Largest Canadian ethanol producer wins Emerson Reliability Award for reducing carbon footprint, nearly doubling production
Ethanol Greenfield Quebec site prioritizes reliability as path to Top Quartile performance
AUSTIN, Texas -- October 28, 2016
Ethanol Greenfield’s Varennes, Quebec site won the 2016 Reliability Program of the Year at the Emerson Global Users Exchange in Austin. The site converts corn into fuel-grade ethanol, distillers grains, carbon dioxide, and corn oil.
Since their reliability program began in 2007, Ethanol Greenfield has achieved an 80 percent increase in production, a 26 percent reduction in energy costs, and less than one percent unplanned downtime. All of these gains came with only a 14 percent increase in maintenance costs.
“It all begins with culture. It has to be in the DNA of the plant. You want all of your people to be engaged in reliability,” said Mathieu Fyfe-Leblanc, Ethanol Greenfield’s reliability specialist. “At the end, what you’re looking for is to get your asset available when needed and get the performance they are designed for, in a cost-effective manner.”
Key elements of Ethanol Greenfield’s reliability program included requirements for external reliability training, cross-training within their organization, assorted asset and unit monitoring programs, a standardized process for maintenance tools, and the adoption of failure and root-cause analyses.
“Best-in-class organizations find ways to prioritize their reliability program as a lever to improve profitability, drive continuous improvement, and strive for Top Quartile performance. Regardless of maintenance budgets or personnel size, organizations like Ethanol Greenfield make reliability a true organizational culture,” said Nathan Pettus, vice president of reliability solutions, Emerson Automation Solutions.
Emerson’s Reliability Program of the Year recognizes specific sites and reliability teams that are continually improving their reliability culture and programs. This year’s other finalists were the Bristol-Myers Squibb site in Devens, Mass. and CMC Steel in Cayce, South Carolina.
Contact bruce.hawkins@emerson.com for information on submitting for next year’s Reliability Program of the Year.
About Emerson
Emerson (NYSE: EMR), headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri (USA), is a global technology and engineering company providing innovative solutions for customers in industrial, commercial, and residential markets. Our Emerson Automation Solutions business helps process, hybrid, and discrete manufacturers maximize production, protect personnel and the environment while optimizing their energy and operating costs. Our Emerson Commercial and Residential Solutions business helps ensure human comfort and health, protect food quality and safety, advance energy efficiency, and create sustainable infrastructure. For more information, visit Emerson.com.
