SPECIAL REPORT

Batch Processing Software Guide

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 SPECIAL REPORT

CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

CONTENTS

Streamlining Chemical Manufacturing: The Shift from Excel to Advanced Batch Processing Software 3

Navigate Chemical Supply Chain Disruptions 6

Reaction & Synthesis: Quickly Estimate Reagent Addition Time 12

Mayco Colors: Artistic Inspiration Powered by Vicinity Software with Dynamics 365 Business Central 16

How Digitalization Enhances Worker Safety and Performance in Chemical Plants 19

Digitalization Meets Sustainability in the Chemical Industry 23

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

Streamlining Chemical Manufacturing: The Shift

from Excel to Advanced Batch Processing Software
 Chemical manufacturers must manage the substantial scale of centralization, and scalability
manage complex formulas and these projects. issues. Many manufacturers use
extensive data sets in everyday Shifting to a batch processing Excel as their “software solution,”
critical operations. This is a highly software can improve the plant’s but it is becoming obsolete for
regulated industry, and managing efficiency, productivity, and many reasons.
data has become an intensive scalability. One reason is that the Excel
operation. Currently, many chemical file can contain numerous
manufacturers use Excel for these CHALLENGES WITH USING EXCEL formulas, multiple versions, and
tasks because of its flexibility and Using Excel for formula very intricate data points. These
their familiarity with this system. management can be challenging formulas evolve, and changes
However, as these formulas become due to the complexity of are made to existing formulas
more complex, Excel’s limitations formulas, the vast amount and then duplicated to other
have become obvious. Excel cannot of manual entry, the lack of versions. Tracking these changes

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

and maintaining their accuracy This scalability is a significant the most up-to-date and accurate
becomes increasingly difficult. issue and will hinder the ability to information enhances collaboration
Excel is manual software and lacks manage the growth of any data and and improves data integrity.
version control, which often leads formulas efficiently. Other benefits of batch
to errors and inconsistencies. processing software include
By operating with manual BENEFITS OF BATCH automated calculations and data
data updates, the manufacturer PROCESSING SOFTWARE validation. This type of software
has a higher risk of human error. Chemical manufacturers need reduces manual data entry. It can
This can affect product quality to be able to manage multiple handle a substantial amount of
and consistency. Data accuracy is formulas and processes to enable data and complex jobs, improving
pertinent, and a single mistake in the ability to grow their businesses. scalability for business growth
a formula can be costly. Excel does The right batch processing software while maintaining reliability and
not have the mechanisms needed can make the difference between performance so manufacturers
to automate validation rules or have staying at the status quo or can manage their operations more
error-checking capabilities. expanding within their industry. An effectively and respond to ever-
One of Excel's most example is an enterprise resource changing market demands.
significant drawbacks is its planning (ERP) solution. These Meeting industry regulations
lack of centralization. Process solutions are specifically tailored and compliance and having
manufacturers need a solution that for different environments, such reporting capabilities built off the
centralizes their daily processes as chemical batch processing and industry standards are critical in
into a database for the different manufacturing. By providing chemical manufacturing. Chemical
areas within their business, such as these solutions to the challenges manufacturers have different
inventory, finances, and customer of batch manufacturing, they compliance issues than other
information. By using this type ensure efficiency and profitability. manufacturers. One example is the
of solution, manufacturers will Other benefits are centralized SARA Title III Section 312/313,
be able to streamline operations, data management, enhanced which asks for a report on the
boost productivity, and increase accuracy and consistency, improved amount of hazardous materials
profitability. scalability, and better compliance located in the plant and used
As these businesses grow, so and reporting. throughout the year. This report
do their data requirements. The Centralized data management has two sides — the balance sheet
formulas become more complex through a batch processing ERP approach (your inventory) and the
and larger in size. Excel is not software system will allow the income statement approach (the
designed to handle these large manufacturer to have a single flow of how much you have used).
data requirements. The likelihood source for all formulas, versions, Utilizing batch processing software,
of a crash within Excel increases and associated data. Allowing the adhering to standard regulations,
with the complexity of the data. manufacturer to have access to and providing detailed insights

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

into current operations will be Increase Productivity comply with regulatory and
effortless, allowing accountability, Upgrading to an ERP batch customer-driven compliance
transparency, and regulatory processing software solution allows requirements such as COA and
compliance within the industry. chemical manufacturers to optimize Product Spec Sheets. Investing in
the production schedule, resulting ERP batch processing software
WHY ERP BATCH in greater production capacity. In will assist in managing compliance
PROCESSING SOFTWARE IS turn, the manufacturers will spend by tracking documentation,
A GOOD INVESTMENT less time manually compiling data complying with regulations,
Investing in a batch specific ERP for analysis. Additionally, reducing and maintaining lot traceability
software solution such as Vicinity the time to close financials and from supplier to warehouse to
Software offers multiple benefits for streamlining the process of QC to production to customer.
chemical manufacturers: identify bottlenecks in testing and
defining batch adjustments achieves GETTING STARTED
Streamlined Operations
higher productivity. Take a look at your existing
An ERP software system integrates
system. Are you using Excel
various processes into the batch Boost Profitability
spreadsheets to store data and
processing system, which can These systems automate routine
analyze results? Is there only one
connect to ERP systems such as tasks and improve resource
set of data? Will changes in one
Microsoft Dynamics, enabling planning, leading to significant
area update all other areas of
seamless data flow across cost savings. They also help analyze
the organization? If not, then by
departments. This integration the cost of production from start
centralizing and optimizing these
streamlines data entry, identifies to finish and highlight areas for
operations with a batch processing
processes to take corrective actions, improvement that can directly
software system, you can better
and reduces expedited shipping impact the bottom line.
manage your resources, comply
costs and chemical costs by
Streamline Compliance with regulations, and respond
forecasting chemical usage.
Chemical manufacturers must swiftly to market changes. 

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

Navigate Chemical Supply Chain Disruptions

The post-pandemic world is changing the way chemical manufacturers envision their supply chains with a
stronger focus on technology and closer collaboration.

By Jonathan Katz

 During the height of the for the Dutch paint and coatings chemicals of concern, such as
COVID-19 pandemic, Akzo Nobel manufacturer, Norris says. While per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances
struggled to achieve 50% on-time it’s still less than ideal, it’s an (PFAS). Scope 3 refers to indirect
delivery in the U.S. from its suppliers, improvement nonetheless and emissions that occur in the value
says Nate Norris, the company’s a testament to the company’s chain, including both upstream and
North America manufacturing and supply chain planning strategy. downstream activities.
supply chain director. The pandemic is just one of many The evolving landscape further
“One out of every two batches factors reshaping the way chemical emphasizes the need for the
or orders came in on time,” manufacturers like Akzo Nobel industry to adapt to demand
recalled Norris during a visit to the manage their partner network. shifts influenced by changing
company’s metal and packaging The industry is also contending consumer behavior and industry
R&D center in Strongsville, Ohio. with environmental concerns priorities. Chemical producers are
As of November, on-time within its supply chain, with a now recalibrating their strategies
delivery had improved, reaching specific focus on limiting Scope to navigate erratic demand
the mid- to upper-60% range 3 emissions and addressing fluctuations, with an emphasis

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

October the EPA removed an

exemption for manufacturers of
products containing PFAS, which
previously allowed them to avoid
reporting products with minimal
PFAS amounts. This may have
a far-reaching impact on the
chemical supply chain, as many
of these manufacturers will have
to phase out production or find
alternate materials.
The American Chemistry
This ceiling shot of Akzo Nobel's Columbus, Ohio, manufacturing facility shows pipes
above the mixing vessel delivering raw materials from a tank farm. The company
Council (ACC) says the industry
produces packaging coatings at this site. Close collaboration with suppliers is is increasingly overburdened
necessary to ensure they can deliver on any formulation changes or new market with regulations, with 55% of
demands, says Nate Norris, the company's North American manufacturing and
its members reporting that their
supply chain director.
regulatory burden was higher in
on agile production approaches, intelligence (AI) for enhanced the third quarter of 2023 than
supplier diversification and supply chain visibility. it was in the previous three-
reshoring initiatives to meet market
needs, notes Frank Jenner, Ernst "It’s really about building in smart
& Young’s global chemicals and redundancy."
advanced materials industry leader.
- Matt Hoffman, vice president of product and industry
“Priorities now include boosting
solutions, John Galt Solutions Inc.
domestic production, reducing
reliance on risky sources and CHEMICAL SUPPLY CHAIN month period, according to
reimagining lean inventory OUTLOOK AND CHALLENGES ACC’s Chemical Manufacturing
strategies to navigate volatile The regulatory vise on chemical Economic Sentiment Index.
market dynamics,” Jenner explained manufacturers continues to tighten, The industry is also trying to
in an email interview. with many new laws impacting address Scope 3 emissions to meet
He added that digitalization material sourcing and tracking net-zero goals as called for in the
is a top priority for chemical to ensure compliance. Many of Paris Agreement. Many companies
manufacturers as they retool these standards require substantial are struggling to identify the best
their supply chains, leveraging investments in monitoring systems, ways to calculate greenhouse gas
technologies like the Internet training and documentation, emissions from their value chains
of Things (IoT) and artificial Jenner says. For example, in and how to gather the data.

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Other factors impacting the acknowledging the difficulty of ingredients used in small quantities.
chemical supply chain include altering well-established recipes, Previously, the company might
uncertain raw-material availability chemical manufacturers can identify not have bought these materials
and pricing, notably petrochemicals, key materials that allow for changes in large volumes due to infrequent
Jenner says. Also, many chemical and determine which recipes and use. Now, it assesses the materials
industry customers are still working products can be modified based on based on revenue, opting for
through safety stock levels they customer acceptance, Hoffman says. higher-volume purchases for high-
built up during the pandemic to Overcoming this challenge revenue products. The company also
hedge against further disruptions. involves assessing the feasibility evaluates additional suppliers to
of substitutions, adjusting product ensure they have ample availability.
SECURING CRITICAL MATERIALS blends or grades and understanding Hoffman described similar
Challenges around material the capabilities of different approaches, with more chemical
availability means chemical facilities. In essence, the tactic is companies trying to gain a better
manufacturers need to build to strategically introduce flexibility understanding of their customers’
redundancies into their supply in recipes where feasible while needs, including which ones might
chain, says Matt Hoffman, vice recognizing the inherent difficulty accept different grades of materials
president of product and industry in implementing changes for certain and products with longer lead
solutions for forecasting and materials, Hoffman adds. times. The overarching strategy
supply chain planning software Akzo Nobel addresses some of is to optimize the cost to serve
provider John Galt Solutions Inc. these issues with a robust business specific customers while ensuring
That doesn’t mean accumulating continuity strategy. The company profitability, he adds.
costly safety stock on high-demand prioritizes having a main supplier “So they could put together
ingredients or materials. and a backup supplier for critical a plan that services and really
“It’s really about building in raw materials used in high-revenue stratifies their different customers
smart redundancy,” Hoffman says. coatings, Norris says. so the plan is right, whether it’s
This involves creating common The procurement team helps the substitution at the finished-goods
recipes across production facilities company evaluate the importance level or, again, different lead times,”
to enable the movement of raw of each raw material in terms of Hoffman says.
materials between plants, allowing business revenue rather than just
for adaptability during shortages, volume, ensuring a comprehensive TURNING SUPPLIERS

Hoffman explains. The goal is to understanding of supply chain INTO PARTNERS

minimize unique recipes for each dependencies. For example, resins To further secure business
plant, which hinders redundancy. and fillers that the company uses continuity, Akzo Nobel engages in
Flexibility in recipes is crucial for in its coatings are always needed. detailed discussions with suppliers,
addressing regulatory changes or But there are other materials that including exploring dual sourcing
sustainability requirements. While Norris calls “fairy dust,” specialized within the supplier's own company

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

and assessing its manufacturing particularly important to comply that's the exact right fit for what
locations, capacities and lead times. with regulatory changes. Akzo we have, so then we ask them to do
“It’s a partnership. “Before, in the Nobel has launched several some R&D work, and we do that
old days, you would see people yell coatings that are free of bisphenols, with them.”
at their suppliers; that’s not helpful,” including bisphenol A (BPA) in
Norris explains. “Today, we really anticipation of European Food CHEMICAL SUPPLY

work with them and ask, ‘How do Safety Authority restrictions. CHAINS GO DIGITAL

we help you? Do you need a better “You've got to be prepared,” Digital technologies offer the
demand forecast from us?’” Norris says. “What could be coming transparency and insight necessary
The continuity plan helps the next? What's the next chemical for organizations to optimize their
company shift from firefighting of concern that people don't want supply chains in volatile times.
approaches, such as finding a to have in their products? And Manufacturers are combining
supplier at the last minute or so, you better have a pretty good artificial intelligence with
passing their problems on to technology roadmap for where you traditional planning tools to enable
customers, to long-term strategies want to go.” end-to-end visibility in real-time.
for sustained success.
“When we firefight, we find a "It’s a partnership. Before, in the
way to supply the customer, and old days, you would see people
the customer is happy, but that
yell at their suppliers; that’s not
firefighting doesn’t lead to long-
term solutions and really setting
helpful. Today, we really work with
ourselves up to win,” Norris says. them and ask, ‘How do we help
Companies increasingly rely on you? Do you need a better demand
their procurement teams to develop forecast from us?'"
a hedging strategy that includes
- Nathan Norris, Akzo Nobel's North American
mid- to long-term price agreements,
manufacturing and supply chain director
ensuring a guaranteed supply of
material and spot buy, whenever Reformulating an established Many of these tools, such as
possible, to take advantage of market product requires communication machine learning and AI, are now
softening, Hoffman says. These between the R&D team and well integrated into many statistical
strategies often include scenario suppliers to identify available forecasting tools, vastly expanding
planning that allow them to select materials and capabilities. the breadth of information
certain suppliers or quantities based “We might need them to design accessible to decision-makers.
on current market conditions, a new resin or help us design a “Now, instead of going through
Hoffman says. resin,” Norris says. “They might a couple of data points for three
Collaboration with suppliers is not actually have one on the shelf years of history, what you’ll see are

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millions of data points across years

and years and years of history, both
from the forecasting side but also
on the supply side,” Hoffman says.
From a forecasting perspective,
the insights tie together different
macroeconomic factors, commodity
pricing, customer demand,
including regional factors, he adds.
One of John Galt’s customers used
machine learning and AI to identify
leading indicators for supply chain
disruptions. The system identified
increasing lead times, higher
commodity prices and declining
order fulfillment rates as top
warning signs.
“It was able to identify that when
there’s this intersection of longer
lead times, diminishing fill rate
and increasing prices, those were
the leading indicators of a supply
disruption,” Hoffman says.
Akzo Nobel opened this pilot plant in Huron, Ohio, in June 2023 to support
A new twist in the digitalization
its packaging, marine and automotive businesses. Ohio, At the time of the
discussion is generative AI. announcement, the company noted that it's capitalizing on data analytics to
Scenario planning is one area transform its manufacturing processes and enable "the flow of information from the
laboratory to the factory floor to our customers, generating agility to changes in the
in which generative AI offers
marketplace and meeting customer needs."
significant advantages, says
Matthew Reymann, global vice markets to help with their information about upstream and
president of chemicals for ERP decision-making process. downstream factors.
software company SAP. It can It's unlikely that generative AI “If I’m a planner and can quickly
help manufacturers understand will completely automate supply distill a tremendous amount of
the impacts of their decisions. chain planning for manufacturers, data into 10 points, now I’m
For instance, they can query the says Reymann. But he sees it as a applying my critical thinking skills
system and ask questions about tool that will augment the process that I’m trained on to make the
external factors like their end-user and provide more actionable most profitable decisions for my

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organization,” Reymann explains. management function that cleans secure manner, the more effective
In addition to internal networks, and enriches business partner data we can weather disruption,”
some chemical manufacturers across the automotive supply chain. Reymann says. 
are joining consortiums that “As the leading chemical supplier
standardize data sharing among to the automotive industry, we
supply chain partners. In a previous see tremendous opportunities in
column, Reymann pointed to the operating an ecosystem based on
Catena-X Automotive Network. standardized digital services and
The goal of Catena-X is to establish harmonized data models," said
an open ecosystem that allows Markus Kamieth, an executive
vehicle manufacturers and suppliers, board member at BASF SE, at
including chemical companies like the time of the announcement.
BASF and Henkel, to collaborate "This will strengthen supply chain
Jonathan Katz, Executive Editor
using a consistent standard for resilience, improve transparency
sharing information and data across and accelerate the transformation Jonathan Katz, executive editor, brings
nearly two decades of experience as a
the entire automotive value chain. towards circularity and net zero B2B journalist to Chemical Processing
magazine. He has expertise on a
In January 2023, BASF and carbon footprints across many wide range of industrial topics. Jon
Henkel announced the formation material categories." previously served as the managing
editor for IndustryWeek magazine and,
of Cofinity-X, along with several The development of such business most recently, as a freelance writer
specializing in content marketing for
auto OEMs and SAP. Cofinity-X networks reflects the evolving
the manufacturing sector.
extends the Catena-X principles dynamics of the chemical industry,
His knowledge areas include industrial
to the European market. The goal where companies acknowledge that safety, environmental compliance/
sustainability, lean manufacturing/
of Cofinity-X is to operate an their optimal strategy for enhancing
continuous improvement, Industry
open marketplace for applications customer value lies in competing 4.0/automation and many other
topics of interest to the Chemical
and provide products and services within a larger ecosystem rather Processing audience.
to enable the efficient and than in direct competition with
When he’s not working, Jon enjoys
secure exchange of data among individual companies, Reymann fishing, hiking and music, including a
small but growing vinyl collection.
participants. It includes carbon noted in his column.
traceability components as well as “The more we can share across Jon resides in the Cleveland, Ohio, area.

an intelligent business partner data that value chain, certainly in a safe,

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Reaction & Synthesis: Quickly Estimate Reagent

Addition Time
A simple equation suffices in many situations involving batch reactors

By Michael J. Gentilcore

 Batches often have a step in not remain constant. feed rate can be raised as the
which a reagent chemical is added When the reaction rate is much volume increases and provides more
to a mixture being stirred and faster than the feed rate, the added wetted area for heat transfer.
reacts immediately (with little reagent is immediately converted
accumulation) — with the rate of to product by spontaneous reaction DERIVING THE EQUATION

addition controlled by the ability with the substrate previously

to remove heat. A maximum charged to the reactor. A negligible
temperature is specified with full buildup of the reagent occurs in
cooling applied to the reactor’s the reactor during the addition.
jacket. If the reagent chemical The heat production rate is directly
is dilute enough to cause a proportional to the feed rate of
significant level change, then the the reagent as limited by the heat Figure 1. Equation assumes that batch
wetted area for heat transfer will transfer of the jacket. The reagent always is on the straight wall of vessel.

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Jacketed Reactor vaporization of the evaporated approximation, the log mean

For simplification, let’s assume the solvent. For reagent addition, it is temperature difference can be
liquid mixture in the reactor prior the heat of reaction expressed as calculated at both the lowest
to addition is on the straight wall unit of heat versus the net weight level (A0) and highest level (At)
as shown in Figure 1. For purposes added. The heat of reaction must in the integration. For practical
of integration, let’s also assume be calculated at the temperature problems, the observed disparity in
the heat of reaction (ΔH), liquid of reaction and must include all temperature difference will be slight
density (ρ), overall heat transfer enthalpy effects such as the sensible and the lower value can be used
coefficient (U) and temperature heat from a reagent below reaction to provide a conservative estimate
differential (ΔT) between the temperature, heat of dilution, of addition time. An example will
utility (jacket) and process (tank) evaporative cooling when there is illustrate this.
remain constant. a byproduct off-gas and, of course, Many reactors have heat/cool
This situation is the reverse of a the chemical heat of reaction. modules that enable the jacket
batch distillation — for which the Temperature difference. The ΔT inlet temperature to differ from the
equations and their derivation have term is the same and constant coolant supply temperature. In such
been published previously [1]. The for both batch distillation and cases, substitute equations that are
solution is: reagent addition. Typically in batch available in Reference 2 for Eq. 3
At/A0 = e–t/θ (1) distillation, steam is the heating and Eq. 4.
where θ = ρ×D×ΔH/(4U×ΔT) (2) medium and calculation of this
The differences versus batch term is straightforward because AN EXAMPLE

distillation are in the definition both the process and jacket are Molten sodium metal is added to
of the terms ρ, ΔH and ΔT. Let’s isothermal. In reagent addition, water to make a sodium hydroxide
discuss each of these. a liquid commonly is the coolant solution — with the temperature
Liquid density. In batch and the jacket supply and outlet controlled isothermally at 77°F
distillation, ρ is the density of the temperature are unequal. In this during the addition. The reaction
liquid in the vessel. For reagent case, the difference is determined by chemistry is:
addition, this term is the net weight a log mean temperature calculation. Na (liq.) + H2O (liq.) → NaOH
added during the addition versus For a simple case of water flowing (aq.) + ½H2 (gas)
the observed volume change of the once through a jacket, the following The reaction occurs in a vessel
reaction mix. For the special case relationships apply: with a 5-ft outer diameter and a
where the reagent and reaction TO = TP + (TS - TP)/K (3) ¼-in.-thick shell, equipped with
mixture mix ideally with a zero where K = exp [(UA)/(WCp)] (4) a bottom ASME F&D head. The
volume change, the density equals Eq. 4 includes the wetted area straight wall holds 144.5 gal/ft of
that of the reagent. (A). Under a rigorous analysis, liquid height. The bottom head
Enthalpy change. In batch the temperature difference is holds 73.9 gal. The straight side has
distillation, ΔH is the heat of not constant. However, as an a wetted area of 15.7 ft2/ft of liquid

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

height. The outside surface area of

the bottom head is 23.2 ft2. Table 1
presents a heat and material balance
for this reaction.
Let’s now estimate the addition
Table 1. Sodium added to vessel causes an immediate reaction.
time, assuming an overall heat
transfer coefficient of 80 BTU/
Heat and Material Balance
hr/ft2/°F and 25,000 lb/hr of
Step 3. Calculate the height on the straight wall.
41°F chilled water flow (Cp = 1)
Start of reaction: (795.9 - 73.9)/144.5 = 5.00 ft
to the jacket.
End of reaction: (712.0 - 73.9)/144.5 = 4.42 ft
Step 1. Calculate the liquid
Step 4. Calculate wetted areas.
density, ρ.
Start of reaction: 5.00×15.7 + 23.2 = 101.7 ft2
Per Table 1, the change in volume
End of reaction: 4.42×15.7 + 23.2 = 92.6 ft2
is 712.0 - 795.9 = -83.9 gal = -11.2
Step 5. Calculate K factors. (See Eq. 4.)
ft3. The change in weight is 2,928.9
Start of reaction: K = exp (80×101.7)/(25,000×1) = 1.385
+ 5,276.9 - 6,610.3 = 1,595.5 lb.
End of reaction: K = exp (80×92.6)/(25,000×1) = 1.345
The liquid density for this reaction
Step 6. Calculate jacket outlet temperatures. (See Eq 3.)
is 1,595.5 lb/(-11.2 ft3) = -142.5
Start of reaction: TO = 77 + (41 - 77)/1.385 = 51.0°F
lb/ft3. (Surprise! The density is a
End of reaction: TO = 77 + (41 - 77)/1.345 = 50.2 °F
negative number because the total
Step 7. Calculate ΔT.
volume shrinks after the addition.)
Start of reaction: [(77 - 41) - (77 - 51.0)]/ln [(77 - 41)/(77 - 51.0)] = 30.7°F
Step 2. Calculate the heat of
End of reaction: [(77 - 41) - (77 - 50.2)]/ln [(77 - 41)/(77 - 50.2)] = 31.2°F
reaction.
The two values differ by less than 2%. Per the integration assumptions, the
Per Table 1, the heat liberated is
temperature will be treated as constant — using the lower value, 30.7°F, in
the sum of the product enthalpies
subsequent calculations to give a conservative estimate of the addition time.
minus the sum of the reactant
Step 8. Calculate Φ. (See Eq 2.)
enthalpies, i.e., [0.0 + (-82.0) +
First, calculate the tank’s inside diameter: 5 - 2×¼×1/12 = 4.9583 ft
(-14,540.7) + (-36,050.0)] - [179.0
Φ = [(-142.5)×4.9583×(-3,568)]/(4×80×30.7) = 256.6 hr
+ (-45,159.4)] = -5,692.3 kBTU.
Step 9. Rearrange Eq. 1 to solve for time.
The net weight added to the reactor
t = -Φln(At/A0)
is 1,595.5 lb. (Surprise! It doesn’t
Step 10. Plug in values and calculate addition time.
equal the weight of the sodium
-256.6×ln(92.6/101.7) = 24.1 hr 
metal because of the evolution of
hydrogen gas.) The heat of reaction
MIKE GENTILCORE is a principal engineer with Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals,
is then -5,692.3 kBTU/1,595.5 lb =
Hazelwood, Mo. LUIGI GRIPPA is a consultant and trainer based in Milan, Italy.
-3.568 kBTU/lb or -3,568 BTU/lb. E-mail them at [Link]@[Link] and luigig.1942@[Link].

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NOMENCLATURE SUBSCRIPTS
A area, ft2, m2 0 Time zero
Cp Coolant heat capacity, BTU/(lb×°F), J/(Kg×-°C) f Formation
D Tank inside diameter, ft, m t Time t
ΔH Heat of reaction, BTU/lb, J/kg S Coolant supply (jacket inlet temperature)
K Flow rate correction per Eq. 4, dimensionless O Coolant return temperature (jacket outlet temperature)
t Temperature, °F, °C P Process temperature (reaction temperature)
ΔT Temperature difference (jacket - process), °F, °C
T Time, hr
U Overall heat transfer coefficient, BTU/(hr×ft2×°F), W/ REFERENCES
(m2×-°C) 1. Gentilcore, M. J., “Quickly Estimate Batch Distillation
W Coolant flow rate, lb/hr, kg/s Time,” Chemical Processing (April, 2013)
ρ Liquid density, lb/ft3, kg/m3 2. Gentilcore, M. J., “Estimating Heating and Cooling Times
Θ Time constant per Eq. 2, hr for Batch Reactors,” Chemical Engineering Progress
(March 2000).

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Mayco Colors: Artistic Inspiration Powered

by Vicinity Software with Dynamics 365
Business Central
 COMPANY OVERVIEW management relied on time-consuming manual processes, making it
Mayco Colors, a family-owned difficult to maintain optimal stock levels.
company based in Hilliard, Ohio, • Limited reporting: Extracting insights from the system was
celebrates its 70th year as a leading cumbersome, hindering data-driven decision-making.
manufacturer of ceramic glazes,
pottery supplies, and acrylic stains "The biggest benefit of using Vicinity
for the art and craft industry. Software is being able to set up
They distribute their high-quality
SONAR. It's constantly evolving. We
products worldwide, enabling
artistic expression for hobbyists and
have the support from Vicinity to
professionals alike. just keep it going, keep it changing
and making it better and being able
CHALLENGES FACED BY to handle a lot more information
MAYCO COLORS
than what we ever were with
Prior to implementing Vicinity
anything else."
Software with Dynamics 365
Business Central, Mayco Colors - Joyce Bruce, Plant Accounting Manager Mayco Colors

faced several limitations:

WHY MAYCO COLORS CHOSE VICINITY SOFTWARE
• Outdated DOS-based
Mayco Colors partnered with Vicinity Software, a Dynamics 365 BC
software: Their legacy system
add-on specializing in production planning and inventory control for
offered minimal functionality
process manufacturers. This integrated solution addressed their pain points:
and lacked vital support.
• Industry-Specific MRP Customization: A core challenge for
• Manual MRP: Inventory

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

Mayco Colors was managing unique business processes and customizing the software to their
inventory for various-sized specific needs.
containers of the same color.
Vicinity customized the MRP BENEFITS ACHIEVED

process to combine multiple Since implementing Vicinity Software with Dynamics 365 Business
end-item requirements (e.g., 12 Central, Mayco Colors has achieved significant improvements:
oz, 16 oz, 2- liter) into single, • Reduced Manufacturing Frequency: By combining production
optimized batches based on a runs based on a 90-day forecast, Mayco Colors has optimized their
90- day forecast. This reduced manufacturing process, leading to increased efficiency and cost savings.
manufacturing frequency • Improved Inventory Management: SONAR reporting provides
and ensured a three-month real-time insights, enabling them to maintain optimal stock levels and
supply for all sizes after each avoid stockouts.
production run. • Enhanced Decision-Making: Data-driven reporting empowers
• SONAR Reporting: Mayco Mayco Colors to make informed decisions about production planning
Colors developed a powerful and resource allocation.
report called “SONAR,” which • Stronger Partner Relationships: The ongoing support from Vicinity's
provides prioritized insights dedicated team ensures Mayco Colors can continuously adapt and
into upcoming stockouts. This optimize their system as their business grows.
report combines “mix” and “fill”
needs by formula, including all "Coming from a consulting
related end items (including background I often advise potential
private labels). SONAR is Vicinity clients that the software
a vital tool for production
is powerful, but implementation
planning and ensures the
is crucial. It's like receiving
company is running efficiently.
• Seamless Integration:
unassembled furniture – you need
Vicinity Software integrates expertise to configure it for your
seamlessly with Dynamics BC, specific business processes.
ensuring a unified platform
for managing financials,
Vicinity's implementation team
operations, and inventory. excels at understanding your needs
• Expert Implementation: and tailoring the solution for success.
Vicinity’s implementation That's the real value proposition."
team played a crucial role in
- Kevin Brennan, Director of Information Technology
understanding Mayco Colors’
Mayco Colors

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

WHY MAYCO COLORS FUTURE PLANS CONCLUSION

RECOMMENDS VICINITY Mayco Colors is actively This partnership exemplifies the

SOFTWARE WITH DYNAMICS collaborating with Vicinity Software power of innovative solutions and
365 BUSINESS CENTRAL to further enhance their solution: dedicated support. Vicinity's ability
• Enhanced Functionality: • Automated Scheduling: to customize the MRP process
The combined solution offers The goal is to achieve fully for Mayco Colors' unique needs,
robust production planning, automated production combined with the insightful
inventory control, and scheduling, where prioritized SONAR reporting system, has
reporting capabilities. work orders are automatically streamlined operations and ensured
• Customization: Vicinity's generated based on real-time efficient inventory management.
team tailors the software to data. As Joyce, Plant Accounting
meet Mayco Colors' specific • Capacity Planning: Manager at Mayco Colors,
requirements, addressing their Integrating capacity planning highlights, the ongoing
unique industry needs. with scheduling will enable collaboration with Vicinity
• Expert Support: Vicinity's Mayco Colors to anticipate Software allows them to
ongoing support ensures potential bottlenecks and continuously evolve and adapt
Mayco Colors can leverage proactively adjust processes to their system.
the system's full potential and ensure smooth production flow. This future-proof approach
adapt it to its evolving needs. ensures Mayco Colors can meet the
ever-changing demands of the art
and craft industry. 

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

How Digitalization Enhances Worker Safety and

Performance in Chemical Plants
The potential to dramatically reduce operational risks suggests safety should be a key component of digital
transformation initiatives.

By Ken Naughton, James Franklin

 Digital transformation initiatives to avoid safety incidents—even as processing operations can use
are often built around specific they balance project timelines and digitalization to enhance employee
performance-improvement goals, productivity levels. Industry leaders safety and performance.
such as productivity, supply chain must implement to achieve this
optimization and sustainability. proper alignment and prioritize 1. REAL-TIME VISIBILITY

Safety is often viewed as an safety throughout projects. Nobody wants worksite hazards
added benefit or an afterthought By understanding how real-time to escalate into significant
in digitalization plans. However, data can transform plant safety, safety issues. Best practices call
the inherent dangers of chemical chemical processing organizations for chemical plants to provide
process plants suggest that shouldn’t can reduce risks, while benefiting clearly marked guidelines and
be the case. from increased efficiencies regulations, along with the
Chemical owners, operators throughout their plants. proper protective equipment
and managers must always strive Here are three ways chemical for workers. In addition, regular

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

machine maintenance is critical to decrease time to safety. With the right automation tools,
advancing a high level of safety. leaders can monitor productivity
What if a plant doesn’t have 2. INFORMED DECISION-MAKING levels among workers and track
visibility into productivity metrics, Manual tracking of employees can project completion against set
safety compliance and equipment make it difficult to find workers timelines. Case in point: Resourcing
management? in the event of an emergency, issues such as the availability
Automation tools like cloud- especially on a large work site. of skilled labor, equipment and
based software and wearables can With digital automation, materials on site are identified early,
deliver real-time visibility. One project owners and management allowing for proactive resolution.
example is an intrinsically safe have real-time visibility of who is This helps to minimize delays and
clip-on wearable that can provide on site and can gain insight into costly mistakes and ultimately
the real-time location of workers, contractor fatigue and equipment increases productivity—plus ensures
a personalized evacuation alarm, usage. Using this data, operators a safer working environment.
RFID turnstile access and a lone can make informed decisions Proof-of-presence software can
worker push-button. The push on how to schedule and utilize capture in/out times for everyone
button could be used if a worker is workers experiencing higher at a facility. It also can log the
trapped in a confined space to alert fatigue rates than others, reducing skill level of everyone coming
the EHS crew of their situation. the risk of an incident. onto the site to help optimize
With IIoT wearables, sensors In this case, software tools employee utilization. For example,
collect data and transmit it into provide fatigue dashboards and having real-time visibility of the
cloud-based software across a an alerting system so plants know skill level of workers coming into
standalone network, independent which contractors are nearing a plant can help organizations
of the facility’s internal IT or reaching their limit for hours proactively ensure they have the
infrastructure. From there, the worked. Operations teams can set correct resources onsite to complete
operations team can access alerts for daily thresholds (such as the planned work for the day or
real-time data about the work 14 consecutive hours on site) and shift. With that visibility, they
happening on their site. consecutive day thresholds where also can eliminate excess workers
With the right tools, chemical you are alerted (such as on day 14). if a contractor has sent too many
operators can know the location of workers to the job.
their personnel to reduce muster 3. SAVE TIME AND COST In addition, automation provides
time and ensure they’re complying We can all agree adopting and in-depth visibility into worker
with safety regulations. Also, by implementing the right automation time on site and equipment use
tracking employees, contractors tools can support job site safety. But to help eliminate overbilling from
and equipment utilization digitally, what about the bonus of streamlined contractor teams.
project owners and managers can management decision-making and Without automation, this is
eliminate safety blind spots and improved business processes? not just a productivity issue but

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

a safety, cost and compliance and consolidating the data into IIoT sensors that collect and
one. If chemical plant operators a centralized platform can be transmit data into cloud-based
don’t know who is on site and challenging, especially when dealing software. They may also use plant
when, they can’t ensure they’re with legacy systems. Cybersecurity cameras for automation to spot
adhering to safety standards. This concerns mean any new solution safety and compliance violations.
is particularly dangerous if they must ensure sensitive data is safe The right automation tools can
can’t validate hours worked or an from unauthorized access. help improve safety in the chemical
individual’s skill qualifications However, chemical operators industry by:
during a high-risk overtime and who lean into powerful • Reducing the risk of accidents
double-time situation, like a automation tools can access the caused by human error
shutdown, turnaround or outage. insights and capabilities to keep • Improving process efficiency
workers safe on the job site and and control
ACHIEVING SAFETY FIRST mitigate emergencies. • Enhancing monitoring and
THROUGH AUTOMATION Broadly examined, automation control
Many chemical processing in the chemical industry comes • Reducing human exposure to
organizations have complex systems in many shapes and forms. Plants hazards
and equipment, generating a may use robotics to handle • Facilitating safety training and
vast amount of data. Integrating hazardous materials or wearable compliance

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

Undoubtedly, human error need to get people and processes on

is one of the primary causes of board is at the root of many failed
accidents in the chemical industry. digital projects.
Automation systems help reduce Putting safety first. Adopting
the risk of human error by taking the right automation tools. Driving
over tasks that are repetitive, implementation. These are all keys
monotonous, or require a high level to productivity, reliability, and
of accuracy. profitability. But mainly, it helps
While digitization has many chemical operators keep employee
James Franklin, CEO, Triax
benefits, real-time monitoring and safety front and center to guide Technologies

control of chemical processes can be priorities and decision-making in James Franklin is the CEO at Triax
a game-changer. It allows operators the industry.  Technologies. James has more than
20 years in technology leadership
to quickly detect and respond to experience with market leaders, such
as Oracle, HP and Accenture. He
potential safety hazards. previously worked at Omnilink, where
For example, sensors and software he started and led their commercial
location-based services business.
can automate evacuation procedures
to reduce time to safety and
prioritize rescue and remediation.
Connecting and communicating
with emergency personnel
quickly means management can
automatically locate workers
and facilitate a faster muster and Ken Naughton, President,
Management Controls
evacuation time.
Ken Naughton has expertise on
When chemical leaders fully
the challenges of contract work
understand these technologies management and is currently the
president of Management Controls. He
and their capabilities, they are has been with MCi since April of 2011,
previously holding the positions vice
more likely to drive adoption and
president of consulting services and
implementation on-site. When they chief operating officer. Ken has over
25 years of oil and gas experience.
can strategically implement these Before his time with MCi, Ken was an
tools, they can drive operational executive in Accenture's energy and
chemicals practice.
excellence. However, ignoring the

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

Digitalization Meets Sustainability in the

Chemical Industry
How process plants are leveraging IoT, business intelligence and data modeling to deliver on their
environmental goals.

By Jonathan Katz

 In an era where decarbonization also are playing an integral role in accelerating adoption of these
and digitalization are increasingly the growth of emerging chemical solutions. In many cases, chemical
recognized as pivotal forces sectors like plastics recycling. producers have little choice. A case
shaping industries, the chemical Quantafuel, a Danish subsidiary in point is the U.S. Environmental
sector stands at a critical junction. of Viridor, specializes in converting Protection Agency’s updated
Dow's $67 billion ethylene project post-consumer plastic waste hazardous air pollution standards
exemplifies this convergence, into valuable feedstocks. The for synthetic organic chemicals.
demonstrating how digitalization company has embarked on a major According to EPA estimates, the
is not only enhancing operational digitalization initiative to ensure industry can expect to pay about $1.8
efficiency but also facilitating traceability and drive efficiency in a billion over 15 years to comply with
sustainability goals. competitive market. the standard. To optimize resources
Meanwhile, companies like The chemical industry, known and minimize costs, facilities will
Exxon Mobil are strengthening for its cautious approach to likely need to further integrate
their commitments to open embracing interconnected sensing technologies with business
automation. Digital technologies technologies, is increasingly intelligence and enterprise systems.

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

UNDERSTANDING DATA VIA Forum goals for interoperability fully commission a DCN in our
OPEN PROCESS AUTOMATION and portability. testbed using orchestration script
The movement is a major shift of The OPA Forum is a group to safely deploy and run embedded
thinking for an industry that has, at of end users, system integrators, control code. We never have to say
times, been resistant to change. One suppliers, academia and standards ‘no’ to a project now because this kit
of the major struggles for chemical organizations focused on can do it.”
manufacturers isn’t so much developing a standards-based, Another factor in the
accessing the data but being able open, secure, interoperable process interoperability equation is data
to make sense of it with so many control architecture. modeling. This is the sustainability
different systems in place speaking Exxon Mobil’s version is about target. Data modeling is a process
different languages. to be deployed for operations. for standardizing data collection
“They (chemical companies) like The company has been testing the and contextualizing it with various
the idea of doing more with data, system for about two years at a identifiers, such as time-series
but they don't know necessarily chemical facility in Baton Rouge, data, events or 3D models of a
where to begin, and they don't Louisiana, says Ryan Smeltzer, plant or equipment.
have the right technologies in automation program manager, Quantafuel partnered with
the right place to do that,” says Exxon Mobil Technology and data-modeling software company
Gregory Tink, director of digital Engineering Company. Cognite to develop a platform
transformation consulting for Exxon Mobil’s OPA project is in for its digitalization project
industrial automation provider the engineering and staging phases, at its production facility in
Schneider Electric. writes Jim Montague, executive Skive, Denmark. The facility
This is where standards, editor of Control Global, a magazine processes mixed plastics waste
interoperability and integration published by CP parent company and turns it into pyrolysis oil
become critical. Technology Endeavor Business Media. that it ships to BASF for use in
vendors, such as Schneider As Dave DeBari, OPA technical BASF’s ChemCycling chemical
Electric, have been working to team leader at Exxon Mobil and recycling project. It’s a continuous
develop open automation standards co-chair of OPAF’s application processing plant similar to an oil
that enable more communication portability subcommittee, explains and gas facility.
between systems. Earlier this year, in the Control Global article: Quantafuel wanted to analyze
Schneider Electric announced “Open process systems unlock its chemical recycling process
the release of a distributed value by decoupling and separating and monitor its operational CO2
control node software framework software from hardware to allow emissions in near-real time. But the
developed in collaboration with better real-time control and data the company needed existed in
Intel and software company Red performance. This is technology we a wide range of formats from various
Hat. The framework is aligned with can set up and use today because it systems. Much of what the company
Open Process Automation (OPA) only takes 18 minutes to set up and is collecting at the plant is time-

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

series data, says Thomas Lier-Nilsen, models provide a type of “dictionary,” or baseline data set to work with,
Quantafuel’s operations manager. explains John Harrington, chief product officer at HighByte, for an article in
“We have a lot of valves opening Smart Industry, also published by Endeavor Business Media. HighByte is a
and closing, and we have a lot of provider of a data-modeling platform called the Intelligence Hub.
motors and pumps starting and For Quantafuel, having consistency and uniformity across different
stopping,” he explains. “To live systems, application and processes was critical for tracking emissions and
stream all that data, that was really developing its “bill of sustainability.” This is a document similar to a bill
a challenge.” of lading that provides information on the amount of plastic waste the
The company launched the company produces and the corresponding CO2 profile (Figure 1).
initiative in 2021 to extract data
from various programs, such as
its MES and SCADA system,
and make that operational data
available across the company, says
Thomas Lier-Nilsen, Quantafuel’s
operations manager.

DATA MODELING OFFERS

BASELINE INFORMATION

Quantafuel conducted the project

in phases. The first phase involved
collecting data from the SCADA
system, contextualizing it within
the Cognite data-modeling
platform and then connecting it to
a data-analytics system. In phase
two of the project, Quantafuel
began collecting MES data, which
includes the types of plastic, how
much it collected, when it arrived
at the plant and how much oil it
loaded onto trucks.
Data modeling is a way of
standardizing raw data using
Figure 1: Quantafuel has developed a bill of sustainability. This is a document similar
common attributes for a particular
to a bill of lading that provides information on the amount of plastic waste the
event or instance. These standardized company produces and the corresponding CO2 profile.

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

“Going forward, we might need and look at the graphs. And then, digitalization throughout the entire
to compete for this plastic," Lier- we can see, for example, that the design plan for the plant.
Nilsen explains. "Good traceability composition of the electricity “When we look at the facility,
will be a competitive advantage." is fairly stable. You can then do we’re trying to understand how we
The bill of sustainability allows the calculations to get one final curve.” digitize the facility from the start,
company to provide a report in near so that we can get to this track
real-time to customers and suppliers. EMBEDDING DIGITALIZATION and trace of emissions and being
“We weren’t able to do that TO DRIVE SUSTAINABILITY able to audit and verify and assure
earlier,” Lier-Nilsen says. Dow’s ethylene project in Fort that those emissions are tallied
“That's more event-type of data,” Saskatchewan, Alberta, Canada, correctly,” Bardin said during his
Lier-Nilsen says. “Putting it together represents another instance of presentation.
was really useful for us seeing the digitalization converging with Part of the carbon-tracking
different performance (variables) in sustainability. The plant, which will challenge is identifying emissions
the operation of the plant.” produce and supply approximately monitoring systems that can
Having standardized data has 3.2 million metric tons of integrate between the process control
also helped Quantafuel measure and polyethylene and ethylene, is part of system and the ERP, Bardin says.
track its emissions more effectively. the company’s Path2Zero initiative “We want to find unified tools
For example, the company uses to reach carbon neutrality by 2050. that will allow us to have easier
analyzers on all the major CO2 Billy Bardin, Dow’s global global visibility than we have
emission points to continuously climate transition director, discussed today,” he told Chemical Processing
measure all of its emissions. during the ARC Advisory Group following the panel discussion.
Lier-Nilsen describes the Forum in Orlando on Feb. 7 “We have global visibility today,
data-modeling platform as a type how the company is embedding but there’s still a lot of manual
of “operating room” where the
operations team can look at trends
and export the data from the three
analyzers into a spreadsheet. They
can drill down into individual assets
within the plant and view time-
series data based on predefined rules.
“That sort of channel of live
operational data just streams in, and
we can browse them by tag,” Lier
Nilsen says. “Then, we can say, ‘Give
me these three analyzers and the
gas and the electricity consumption’

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 CHEMICAL PROCESSING: SPECIAL REPORT

intervention, so we’re looking for “We are now looking at

capabilities that integrate across individuals that have experience in
the stack.” data science and architecture with
Bardin stressed the importance environmental background,” Bardin
of ensuring that these systems told ARC attendees. “We're growing
seamlessly exchange data across some of those internally.” 
different platforms. This flexibility is
crucial to avoid reliance on a single
vendor for a comprehensive solution
– from ERP to control-room
operations. The systems should
facilitate easy communication
with one or two other platforms,
enabling efficient data transfer to a
cloud environment for analysis and
monitoring, he says.
Jonathan Katz, Executive Editor
Enabling sustainability through
digitalization also requires Jonathan Katz, executive editor, brings
nearly two decades of experience as a
close collaboration between an B2B journalist to Chemical Processing
magazine. He has expertise on a
organization’s environmental
wide range of industrial topics. Jon
team and the IT or digital- previously served as the managing
editor for IndustryWeek magazine and,
transformation unit, remarked most recently, as a freelance writer
Nathalie Marcotte, senior vice specializing in content marketing for
the manufacturing sector.
president and president of process
His knowledge areas include
automation for Schneider Electric, industrial safety, environmental
during the same session that Bardin compliance/sustainability, lean
manufacturing/continuous
participated in. This alignment improvement, Industry 4.0/
automation and many other topics
makes sustainability data more
of interest to the Chemical Processing
available across the organization, so audience.

everyone feels like they’re a part of When he’s not working, Jon enjoys
fishing, hiking and music, including a
the journey, Marcotte said.
small but growing vinyl collection.
Dow, for example, has begun
Jon resides in the Cleveland, Ohio, area.
looking at individuals who have
technology and environmental
experience.

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