Most Recent

• PPG Adopts Cost-Effective SIS

  By Jim Montague

  Good things come in small packages and apparently in small safety instrumented systems (SIS), too.For example, PPG Industries recently investigated how to reduce risk in the chloroformates unit at its specialty coatings and materials plant in Barberton, Ohio. The larger plant opened in 1899, while…

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• Is The Homogeneity Of Your Dry Mix Acceptable?

  By Thomas Lamotte, Nestlé Research & Development Singapore

  Dry mixing plays an important role in many processes. The operation can take place at different stages of a process, for example at the beginning to mix raw materials or at the end to disperse additives into a product. Regardless, the purpose of the mixer remains the same: creating a mixture…

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• Valves, Pumps Benefit From Digital Performance Management

  By David Clayton, ARC Advisory Group

  While digital transformation has been getting its fair share of hype in recent years, end users in the heavy process industries actually began digitizing their plants decades ago with the introduction of “smart/intelligent,” digitally integrated process transmitters and final control devices.

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• Improve Your Temperature Measurements

  By Ryan Leino, Emerson Automation Solutions

  Most process temperature measurements in chemical plants rely upon three critical elements: a thermowell that provides the process containment; a sensor that takes the measurement and translates it into an electrical signal; and a transmitter that converts the sensor signal to a robust…

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• Perform A Proper Pre-Startup Safety Review — 5 Steps

  By John C. Wincek, DEKRA Process Safety

  A pre-startup safety review (PSSR) is a critical element of the process safety management (PSM) program mandated by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). However, due to time constraint and budget pressures, the temptation to rush or completely neglect the PSSR…

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• Take Safety Personally

  By Dirk Willard, Contributing Editor

  Near-misses occur at most plants. I’ve encountered an overpressure incident with a system operating about 100 psi above its code stamp; luckily, a heat exchanger gasket blew, relieving the pressure before anything more severe happened. Then, there was the BLEVE that I averted during a startup:…

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