TECHNOLOGY HORIZONS|PROCESS ENGINEERING
methanation reactor. ‘Technical issues
may arise with designing or deploying
new equipment on the plant,
troubleshooting existing equipment, or
with operational issues relating to
continuously improving the process,’
said Kirby. ‘Sometimes, a quick solution
can be found, sometimes the work can
be a slow process, depending on the
nature of the problem.’
But the lengthy technical
assignments are the most challenging,
he said. In one he performed a
technical analysis to resolve a
discrepancy between the volume of
product the company estimated it had
manufactured and the amount it had
stored in one of its underground
ethylene storage cavities.
After obtaining the data from the
instrumentation used to measure the
volume of product in the tanks and the
data from the instruments used in the
plant, he analysed the data and
determined why there was a
discrepancy between the two figures.
As a result, the company modified
the measurement technique it was
using to measure the volume of product
in the storage tanks, and brought the
two readings back into alignment.
But it is not all about problem
solving. In May the company plans to
take its ethylene cracker offline to
perform essential maintenance, repairs
and cleaning, and Kirby will be a key
player in that process.
The cracking process takes complex
organic molecules and breaks them
down into simpler molecules, so the
cracker is a vital element in the Sabic
arsenal of process equipment. Kirby is
responsible for ensuring the shutdown,
and the start-up procedures, all occur
in a methodological fashion without
violating environmental consent limits.
‘The shutdown is a highly detailed
process that involves many people and
procedures, so there is a large
communications issue involved between
many groups within the organisation.
Once a high-level technical overview
has been developed detailing the work
that needs to be performed I have to
plan my work, such as the catalyst
change, against a set window to ensure
the procedure can be done in the most
cost-effective manner,’ he said.
Patrick Kirby
graduated from
Manchester
University with an
MEng in chemical
engineering just 18
months ago
On the management front Kirby is
involved in bringing together engineers
from the operations department and
the technical department to ensure
the optimal efficiency of the plant.
Environmental protection and health and
safety aspects are significant concerns.
‘It’s vital that the plant conforms to
new regulations from the Health and
‘I realised there would
be an opportunity to
be an engineer in a
practical context’
Safety Executive, and I’ve been
responsible for managing one project to
bring the assets of the plant in line with
new legislation that deals with the
remote isolation of valves across the
plant,’ said Kirby.
The legislation requires that all tanks
in the plant are capable of being
isolated from the control room by
suitably located fire-safe shut-off valves
on filling and outlet pipes, and that
remotely operated shut-off valves can
also remain operable in the event of
power failure.
20 TECHNOLOGY HORIZONS SUMMER 2008
Kirby is responsible for ensuring the
installation of new valves capable of
performing the task will be carried out
by a third party to Sabic’s specification.
He will take the project all the way from
concept to completion.
In another task, he is project
managing a catalyst change-over on
one of the reactors that is used to
produce on-specification hydrogen. The
work involves removing the existing
catalyst, cleaning and inspecting the
reactor, performing any maintenance
work that is necessary then reloading
the new catalyst.
Like the valve changeover, that
project will also require him to build
strong links with outside contracting
companies that are not working
directly for Sabic but which have a
duty to ensure the company’s
requirements are met.
Kirby obviously enjoys the diversity
of the role. And over the next few years
as a graduate trainee, he hopes to
discover whether his talents would be
best suited to a career in a technical
role or in a production role at the
company.
‘During the four years, I’m hoping to
get as much experience in both of
those fields so that I can then decide on
a long-term career plan,’ he said.
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