Honeywell helps BASF turn hazardous waste into clean energy

Honeywell Process Solutions (HPS) has announced that BASF has opened a state-of-the-art control room equipped with Honeywell Experion technology at its waste incineration complex in Ludwigshafen, Germany. The control room was officially inaugurated on 28 November 2017 by Dr Uwe Liebelt, president, BASF European Site and Verbund Management, and Vimal Kapur, president of HPS.

Honeywell redesigned the plant’s control room with BASF’s Industry 4.0 initiative in mind. Virtualisation technology delivers consolidated plant information to operators via eight large-screen Experion Orion Consoles, which also embed traditionally separate Microsoft Office desktop applications alongside the distributed control system. Two Experion Collaboration Stations enable BASF to run production meetings more efficiently by using real-time data and online documents.

As part of Honeywell’s Experion Process Knowledge System, 29 C300 controllers and 20,000 I/O modules facilitate plant-wide monitoring, improve safety and fire protection, and increase reliability. In addition, a new MediluX lighting system in the control room improves visual conditions for operators day and night, reducing eye strain and fatigue.

“This strategic project is a prime example of how Industry 4.0 is transforming industrial operations,” said Kapur. “Previously, BASF operators had to gather and piece together data to form a high-level view. Now, critical information is digitally consolidated and streamed onto central displays, transforming efficiency, productivity and decision-making.”

The plant’s six incinerators process hazardous waste that cannot be re-used or recycled and convert it into steam and electrical power. The clean, re-usable energy is channelled back into BASF’s production processes, helping the company save resources and reduce emissions.

“Thanks to excellent cooperation with Honeywell, our 60-year-old plant now has one of the most modern control rooms in the world,” said Dr Karin Flore, head of waste incineration, BASF.

The incineration plant serves more than 200 BASF production facilities within the company’s flagship, 10 km² production site as well as facilities outside the BASF complex. The reliability of the plant is critical to BASF’s wider production operations because any standstill could potentially affect the world’s largest chemical complex as a whole.