Project/services industries performance

Economy of time and resources dictate using the smallest sized faciHty possible to assure that projected larger scale performance is within tolerable levels of risk and uncertainty. Minimum sizes of such laboratory and pilot units often are set by operabiHty factors not directly involving internal reactor features. These include feed and product transfer line diameters, inventory control in feed and product separation systems, and preheat and temperature maintenance requirements. Most of these extraneous factors favor large units. Large industrial plants can be operated with high service factors for years, whereas it is not unusual for pilot units to operate at sustained conditions for only days or even hours. 

It is interesting, therefore, to note that the second highest performance score is recorded by the Project/Services grouping, which is by far the least frequent user of operations and production tools and techniques. One of the reasons for this may be that the Media Entertainment industry sector reported, as one of its clear objectives, the desire to discover unique products and to reposition strategically rather than to just focus on operational improvement (see Table 7.6) and it was in the strategic impact on the firm that this function reported the highest performance satisfaction score (0.92). This perhaps indicates that, while the Media Entertainment sector may not use function level tools and techniques as often as other industry sectors, when it does choose to use tools and techniques to assist strategic differentiation it is broadly satisfied with the outcome. 

Another impetus to expansion of this field was the advent of World War 11 and the development of the atomic bomb. The desired isotope of uranium, in the form of UF was prepared by a gaseous diffusion separation process of the mixed isotopes (see Fluorine). UF is extremely reactive and required contact with inert organic materials as process seals and greases. The wartime Manhattan Project successfully developed a family of stable materials for UF service. These early materials later evolved into the current fluorochemical and fluoropolymer materials industry. A detailed description of the fluorine research performed on the Manhattan Project has been pubUshed (2). 

At Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico the Analytical Chemistry Group (C-AAC) supports the Pu-238 Heat Source Project that fabricates heat sources for use in the space industry. These heat sources have been used on NASA s deep-space probes and on instruments exploring the surface of Mars. The chemical and isotopic purity of the heat sources are critically controlled to ensure dependable service. The Radiochemistry Task Area performs analyses of the heat source material for four radioisotopes americium-241, plutonium-238, neptunium-237, and uranium-235. 

Many companies that do industrial research on catalysis choose not to make their own catalysts. Catalyst preparation and marketing is a specialty chemical, high technical service business. Manufacturers are under pressure to make their catalysts more active, more selective, and with a greater cost performance and lifetime than those of their competitors. Development of a new catalyst or process historically has taken many years (5-10) which is a disadvantage in project economics. The overall catalyst business is expanding and catalyst life is finite. The challenge is to make a cost-effective product with a sufficiently high rate of return on investment. 

I want to express my gratitude to FMC Corporation and its Director of Engineering Services, Bill Wakefield, for their cooperation and patience during the last three years. In supporting the publication of this book, they have reaffirmed their commitment to the CICE guideline of sharing project execution infonnation in order to enhance the performance of the entire construction industry. 

CIRIA works with the construction industry, government and academia to provide performance improvement products and services in the construction and related industries and currently engages with around 700 subscribing organizations. Activities include collaborative projects, networking, publishing, workshops, seminars and conferences. Each year CIRIA runs about 40 projects, holds over 90 events and publish 25 best practice guides. 

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