
About Solomon Associates
Based in Dallas, TX USA, HSB Solomon Associates LLC is the world’s leading performance improvement company for energy companies seeking to identify and close gaps in operational performance. Combining proven, patented methodologies with objective data analysis, and led by a team of oil and gas consultants steeped in hands-on operational experience, Solomon Associates consistently helps clients with energy-intensive assets achieve greater efficiencies, enhanced reliability, and improved margins. Solomon Associates is part of HSB Group, Inc. Learn more about Solomon Associates' energy benchmarking and consulting services at http://www.SolomonOnline.com.
Stephanie Wick, Idea Grove, +1 (972) 850-5866, [email protected]
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