With the hundreds of systems and thousands of individual components needing regular maintenance in an ethanol plant, computerized maintenance managements systems (CMMS) have long been a tool to keep the plant humming along. New methods such as scanning bar codes and using mobile devices have made things easier, but the basics haven&rsquo;t changed since CMMS was first deployed, says Joel Tesdall, president of Mapcon Technologies Inc. &ldquo;CMMS came out in the early &rsquo;80s. The base function of CMMS back then is the same as now: Tracking work orders and preventative maintenance.&rdquo; But while CMMS may be common across the industry, not all producers are using it to full capacity, Tesdall says. The initial step that most do is build equipment and parts lists and maintenance schedules&mdash;lubrication every so many days, bearing checks, etc. The software then generates preventative maintenance (PM) work orders on a daily or weekly basis. Maintenance technicians use the work orders to plan and record their work, keeping a record on each piece of equipment tracked in the system. &ldquo;From there, it depends on management and how detailed they want to get,&rdquo; Tesdall says. Tracking inventory is most often next and it expands from there&mdash;purchasing, project management, human resources scheduling, troubleshooting, checklists and internet and bar code technologies. Besides an increase in asset lifetime because of better maintenance, CMMS can become a powerful tool for improving productivity, Tesdall says. &ldquo;Processing work orders, tracking efficiency, finding and processing parts&mdash;things that seem little, but they become huge when you implement them. For instance, you have a work procedure that comes up that needs five widgets. The tech has to find those widgets on the shelf in the stock room somewhere. If you&rsquo;re not organized, it can literally take that guy an hour to find those parts. That&rsquo;s that one day. How many times does he do that in a week? In a month? A year? Now assign a cost to that and multiply it out. That&rsquo;s a big number, just for something as simple as that.&rdquo; A fully implemented inventory control knows of an upcoming PM requiring a bearing and a filter, makes sure they&rsquo;re in stock, or generates a purchase order. &ldquo;When the maintenance techs get that work order, it says the parts are in this store room, in this bin. They walk over and get it. Or maybe the storeroom clerk has it sitting on the table, because he was informed of it. Now they go out and work. You may have cut that time in finding parts by 80%. That&rsquo;s productivity. Multiply that out by a year and how much a tech cost you. That&rsquo;s a huge dollar.&rdquo; He cites a plant that saved millions in a year. &ldquo;The return on investment can be huge, if you aren&rsquo;t efficient to start with.&rdquo; Using CMMS to tighten parts inventory also improves the bottom line, Tesdall says. With $1 million in spare parts, a common approximation of ethanol plant inventory, and the carrying cost estimated to be 15%, the potential savings are impressive. The software can help identify the critical parts that need to be on hand, and reduce inventory overhead on other parts that can be ordered as needed.&nbsp;&nbsp; As plants become more successful in implementing the basic CMMS functions, many start looking for other ways to become more efficient, he adds. Using the human resources scheduling function to plan labor can help reduce overtime. And, the compiled data on how long tasks take and how much overtime is paid out can be used to justify hiring more people, if needed. &nbsp; Mobile Efficiencies Ethanol plants are now adding mobile capabilities that put work order details and reporting at the maintenance technician&rsquo;s fingertips. The devices can also be used to scan bar codes on parts as they&rsquo;re used, updating inventory in real time. &ldquo;Mobile access is desirable and makes [CMMS] more likely to be used, maybe not by the older generation, but the younger generation,&rdquo; says Jay Beckel, senior vice president of risk and compliance services at ERI Solutions Inc./PROtect. &ldquo;It makes for better data collection, too. It&rsquo;s a lot easier to record that data in the field rather than come back to the maintenance shop and type it in based on memory.&rdquo; Beckel recommends plants add key performance indicators (KPIs) into their CMMS that apply to environmental health and safety requirements, following SMART ideology&mdash;making KPIs specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-framed. &ldquo;They can be hard to follow sometimes, but when you set a new goal and determine new KPIs, following SMART will give you better results,&rdquo; Beckel says. Beckel discussed the key performance indicators in CMMS at the Plant Maintenance and Safety Summit produced by Ethanol Producer Magazine and held virtually Dec. 16-17.&nbsp; All equipment should be evaluated for its expected life span, Beckel recommends. &ldquo;If you can, calculate remaining time left in your CMMS. Ask yourself what it&rsquo;s based on, time of use or cycles, and which is best?&rdquo; The next step is to identify the damage mechanism, since each piece of equipment fails as a result of different factors. &ldquo;You need to plan your analysis and preventive maintenance activities that are tracked in your CMMS accordingly,&rdquo; he says. The life of a fermentation tank may be 50 years, but welds can crack and support structures for agitators can fail, he adds.&nbsp;&nbsp; Tracking preventive maintenance on critical equipment should include documenting available spares, any specialty or custom requirements for one-of-a-kind equipment, installation needs and whether the plant&rsquo;s maintenance staff can do the maintenance or a third-party vendor is needed. The software can also note required lead time and cost. Other items to consider tracking in CMMS is whether the PM for every single piece of equipment in the plant is complete with work orders and written standard operating procedures (SOPs) specifying the maintenance procedure. &ldquo;Consistency can add life,&rdquo; Beckel says, adding that including the consequences of failure is helpful. &ldquo;This can greatly increase technician buy-in if they understand what could happen if they don&rsquo;t do their job properly or consistently.&rdquo; Tesdall recommends maintenance managers utilize checklists for procedures with specific orders, or if a maintenance record is required on certain pieces of equipment for compliance requirements. The technician can check off the steps on the checklist on a smart phone or tablet, which also keeps track of the time. Issues can be noted and red flagged. Now, Software as a Service (SaaS) is becoming more popular, Tesdall says. Software is bought on a monthly basis and hosted on the internet, with access via a browser. For ethanol plants, switching to SaaS will depend upon their security model, Tesdall says. &ldquo;In the ethanol industry, almost all our customers are self hosted, on their servers in their building. But, we have quite a few that have decided to host with us because there are cost savings. They don&rsquo;t have to maintain the servers, the hardware, the network and it reduces the demand on their IT staff.&rdquo; A virus&mdash;and not the corona variety&mdash;prompted a couple of plants to move to SaaS, Tesdall adds. A virus got into the network and took down the CMMS. &ldquo;For an ethanol plant not to have CMMS is a huge deal,&rdquo; he says. The ability to connect to the internet keeps the CMMS and financial software running during a network crash.&nbsp; &ldquo;We have a professional data center where that&rsquo;s all they do,&rdquo; Tesdall says. &ldquo;They maintain the servers. They spend all day looking for threats.&rdquo;
Using all these available methods and technologies to implement CMMS to the fullest improves maintenance efficiency and overall plant operations, Tesdall and Beckel agree.
 Author: Susanne Retka Schill Freelance writer/editor <a href="mailto:retkaschill@yahoo.com" target="_blank">retkaschill@yahoo.com</a>

Upgrades to computerized maintenance management systems have included bar code scanning and mobile device pairing. Many plants might not be using their CMMS to full capacity. 

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FROM THE FEBRUARY ISSUE: Fully utilizing computerized maintenance management systems can tighten inventory, reduce overtime and increase equipment life. Put to work right, CMMS systems help producers attain both greater efficiency and productivity.

Scanning CMMS Efficiencies

The data necessary for process control, predictive maintenance and even predictive cleaning is already being captured at ethanol plants. The next step is to figure out how to use it to boost efficiency. Producers are starting to come around to digitalization of existing data to improve overall performance, says Don Mack, industry and automation alliance manager with Siemens. &ldquo;We can come in and look at the overall situation and see where we see potential for improvement at a high level and identify low-hanging fruit.&rdquo; Producers can &ldquo;dip their toes&rdquo; in digitalization with no large investments, he says. &ldquo;The sensors are already there, and they see an opportunity to improve the overall performance of their plants and produce as much ethanol as possible.&rdquo; Some do make investments in bettering their data-driven operations, including in automation and real-time analysis, says Ryan Magner, chemical engineer with Black &amp; Veatch. Automation creates a data funnel, he says, reducing 1,500 data points into 15 or 20 anomalies to analyze. And Anne Chronic, director, market analytics for Phibro, emphasizes the predictive cleaning benefits of data analysis. Whether a producer&rsquo;s interest in their data lies in maintenance, cleaning or process control, it all boils (or ferments) down to efficiency. People, Processes and Tools Magner says Black &amp; Veatch has a few main focuses when it comes to data. &ldquo;We think about it in three parts: people, processes and tools. I like to think you start with the tools: That&rsquo;s the software. &ldquo;Best practices&mdash;you should have some type of software that&rsquo;s doing data analysis in real time,&rdquo; Magner says. &ldquo;Some look at trends and manually analyze their data, and you&rsquo;re going to miss a lot that way. You really have to have a piece of software that&rsquo;s taking a holistic approach and looking at your entire facility and then detecting anomalies.&rdquo;&nbsp; Beyond software, the right processes and people are crucial. A system that sends emails about anomalies detected in the plant isn&rsquo;t useful without the knowhow to evaluate and address them, Magner says. Hundreds of alerts could come in each day on a fleet of ethanol plants. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s important to have the right people involved and a good set of processes to provide actionable items to the site.&rdquo; That sheer volume of data provides a good reason to deploy automated and real-time software, Magner says. Looking at data and trends each morning from the night before illuminates 50 or 100 data points, when there are about 5,000 in an ethanol plant, he says. &ldquo;Maybe 1,500 you realistically care about, but you&rsquo;re only seeing 5, 10% of the total data you&rsquo;re able to analyze, when you&rsquo;re doing it in a manual way, not automated. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s the first way you&rsquo;re vulnerable there&mdash;just the scale. You&rsquo;re just not able to cover all the of process variables that can cause failure.&rdquo; Relying on DCS alarms, for example, to detect bearing temperature and vibration is a reactive method that might come too late, he says. &ldquo;Our software will look at best practices, look at all data continuously and detect that failure way before it gets on an alarm and before it gets into the engineer&rsquo;s daily checks.&rdquo; An automated system also adds context that could generally be overlooked. Bearing temperature of 150 degrees during the summer months is good, but in the winter, with much lower outdoor temperatures, that same 150 degrees might be 10 or 20 degrees higher than it should be. &ldquo;You would never catch that on an alarm, but our software is going to know, at this ambient temp and load, this is getting too hot and it could fail when it gets warmer outside,&rdquo; Magner says. Process Control, Predictive Maintenance Mack says most of Siemens&rsquo; customers in process industries are aware of and quickly learning more about digitization techniques. &ldquo;They know there are capabilities out there by applying data analytics that can improve operations, that can improve maintenance.&rdquo; Digitalization converts data into information that can help make actionable decisions to improve performance, Mack says, using valve monitoring and maintenance as an example. &ldquo;To maintain and avoid problems, they&rsquo;ll apply preventative maintenance, establish a routine where once a month or so, they look at the control valve. Invariably, it&rsquo;s ok and they don&rsquo;t have to do anything, but they still spend that cost and that time. What we can do with a valve monitoring type of process is we collect information from a smart valve positioner that is attached to the valve.&rdquo; The positioner sends a signal to the valve to move it for desired flow. Besides making that adjustment, that valve positioner can collect useful information, such as how many times the valve was opened and closed, or the maximum temperature it reached. Data Siemens collects is compared to known parameters to identify thresholds that indicate maintenance is needed. &ldquo;Now you&rsquo;re moving toward predictive maintenance instead of preventative, with monitoring,&rdquo; Mack says. &ldquo;There are actually tools now that can calculate a maintenance date based on that data that&rsquo;s coming back.&rdquo; And apps can help now, too. &ldquo;What&rsquo;s kind of happening is that you&rsquo;re developing a library of apps &hellip; that you can apply and it really is starting to follow what we&rsquo;re doing in real life. If you need to address a specific problem, usually you can find an app out there.&rdquo; Siemens has tools for its customers to develop their own apps, too, if a more tailored approach is optimal. The company can offer a digital twin, as well, a virtual version of a plant or process that can conduct research and development to analyze effects of process changes or improvements. Full digitalization of data and its subsequent use is starting to take off in the ethanol industry, Mack says. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s still new and we&rsquo;re still having costumers come to us to better understand where they can be using this. But we do find that most of our customers these days have some sort of digital initiative within their companies. &ldquo;The keys are that customers shouldn&rsquo;t be afraid,&rdquo; Mack says. &ldquo;If it seems overwhelming, if it seems too expensive, it doesn&rsquo;t have to be. The first step is understanding what you have&mdash;what data, what issues you&rsquo;re encountering, and will data available be able to be analyzed to address issues?&rdquo; Calibrate for Cleaning Chronic says Phibro has started applying data even to cleaning schedules in ethanol plants. She doesn&rsquo;t hide her enthusiasm about the possibilities. &ldquo;We do look at fermentation data, and we look at that a lot, but what we&rsquo;ve learned and started to do is leverage our fermentation data analytic knowledge and apply it in other areas of the plant. That&rsquo;s where we&rsquo;ve really found we can enhance the application of our processing aids.&rdquo; Heat exchangers, for example, often are cleaned routinely, without drawing on existing data to plan for optimal performance. &ldquo;We can provide additional insight and knowledge,&rdquo; Chronic says. Data can show the benefits of cleaning on certain timelines, allowing further improvements. &ldquo;So really guiding customers on making a data-driven decision on when they clean things, rather than just an arbitrary schedule-type basis. &ldquo;In addition to the back end of the plant, benefits can also be seen in the front end of the plant via increased beer well feed temp, as a result of improved cleaning of beer/mash exchangers.&rdquo; Trends in the data can also detect whether a certain evaporator is taking the majority of the steam load. Data collected while that evaporator is being clean would show it was dominant, providing an opportunity to improve efficiency, Chronic says. Many plants have transmitters that haven&rsquo;t been maintained or used because producers don&rsquo;t know that data can be useful, Chronic adds. &ldquo;Usually, the equipment is there to monitor, but they might need to calibrate or do a quick upgrade. All at once, that can really enhance the understanding of what&rsquo;s happening and how effectively they&rsquo;re doing things in the plant. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve had some really great feedback from customers. Many admit they haven&rsquo;t approached things like this before.&rdquo; Beyond routine cleaning, plants working with Phibro have been able to extend time between hydroblasting. &ldquo;Plants are making decisions that directly affect their performance,&rdquo; Chronic says. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve seen benefits in reduced steam usage, improved production consistency, better heat transfer, and optimization of cleaning product usage and effectiveness.&rdquo; Chronic says the data analysis supports Phibro&rsquo;s new total cleaning program. &ldquo;We see this as a way to help producers go to the next level. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s an exciting area. I definitely am someone who has always been driven by data, so this is really exciting, partnering with plants.&rdquo; The Nuts and Bolts One of the most common mistakes plants make in data collection, analysis and application? &ldquo;Not doing it,&rdquo; Magner laughs. &ldquo;Not having real time analysis, not looking at the entire facility and seeing the whole picture. You have all this data available to you, but you&rsquo;re just not using it. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s a lot of nuts and bolts and things going on behind the scenes, and at the end of the day, the point of this software and what we&rsquo;re trying to do is to prevent failures and improve operational efficiency.&rdquo; Mack and Magner emphasize that data-driven operation plays a crucial role in keeping ethanol plants competitive. Magner says, &ldquo;Maybe the plant down the road has this monitoring system and they&rsquo;re preventing three, four, five downtimes a year, and you aren&rsquo;t. We know how competitive the ethanol market is. Especially in the past year, we&rsquo;ve seen how tight it&rsquo;s gotten.&rdquo; To keep that competitive edge, to maintain and optimize efficiency, data can provide a meaningful boost. And it&rsquo;s easy to start, Mack says. &ldquo;The first thing is just to look at it, whether they do it themselves or bring in companies such as Siemens or others to evaluate the situation. We think that&rsquo;s the best way to get started.&rdquo; Author: Lisa Gibson Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine 701.738.4920 <a href="mailto:lgibson@bbiinternational.com" target="_blank">lgibson@bbiinternational.com</a>

Engineers collaborate at the Black & Veatch Remote Monitoring & Diagnostics Center in Kansas.

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Data provide an edge in early detection of emerging issues.  

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The collection, proper analysis and application of data in an ethanol plant can boost efficiency, enhancing production and competitiveness in a tough market. 

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FROM THE FEBRUARY ISSUE: Data analysis for process improvements can range from simple to complex, low cost to high. In many plants, the keys to optimize maintenance, cleaning and overall performance remain unused.

From Reactive to Proactive

&ldquo;Do your employees readily identify near misses, or does your site simply not have near misses?&rdquo; Jacob Hencke, senior EHS consultant with ERI Solutions/PROtect, asked attendees during his presentation at the virtual Plant Maintenance and Safety Summit, Dec. 16-17.&nbsp; &ldquo;Do employees have near miss training?&rdquo; he continued, imploring his audience to think critically about their SIF (serious injury, fatality) near misses. &ldquo;Do managers support near miss reporting? If one is reported, is it addressed in a positive manner to encourage further near miss reporting? &ldquo;Near misses are a critical part of not just regular safety, but specifically incidents that have serious injury, fatality potential,&rdquo; Hencke said.&nbsp; He was one of 11 presenters at the Plant Maintenance and Safety Summit, the first of its kind organized by BBI International. Like September&rsquo;s virtual Fuel Ethanol Workshop &amp; Expo, the PMSS featured a virtual trade show and networking opportunities. &nbsp; The event drew in 167 attendees, 86 of which were ethanol producers from 50 facilities. &ldquo;The feedback we received on the real-life, in-the-facility style presentations was extremely positive,&rdquo; said John Nelson, vice president of operations, marketing and sales at BBI International. &ldquo;The presenters did a tremendous job delivering real-life content and applications that can help production facilities operate efficiently and safely.&rdquo; Near Miss Reporting During his presentation, Hencke emphasized that documenting, communicating and resolving near misses in ethanol plants can help reduce incidents that cause serious injury or death. He presented during the PMSS panel &ldquo;Your Most Valuable Asset: Deploying Safety Strategies Aimed at Eliminating Lost Time Injuries, Near Misses.&rdquo; &ldquo;Your most valuable asset: your people,&rdquo; he said. Not all incidents have the same risk level, so they can&rsquo;t all be evaluated through the same lens, Hencke said. A fall from an elevated platform is an SIF incident, whereas a fall on slippery ice on the ground is a non-SIF incident. An SIF includes fatality, life-threatening injury or illness, and life-altering injury or illness. Life-threatening injuries are those that are likely to lead to death without immediate medical attention. Life-altering injuries could include injury that causes permanent or long-term impairment of organs, function, or a body part. Hencke cited burns as an example of a life-altering injury. Hencke also shared a story about employees raking coal in a powerhouse. Staff knew that if too much coal piled up, it would release a fireball while raking. They told each other informally about this risk, but it was not reported or documented as a near miss. &ldquo;Employees didn&rsquo;t recognize this hazard, that it had serious injury potential and it should be dealt with,&rdquo; Hencke said. SIF precursors like this can go unnoticed because they&rsquo;re missed entirely due to lack of reporting, recognition or knowledge about the reporting process. But SIF precursors can be eliminated before they have a chance to occur, Hencke said. &ldquo;Employee &lsquo;tribal knowledge&rsquo; in the case of this incident concerning the need to step out of the line of fire of the flare up is great hazard recognition by employees,&rdquo; Hencke told Ethanol Producer Magazine after his presentation. &ldquo;This hazard was dealt with internally among operators through an informal procedure&mdash;step out of the opening when raking is performed or else you will be exposed to a burn hazard.&rdquo; During writing of the SOP for this task, the potential flare up was not identified or addressed, he added. Because employees accepted this risk as a part of this particular job and didn&rsquo;t communicate to management or their respective supervisor, the risk persisted until an employee injury was experienced. &ldquo;With recognition of the fire ball hazard and reporting it formally to management or the safety department, additional layers of protection could have been put in place to prevent the burn potential,&rdquo; Henke said.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; &ldquo;Behavioral based safety (BBS) has played a crucial role in identifying risks similar to the one laid out in this incident. An example of a formidable BBS process involves peer-to-peer reviews through a formal document or observation card. The observation is the vehicle to drive informal conversations about safety between employees, rather than a member of management. Employees can observe each other completing job tasks and provide feedback on safe/unsafe behaviors or procedures. An observation of the particular task&mdash;raking coal bed boiler&mdash;would have identified this potential hazard or behavior to avoid the hazardous condition (flare up).&rdquo; SIF incidents can include mobile equipment operation, energy isolation, elevated work, suspended load, line break/chemical exposures, confined space, and contractor activities. But not all carry the same SIF potential, Hencke said. In a recent evaluation, PROtect found that 80% of mobile equipment operation had SIF potential, while confined space work was at 100% SIF potential. &ldquo;You have to take a multipronged approach,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp; Robust near miss reporting would include incident investigation protocol with SIF precursor identification, and review for site-specific operations (hazardous operations, etc.). Not all incidents are SIF, Hencke cautioned, so reducing SIFs doesn&rsquo;t necessarily reduce all hazardous incidents. But, of course, they&rsquo;re the most dangerous and developing a protocol will help protect a plant&rsquo;s most valuable assets. Miles of Pipe Beyond SIF, safety can extend to equipment, as well. It&rsquo;s important to be aware of different safety and inspection requirements for different piping classifications in an ethanol plant, according to Jay Beckel, senior vice president, risk and compliance services at ERI Solutions Inc./PROtect. And don&rsquo;t rely on your nondestructive testing (NDT) provider to keep track of it, he added. In Beckel&rsquo;s presentation during the panel, &ldquo;Miles of Pipe: Assuring the Mechanical Integrity of Your Plant&rsquo;s Piping Matrix,&rdquo; he talked about classification, organization, documentation and more. &ldquo;Process safety information can be very, very vast,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Today, we&rsquo;ll focus only on [piping and instrumentation diagrams] P&amp;IDs.&rdquo; First, Beckel walked his audience through the four pipe classifications, including: Class 1 &ndash; piping with the highest potential for emergency issues;&nbsp;Class 2 &ndash; piping that is not otherwise classified; Class 3 &ndash; piping containing flammable materials but not likely to vaporize, or located in remote areas where no significant consequences are likely; and Class 4 &ndash; piping containing nonflammable and nontoxic materials.
&ldquo;Much of your piping probably is class 4,&rdquo; Beckel said.
Each classification has its own inspection requirements, timeframe thickness and timeframe visual. But there&rsquo;s more to consider. &ldquo;Did any of you know that there could be minimum thickness?&rdquo;
Of utmost importance in a P&amp;ID is an accurate legend, preferably just one, Beckel says. &ldquo;With too many, it makes it hard to follow along.&rdquo;
The legend should include at minimum: materials of construction; line size; pressure rating; whether the pipe is insulated; whether it&rsquo;s heat traced; coating type; other piping details including classification, which should be on each line of the P&amp;ID; and line numbers for all lines that follow the legend.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s pretty straightforward, but you&rsquo;d be amazed at the plants that don&rsquo;t have something on each line for their P&amp;IDs,&rdquo; Beckel said.&nbsp;
&ldquo;And you need a documented approach to tie all these things together,&rdquo; he said, listing pressure vessels, piping and tanks, transmitters and pumps. &ldquo;All the pieces of the puzzle you have in your plant, you should have in your written approach to pipeline integrity.&rdquo;
It should be plant specific, not a prepared program, he added. &ldquo;Hold your contractors and staff accountable.&rdquo;&nbsp;
 Traditional Vs. Advanced NDT can be traditional or advanced, Beckel said. Traditional is a visual approach with thickness. Advanced can include magnetic flux leakage, automated ultrasound thickness mapping, guided wave technology and pulsed eddy current. Of magnetic flux leakage, Beckel said, &ldquo;The technology is super. It really helps to ID pitting and gradual wall loss.&rdquo; But it only works on carbon steel, he added. Automated ultrasound thickness mapping needs to be on an insulated surface, he said, and can be used manually or in an automated fashion. &ldquo;Automated UT mapping is pretty advanced. It&rsquo;s a good system to have in place. It can really identify a lot of things you could miss.&rdquo; The pipes must be clean for this method, he said.&nbsp; Guided wave can inspect up to 1,150 feet of pipe from one location. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a great technology for underground piping or other inaccessible piping,&rdquo; he said, adding it has 100% coverage even with clamps or sleeves in place. Pulsed eddy current is good for corrosion detection, as it can scan through thick insulation and even fireproofing, Beckel said. It can map and accurately identify remaining wall thickness without removing insulation. Organization The P&amp;ID might have 150 to 300 different line numbers in a given section of the plant, Beckel told his audience. So, when spread out to the entire plant&mdash;the slurry tank all the way to loadout&mdash;the number grows exponentially. &ldquo;It&rsquo;ll take some organization, and spreadsheets might not be the best way,&rdquo; he said. Beckel strongly recommended an asset Integrity management platform that organizes by area or line number, has the capacity to compare with other facilities in the industry or corporation, easily identifies corrosion and erosion, and ties in with the incident management system. Armed with all this information, Beckel cautioned his audience on one last item: &ldquo;Don&rsquo;t fall into the trap of only regulatory requirements. This needs to be a risk-focused approach, not solely about regulations. Author: Lisa Gibson Editor, Ethanol Producer Magazine 701.738.4920 <a href="mailto:lgibson@bbiinternational.com" target="_blank">lgibson@bbiinternational.com</a>

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Jacob Hencke, senior EHS consultant with ERI Solutions/PROtect, spoke about reducing near misses in ethanol plants. 

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Beckel illustrated with this presentation slide what a P&ID legend should include. 

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During his presentation, Jay Beckel of ERI Solutions Inc./PROtect showed this slide about piping classification inspection requirements.

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Hencke outlined the definition of SIF: serious injury or fatality.

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2020 Plant Maintenance & Safety Summit Virtual Expo

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2020 Plant Maintenance & Safety Summit Virtual Lobby

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2020 Plant Maintenance & Safety Summit Virtual Session Hall

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FROM THE FEBRUARY ISSUE: BBI International's Plant Maintenance and Safety Summit, held virtually in December, featured crucial information on how to reduce injuries and fatalities, along with educational discussions on upkeep, optimization and more.

Critical Content

Green Plains sells Texas ethanol plant Green Plains Hereford LLC, a Green Plains Inc. subsidiary, sold its 100 MMgy ethanol plant in Hereford, Texas, to Hereford Ethanol Partners L.P. for $39 million, plus working capital, and an earnout provision of up to $75 million related to certain value enhancement opportunities, including future earnings from Low Carbon Fuel Standard credits. &ldquo;The sale of the Hereford ethanol facility allows us to reallocate capital to support the accelerated buildout of our Ultra-High Protein technology and continue our total transformation to an ag-tech focused company,&rdquo; said Todd Becker, president and CEO. &ldquo;We determined that this location was not optimal for our growing focus on sustainable proteins and novel ingredients and were pleased to find a partner interested in pursuing several identified carbon capture opportunities. In addition, this location can be further optimized to lower carbon intensity scores, which will benefit our shareholders in the future, if and when realized.&rdquo; Information released by Green Plains indicates that Hereford Ethanol Partners L.P. is a newly formed, wholly owned subsidiary of a privately held Texas investment group. The facility is expected to resume production in the second quarter of 2021. 
Fluid Quip Technologies partners with Trislot&nbsp;&nbsp; Fluid Quip Technologies is now an exclusive distributor of Trislot screens for the corn grind and biofuels industries. Trislot screens are utilized in fiber separation and washing in FQT&rsquo;s patented technologies, allowing for optimal performance at critical points in the separation process. Trislot screens will be marketed and distributed through FQT&rsquo;s partner Fluid Quip Mechanical. &ldquo;The exclusive partnership with Trislot is a natural alignment for FQT,&rdquo; said Michael Franko, partner for Fluid Quip Technologies. &ldquo;We have long utilized Trislot as our technologies have continued to develop. In addition to being a fit for our technology needs, Trislot is also a match for our mechanical services. Their ability to provide high-quality, innovative designs allows our mechanical engineers to develop cost-effective and specific solutions for operations and maintenance.&rdquo; 
Biden to nominate Vilsack as ag secretar President-elect Joe Biden has announced he will nominate Tom Vilsack as secretary of agriculture. Vilsack is a former two-term governor of Iowa who served as secretary of agriculture during all eight years of the Obama-Biden administration. &nbsp; Representatives of the American Coalition for Ethanol, Growth Energy, Renewable Fuels Association, and others have spoken out in support of Vilsack&rsquo;s nomination. &ldquo;We congratulate Tom Vilsack on his nomination to once again lead USDA and know that he will hit the ground running,&rdquo; said Brian Jennings, CEO of ACE. &ldquo;Secretary Vilsack was the most effective advocate the biofuels industry had in the Obama administration and we are excited about working with him again, particularly with helping get the RFS back on track, continued infrastructure support for higher ethanol blends, and making sure farmers and biofuel producers are part of the solution to future policies designed to tackle climate change.&rdquo; &ldquo;We congratulate Mr. Vilsack and are pleased that the Biden transition team has chosen such a steadfast champion of rural America to lead USDA,&rdquo; said Emily Skor, CEO of Growth Energy. &ldquo;He has been a tireless champion of the biofuels industry over his career and his advocacy has been crucial. &hellip; We are looking forward to working with the incoming administration and Mr. Vilsack to build on the success of biofuels as a solution to our climate goals, providing American drivers access to a cleaner fuel option, and supporting rural economies.&rdquo; &ldquo;Tom Vilsack is an excellent choice to serve in this role,&rdquo; said Geoff Cooper, president and CEO of the RFA. &ldquo;During his last term as secretary, he has shown clearly and continually that he can work effectively with the broad spectrum of interests who have a stake in the wide body of issues under USDA&rsquo;s portfolio, including renewable fuels. We are especially happy to have someone in the Biden administration who intimately understands the crucial role renewable fuels and agriculture can play in confronting climate change. We thank the president-elect and look forward to working once again with the new secretary once he takes office.&rdquo;

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Industry announcements from the February issue of Ethanol Producer Magazine, including the sale of Green Plains' Texas ethanol plant, Fluid Quip's partnership with Trislot, and Vilsack being nominated for a second stint as U.S. ag secretary.    

Business Briefs: People, Partnerships & Projects

The pandemic has weighed heavily on global ethanol trade, especially fuel ethanol, which is expected to be down in 2020 below the nearly 2.5 billion gallons of total trade in 2019. Stay-at-home orders have weighed on overall fuel demand, impacting U.S. ethanol exports by 12% this past marketing year where three of the top four markets are fuel ethanol use markets. Purely octane market demands have also eased in the Persian Gulf but are expected to resume as economics return in 2021. That short-term market loss serves as a critical reminder of the importance of policy driving demand use for ethanol. Looking to 2021, there are four factors the global industry needs to address to foster growth. First, the industry must ensure the incoming administration understands the environmental value of ethanol as it launches both a domestic and global climate focus. Our global partners in ethanol production and use need to work together to market product as an environmental solution and component of transport policies focused on reducing overall emissions and tie those reductions into global initiatives like the Paris Agreement, among others. The International Energy Agency has recognized the important role of policies as a demand driver and the ability for countries to achieve their environmental and climate goals. The incoming Biden Administration in the U.S. has made it clear it wants to rejoin the Paris Agreement, furthering the opportunity for ethanol to be recognized as one of many solutions to greenhouse gas emission reductions. Five years after first signing the agreement, countries are reporting out their progress to meet their nationally determined contributions to overall emissions reductions with several countries implementing policies specifically to meet their commitments. The ethanol industry has a mandate to make clear to the administration that ethanol trade will remain a critical aspect in global energy markets and a homegrown and readily available exportable solution exists.&nbsp; Second, from the trade side, the industry must ensure ethanol is treated equitably from a tariff standpoint to ensure it is recognized as a transportation energy product. The tariff disparities between ethanol, aromatics, MTBE and gasoline itself need to be resolved. With mismatched tariffs, ethanol will face challenges getting into markets. Next, technical barriers to trade that impede market access and expanded uses for ethanol must not be erected. These technical restrictions take many forms and it is incumbent upon the industry to aggressively address them globally to ensure fair access.
Finally, building global partnerships goes without saying. It is the bedrock from which all market development efforts are built. Ethanol-producing countries should not be those with the most restrictive barriers to market entry. They should be our partners in opening global markets, instead of shutting their own markets down. Looking forward, policies remain critical for driving overall demand for ethanol and biofuels more generally. Addressing these factors concurrently will be key to global ethanol growth in 2021 and beyond.
&nbsp;
Author: Brian Healy Director of Global Ethanol Market Development U.S. Grains Council 202.789.0789 <a href="mailto:bhealy@grains.org" target="_blank">bhealy@grains.org</a>

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Ethanol-producing countries should not be those with the most restrictive barriers to market entry. They should be our partners in opening global markets, instead of shutting their own markets down. Equitable tariff treatment is critical. 

4 Factors for Global Ethanol Growth 

As states across the country began implementing COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions in March 2020, the Department of Homeland Security issued a list of industries and business sectors that should remain open during the pandemic because they perform functions that are critical and essential to our economy.&nbsp; It was no surprise to us that our nation&rsquo;s ethanol producers were included on this list at the beginning of the pandemic. That&rsquo;s because ethanol sits at the juncture of the energy and agriculture sectors, providing not just fuel and feed, but also other key products like COVID-killing hand sanitizer, carbon dioxide to preserve meat and fresh foods, and dry ice to ship vaccines. That is why the theme for February&rsquo;s National Ethanol Conference and the 2021 Ethanol Industry Outlook is simply, but powerfully, &ldquo;Essential Energy.&rdquo;&nbsp; Ethanol is essential to the economy&mdash;especially rural America, supporting thousands of jobs well beyond those in the ethanol plants themselves. In 2019, there were nearly 70,000 jobs directly associated with ethanol production and another 280,000 jobs otherwise tied to it. The industry created more than $23 billion in household income and added $43 billion to the national Gross Domestic Product. We&rsquo;ll report on the industry&rsquo;s 2020 economic impacts at the NEC. As much as U.S. oil production has grown in the last decade, ethanol also remains essential to energy security. The U.S. remains a significant net importer of crude oil; more than one-third of total U.S. crude oil supplies came from foreign sources in 2020, as did over 40 percent of the oil processed by refineries. If not for the role of ethanol in the nation&rsquo;s fuel supply, our country would have had to import nearly 500 million additional barrels of crude oil in 2020.&nbsp; Finally, ethanol is essential to the environment, offering a low-carbon solution that can drive us well into a &ldquo;net-zero&rdquo; future. With state and regional low-carbon fuel standards in development, we&rsquo;re bullish on the future, especially if we can secure passage of the Next Generation Fuels Act or related federal legislation to enact a national high-octane, low-carbon fuel standard that&rsquo;s truly fuel and feedstock-neutral. The 26th annual National Ethanol Conference, to be held Feb. 16-18 in an entirely digital format, will allow us to bring together more people than ever before, with a program format that&rsquo;s easy to navigate and spread out over three days. Participants will hear from leaders across the ethanol, energy, automotive and agriculture sectors about what makes the future so promising for renewable fuels today, and tomorrow. As RFA celebrates its 40th year in operation, this year&rsquo;s NEC will hold special meaning for our organization. While the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has led us to adopt a fully digital format, we are confident the NEC will continue to serve as the largest and most visionary ethanol policy and marketing event for industry leaders and stakeholders. This is a critical time for our nation&rsquo;s ethanol industry, which faces a changing political landscape, regulatory challenges, and uncertainty in the marketplace. But it is also a time of incredible opportunity for low-carbon renewable fuels, and NEC will serve as an excellent forum for exploring the strategies and approaches that will facilitate continued success for our essential industry in the future. With the arrival of a new administration and a new interest in cutting carbon, never have objectives been so aligned to develop and promote renewable liquid fuels that will keep the American economy on the road to success. Ethanol can do this in a way that stresses its strong benefits in a world so concerned about reducing carbon emissions and toxic air pollutants, while at the same time offering coproducts that have such an important role to play in fighting this pandemic. In short, ethanol is essential energy for everyone. It&rsquo;s keeping America on the road while helping address immediate needs during the pandemic. And in the long term, ethanol will lead the drive into a future of low-carbon renewable fuels.&nbsp;
Author: Geoff Cooper President and CEO Renewable Fuels Association 202.289.3835 <a href="mailto:gcooper@ethanolrfa.org" target="_blank">gcooper@ethanolrfa.org</a>

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'Essential Energy,' the theme of the upcoming National Ethanol Conference, is inspired by the inclusion of U.S. biofuel producers on the Department of Homeland Security's list of critical and essential industries during the onset of the pandemic. 

Essential Energy

The February issue of Ethanol Producer Magazine was a little behind schedule as I wrote this editor&rsquo;s note, with well-intentioned feature articles falling flat and last-minute subs moving up to save the day. Our second issue of 2021 was wrapped up in late 2020 and, as our designer pointed out, it was fitting that it challenged us. The first of three features in this edition, "<a href="http://www.ethanolproducer.com/articles/17858/critical-content">Critical Content</a>," was originally intended for March, but, luckily, BBI International&rsquo;s Plant Maintenance and Safety Summit fell within the parameters of our uncomfortably stretched deadlines and presented a great opportunity to fill in for a delayed piece. But don&rsquo;t think of it as the B squad. The PMSS featured critical content about keeping employees safe and equipment optimized, and I&rsquo;m pleased to have covered it. One PMSS speaker, while discussing reduction of near misses to reduce overall serious injury or fatality (SIF) incidents, gave a fascinating example drawn from his own experience at a plant. I could talk about it all day, but instead, I&rsquo;ll let you read about it when you devour that feature article.&nbsp; I also got to take a look this month at how data can be used to improve overall efficiency, from maintenance to cleaning. Most plants already have the sensors they need to collect the data required to optimize cleaning schedules and track maintenance needs, but simply don&rsquo;t use it&mdash;maybe because they don&rsquo;t know how. Those who are using data already might be investing in automated, real-time systems one source calls &ldquo;data funnels,&rdquo; turning 5,000 points into 20 reportable anomalies. It&rsquo;s more than just tracking trends, he adds. Find out how to use existing data optimally and learn about upgrade opportunities in "<a href="http://www.ethanolproducer.com/articles/17857/from-reactive-to-proactive">From Reactive to Proactive</a>." Sticking with a theme of available optimization techniques that aren&rsquo;t commonly used, our third feature, "<a href="http://www.ethanolproducer.com/articles/17856/scanning-cmms-efficiencies">Scanning CMMS Efficiencies</a>," evaluates computerized maintenance management systems. Here, too, plants have ample opportunity to refine, streamline and closely manage parts and equipment. I am proud of this magazine's content and the work that goes on behind the scenes to get each magazine finished and into your hands. It all comes together. It always comes together. &nbsp; Stay safe and be well.
&nbsp;
Author:Lisa Gibson
Editor <a href="mailto:lgibson@bbiinternational.com" target="_self">lgibson@bbiinternational.com</a>

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FROM THE FEBRUARY ISSUE: Ethanol Producer Magazine Editor Lisa Gibson tees up the publication's February features on plant maintenance and safety, leveraging data for improved plant efficiency, and getting the most from your plant's CMMS.

February 2021

Columns

4 Factors for Global Ethanol Growth

Essential Energy

It All Comes Together

Featured

Scanning CMMS Efficiencies

From Reactive to Proactive

Critical Content

February 2021.css-7jxktu{position:absolute;bottom:0px;left:0px;right:0px;height:3px;border-radius:3px;background-color:var(--chakra-colors-brandBlack);}

Columns

4 Factors for Global Ethanol Growth

Essential Energy

It All Comes Together

Featured

Scanning CMMS Efficiencies

From Reactive to Proactive

Critical Content

February 2021