Chemical industry future objectives

Whilst, in general terms, industry is in agreement with the objectives of the White Paper there is disagreement over implementation. The main concerns of industry centre on the cost, timescale and increased use of animals for the testing of existing substances, many of which have been used for 30 years or more without any obvious problems. Satisfactory resolution of the issues could have a significant impact on the future direction of the European chemical industry. 

The designer of a plant needs information about the availability of devices and unit operations. A market study executed by the Institut fur Mikrotechnik Mainz and YOLE Developpment [51] helps to make a first survey of commercially available devices. It also estimates future needs and objectives of the chemical industry and delivers a comparison between offered and required components (Figure 4.6). The providers of micro structured devices can deliver most of the components required by the chemical industry. On the other hand, there is a lack of separation devices but this is not fully transparent in Figure 4.6. Extraction devices are under represented and the important rectification units were not asked for by the interviewers, possibly because they hardly exist. 

In the context of the chemical industry, a project can range from initial research studies (on a new product or new route to an existing product) to a capital project costing many millions of pounds or dollars for the installation of a new production unit. The common ground is the ultimate objective of generating profit at some time in the future by the use of present resources (skilled manpower, money). Economic evaluation of a project involves the... 

Sustainability overall objective for human beings formulated by the United Nations in the 1990s is to ensure sustainable development for future generations chemical companies have already started to translate this objective into their industry practice with respects to products developed and sold, energy and natural resource efficiency in their processes, climate protection, corporate social responsibility for the workforce as well as stakeholders in production and consuming areas sustainability as an objective also already inspired operations research and supply chain literature (see for example Zhou et al. 2000 Al-Sharrah et al. 2002)... 

With pure or fundamental research the provision of commercial opportunities is, by its very nature, a long way into the future. However, in industry this is the final objective, no matter how far into the future, it is not science for the sake of science. This type of long-term work is uncommon in most chemical companies and at best only represents a very small fraction of total R D budgets, even in the largest companies. It is often contracted out or carried out in collaboration with research institutes and universities, these bodies finding that it provides them with a useful source of funding and indeed a new role in the economic welfare of a country. The time frames and measures of success are quite different from product oriented research and when carried out in industry requires special management skills. This will be dealt with in Section C on innovation and creativity. 

The mobilization activities tapered off after the Korean action and controls on chemicals were taken off. NPA was dissolved and the Commerce Department reorganized its commodity divisions with the object of furnishing a service to industry on a more normal peacetime basis. Inherent in the reorganization planning, however, was the idea that the new setup should serve as the nucleus for any future mobilization programs. Business and Defense Services Administration, as the new organization is called, includes 25 commodity divisions. The Chemical and Rubber Division is one of these. 

To meet the energy and development demands of the 21st century, process technology in the chemical processing industries must answer the call for new products and new facilities to produce them. Additionally, continued development of chemical processes will be required to meet environmental objectives. These include the recycling, reuse and disposal of waste materials using physical chemical principles, and a host of others to protect future generations. 

Once plastics olgects are registered in collections, the ovmer institution has a responsibility to preserve them for the future, until the end of their useful lifetime, when the object ceases to have either a recognizable physical form or loses its intended meaning (Bradley, 1994). Museums and other cultural institutions aim to preserve oljects for the enjoyment and education of the next generation, sometimes defined as a minimum of either 50 or 100 years. The definition of a useful lifetime as applied to cultural materiak is different to that traditionally used by the plastics industry, where a predetermined reduction in one or two physical or chemical properties associated with the material s performance is the sole deciding factor. Industrial plastics are designed and formulated to function for a predefined period (Table 1.2). 

The ACS has taken significant steps toward the development of a practical, technical foundation. The ACS standards need to be used in the development of future technology programs. Many of the objectives listed in the ACS s major categories are found in the body of this text. A report on the project. Foundations for Excellence in the Chemical Process Industries, can be obtained by writing to the American Chemical Society, 1155 Sixteenth Street NW, Washington, DC 20036 (202) 872-8734. The standards identified by the group for laboratory and process technicians follow. 

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