Activity

  • Yes, You Can Reduce Your Plant’s Energy Costs Easily and Affordably

    Jim Cahill
    While many functions in industrial plants are commonly automated, the tracking and management of energy remains a task frequently conducted manually. Workers move around with spreadsheets from machine to machine, attempting to capture some semblance of the energy being consumed in a procedure fraught with potential errors and with no way to capture real-time energy overages or to determine when and under what conditions…

  • Evaluating Combustion: Efficiency Alone is Not Enough

    Jim Cahill
    In an Industrial Heating article, Emerson’s Andrew Smith breaks down the complexities of combustion control, and provides a solution Some industrial processes prove to be more complex in actual operation than they first appear. One of the most common is combustion, as applied with boilers, fired heaters, ovens, and the like. Conceptually, it is very easy to understand: mix fuel with air in the right proportion and it…

  • Analyzing Combustion – Looking for Leftover Oxygen

    Jim Cahill
    In an automation.com article, Emerson’s Jesse Sumstad and Neil Widmer explain how accurate measurement of excess oxygen in flue gas can be used to improve combustion control. These days, industrial facilities operating combustion processes face multiple concerns, including: Burner efficiency Fuel costs Emission restrictions Public perception of a company’s carbon footprint and overall environmental responsibility…

  • Deliver better control, reliability, and safety in today’s demanding steam operations with Rosemount 8800 MultiVariable Vortex Flow Meter

    Jim Cahill
    Vortex flow measurement is uniquely adaptive when it comes to handling difficult applications. By virtue of its science, utilizing the von Kármán effect, these instruments are accurate across a wide operating range and effective at withstanding high process pressures and temperatures. In this post, we’re highlighting the latest in our 8800 Flow Meter product portfolio – the MultiVariable Vortex Flow Meter. Designed with…

  • Welcome to Emerson Automation Experts Podcasts

    Jim Cahill
    Visit our podcast subscription page to subscribe with your favorite podcast player. The post Welcome to Emerson Automation Experts Podcasts appeared first on the Emerson Automation Experts blog.

  • Optimizing Combustion Processes

    Jim Cahill
    Heating is a part of many production processes. Combustion units largely provide this heat. These units may include boilers, heater, ovens, furnaces, incinerators, kilns, dryers and more. I caught up with Emerson’s Bob Sabin who works with manufacturers and producers to improve how these units operate, since energy costs are typically a large part of the overall operational costs for these production processes. Bob…

  • Upgrading Boiler Burner Management and Combustion Control Systems

    Jim Cahill
    Bob Sabin Peter Kline Authors: Bob Sabin , Peter Kline The Emerson Industrial Energy consulting team assisted a Northeastern U.S. specialty chemical manufacturer with modernizing the controls on two 1960’s vintage Combustion Engineering “D” Type process steam boilers. These units are critical to site operation as they supply steam to a common header that feeds processes throughout the production facility. For…

  • Optimizing Energy Consumption and Overall Reliability

    Jim Cahill
    Sam Thiara I heard a great story from Emerson’s Sam Thiara of a polymer producer in the Middle East region that was looking to improve energy efficiency across the facility’s steam system. They wanted to reduce energy costs and their carbon footprint, while also improving the stability and reliability of the process. The plant staff worked with Emerson industrial energy consultants to benchmark existing operations…

  • What Lies Ahead for the Energy Industries?

    Jim Cahill
    It’s been quite a whirlwind of week here at CERAWeek 2019. There were far more choices on what sessions to attend than ever before. For those with the fortitude to make it all the way to Friday, it’s one of my favorite days. It opens with a panel of the IHS Markit senior analysts sharing their perspectives from the week. I’ll try to capture a few of the key points I hear. Atul Arya moderated the panel and panelists…

  • India Energy Security–Choices in Affordability and Sustainability

    Jim Cahill
    India is currently seeing a great transition in energy supply and consumption. This has brought up many questions in the industry: What affordable fuel mix is optimal, and should the market or government policy decide? To decrease pollution in Indian cities, how will the fuel mix choices need to change, especially in the power and transport sectors, where fossil fuels now dominate? How can national champions leverage…

  • Improving Energy Efficiency with IIoT

    Jim Cahill
    Think about an “Internet of Things” (IoT) device that you may use in your home life. It’s typically an ordinary device, such a thermostat, and made into an IoT device with communications and a visual interface to remotely view date & control actions from the device. For instance, my Emerson Sensi thermostats communicate through my home network and Internet to a Sensi app on my smart phone where I can monitor & control…

  • Shifting Toward Real-Time Predictive Manufacturing

    Jim Cahill
    Last week we shared a post about the COP24 conference and the need for more sustainable manufacturing . Emerson’s Chris Hamlin also attended this conference held in Poland in early December. In an Energetyka 24 video interview , Chris explained how we are now undergoing a huge, transformative shift where data and information are available almost anywhere you want it, in whatever quantity you need, at almost zero cost…

  • Podcast: How to Approach Energy Management Projects

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Sam Thiara joined me virtually from the UK for our continuing FIRSTHAND: Operational Certainty Consulting in a Pod podcast series. Sam, whom you may recall from earlier energy management-related posts , is a member of the Operational Certainty Consulting Group speaking with manufacturers about their energy management challenges. In this 10-minute podcast , we discuss the process of planning and executing…

  • 5 Questions for Operational Certainty Consultant Sam Thiara

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Sam Thiara joins our continuing podcast series, 5 questions for an Emerson Expert. Sam works with manufacturers across the process industries to improve operational performance and achieve top quartile performance. We’ll have an in-depth podcast in the coming weeks with Sam’s perspectives on how the Operational Certainty consultants on how they work with process manufacturers to achieve and sustain improved…

  • 5 Questions for Resource Efficiency Consultant Ana Gonzalez Hernandez

    Jim Cahill
    Emerson’s Ana Gonzalez Hernandez joins our continuing podcast series, 5 questions for an Emerson Expert . Ana received her PhD from the University of Cambridge and is a resource efficiency consultant within the Operational Certainty consulting team . We’ll have an in-depth podcast in the coming weeks on how the Operational Certainty consultants are applying Ana’s research to work with manufacturers on data-driven analytical…

  • Optimized Combustion Control without Fuel-Air Curves

    Jim Cahill
    At the 2018 Emerson Exchange conference, Emerson’s Bob Sabin and Scott Pettigrew presented, Combustion Control Optimized with Patented Control Configuration. Bob opened describing the Emerson Industrial Energy Consulting group and how they work with manufacturers and producers in many industries about combustion control and optimization. Fuel air curves have been used for decades to control combustion. They are inherently…

  • Quantifying the Resource Efficiency of the Global Steel Sector: Why is Our Metric Better?

    Jim Cahill
    Author: Ana Gonzalez Hernandez In my last post , I introduced Emerson’s new resource efficiency approach. With it, Emerson proposes a new way of thinking about resource efficiency. One that encapsulates many aspects of modern industry solutions: we leverage the value residing in available metered data, communicate key knowledge through powerful digital visuals, and do so by tracking more a holistic metric – be it…

  • A Novel Thermodynamic-Based Metric: The Magic Bullet for Resource-Efficiency?

    Jim Cahill
    Author: Ana Gonzalez Hernandez In my previous post , I introduced the concept of resource efficiency: the integrated efficiency with which energy and materials are transformed in industrial processes. I mentioned that improvements in resource efficiency are considered indispensable to achieving globally agreed CO 2 emission and energy reduction targets. This is because trends in production volumes are predicted to…

  • Reaching Operational Excellence while Remaining Policy-Compliant: Leveraging Opportunities to Improve Resource Efficiency

    Jim Cahill
    Author: Ana Gonzalez Hernandez, PhD The production of engineered materials, such as metals, cement, or plastics, requires a lot of energy. Before the industrial revolution, natural resources were of relatively high value compared to labour, and this ensured that products “were maintained, repaired and upgraded” (Allwood et al. 2011) . Today, the relative value of labour and natural resources has reversed, and energy…

  • Reflections from CERAWeek

    Jim Cahill
    The IHS Markit team gathered in a panel to share reflections from things they heard this week at 2018 CERAWeek. James Burkhard noted that confidence is returning to the oil markets. The new math of oil is that the US is a swing producer for the world with price being the lever in supply. The other big news is the big transition going on from oil-based transportation fuel to electric-based transportation. This will have…

  • The Cloud, the Edge and Innovations across the Energy Sector

    Jim Cahill
    Huge amounts of data combined with powerful analytics applications running in cloud environments are beginning to help solve some of the toughest reliability, efficiency and productivity challenges that manufacturers and producers face. Emerson’s systems and solutions business technology vice president, Claudio Fayad shared his insights in a panel, The Cloud, the Edge and future of connectivity, moderated by IHS Markit…

  • 4 Critical Industrial Boiler Measurements

    Jim Cahill
    Many industrial processes require thermal energy as part of the production process. Steam is often the heat carrier because it highly absorbs this thermal energy and transports easily via piping. Industrial boilers are used to convert the energy in fuel to the thermal energy in the steam. Boiler control strategies must be developed to operate the boiler safely, reliably and efficiently under varying loads, fuel costs…

  • Monitoring for Motor Reliability and Energy Efficiency with Wireless Power Meters

    Jim Cahill
    Equipment monitoring plays a large role in a manufacturer’s reliability program. The health of this equipment can also affect energy consumption levels. For motor-driven pumps, fans, compressors, etc., monitoring the electrical energy usage provides an additional indication of equipment health beyond vibration, temperature and other traditional measurements. Emerson’s Matt Austin shared with me a new, downloadable…

  • Advancing Combustion Control Efficiency

    Jim Cahill
    Controlling industrial combustion-based units such as boilers, heaters and furnace has historically relied on the use of fuel-to-air curves. These curves represent the amount of fuel and air required for a given load. In this 4:28 video, Patented Combustion Solution From Emerson Improves Performance , Emerson’s Bob Sabin describes how stoichiometric, math-based control approach from common measurements typically found…

  • Advancing Combustion Control Efficiency

    Jim Cahill
    Controlling industrial combustion-based units such as boilers, heaters and furnace has historically relied on the use of fuel-to-air curves. These curves represent the amount of fuel and air required for a given load. In this 4:28 video, Patented Combustion Solution From Emerson Improves Performance , Emerson’s Bob Sabin describes how stoichiometric, math-based control approach from common measurements typically found…

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