PROJECT
PROFILES

Shell Norco Subsystems Project

This project won a 2004 ABC National Excellence In Construction Eagle Award and an ABC Bayou Chapter Award of Excellence.

Norco, Louisiana - No longer the relatively small chemical plant it was in the 1950s, Shell Norco in 2003 had become a 1,000-acre complex producing millions of pounds of ethylene and propylene, aromatic and olefin feedstocks and methyl ethyl ketone (MEK). Technology had changed enormously, and the huge plant needed a complete re-instrumentation to replace old-fashioned pneumatic instruments and controls with modern electronics and fiber optics.

ISC (ISC) mobilized in June, 2003, for the instrumentation and electrical work under an unusual “common bare cost, fee at risk” contract with a total value of $5.6 million. Working under the direction of Shell Global Solutions, ISC coordinated its activities with Shell Norco Operations and three other major contractors. The Automation Group (TAG) provided engineering and managed construction of the shutdown systems. Yokogawa engineered and managed construction of the controls, and Ford, Bacon & Davis did the mechanical work.

ISC’s work scope included multiple contracts with TAG and Yokogawa for installation of new Triconex protective instrument systems in the plant’s gasoline hydrotreater unit, butadiene unit and olefins units. In addition, ISC installed new compressor-speed and surge-control systems, replaced six recycle valves for three process compressors and added new vibration transducer systems and speed probes for five more compressors.

ISC replaced the plant’s Transmation thermocouple multiplexer system and installed oxygen analyzers on thirteen furnaces. Two new process analyzers were installed, and ISC upgraded and relocated the plant’s Bentley Nevada vibration and temperature monitoring systems.

ISC crews pulled thousands of feet of multi-conductor instrument cable and fiber-optic cable to link the plant’s many control rooms, installing countless field junction boxes with the capacity for future expansion. Altogether, ISC installed more than 385,100 feet of wire and cable in 78,000 feet of conduit and completed more than 28,000 terminations.

In addition, ISC associates installed a new UPS system in a prefabricated building and another UPS system in an existing motor control center. They installed more than 1,500 loops, tied in the new control systems with new distributed control system (DCS) equipment, and were responsible for all commissioning and startup work.

During the course of its work ISC coordinated its activities with several contractors at work on other projects and managed three important subcontracts, including Nolan Power Group’s UPS load testing, the civil work done by Cajun Contractors to place the new prefabricated UPS building, and all scaffolding done by Brand Scaffold. In spite of the substantial scope of these subcontracts, their value totaled less than 5% of ISC’s contract.

The workload was heavy throughout the 10-month life of the project. Prior to the turnaround, ISC associates worked six-day weeks. The schedule intensified to seven days per week during the 6-week turnaround. Once the turnaround was complete, ISC crews worked five-day weeks until the project was complete. An average of 75 ISC field associates worked on the project, investing more than 116,000 man-hours between June, 2003 and project completion in March, 2004.