Date/Time
Date(s) - 12 December 2015
12:00 am
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EQUATE Petrochemical Company, Kuwait’s first international joint-venture in this industry, received the Innovation Technology Award, an international recognition from the Dow Chemical Company (Dow), for executing a project to clean the Ethylene Unit (EU) process equipment in less than 3 days.
The award-winning project, which was finalized in less than 65 hours, is the first of its kind achievement at plants evaluated by the Dow Tech Center. The EU cleaning attained savings of over USD 14 million while adhering to world-class industrial practices, especially in the Environment, Health & Safety (EH&S).
EQUATE President & CEO Mohammad Husain said, “This innovation-based project supports sustainability within the industrial sector to ensure overall progress. To EQUATE, this recognition is a source of encouragement for us to continue our journey towards excellence as ‘Partners in Success.’ As the first Kuwaiti organization to adopt Six Sigma methodology and Highly Reliable Organization (HRO) principles, EQUATE’s human capital have proven their innovative capabilities, admirable dedication and global achievements. Since launching our own Six Sigma program, we have certified over 180 project leaders who have executed more than 300 projects with savings exceeding USD 300 million.”
The successful EU process cleaning was executed during EQUATE’s world-record setting Turnaround (TA) in 2014. The TA was completed in 30 days for the units of EU, Polyethylene (PE), Ethylene Glycol (EG and Utilities, as well as the first stage of the PE debottlenecking project with the participation of over 12,000 employees and contractors. The EU has a production capacity of over 900,000 metric tons annually and it is one of two units operated by EQUATE.
The EU cleaning was based on a Six Sigma methodology, which is a set of techniques and tools for process improvement to deliver the best possible results while minimizing cost, time and effort. HRO is about overcoming all risks and challenges through the integrated reliability of the human capital, equipment and process to ensure overall success.
EQUATE is Kuwait’s first Responsible Care (RC) accredited and certified organization, which reflects its belief that safety and the environment are main priorities. EQUATE, by all standards, operates one of the safest manufacturing complexes in the world.
The first of their kind in Kuwait seawater-cooling towers were established by EQUATE to protect the marine life and water recycling on-site. In addition, EQUATE has launched many major initiatives, such as the Middle East’s first plant water recycle project and Kuwait’s first CO2 recovery project, as well as Energy Conservation and EQUATE Green programs.
In accordance with the requirements of RC, as well as ISO 9001 and ISO 14001, EQUATE upholds the highest standards of environmental, health, and safety practices in its operations. Safety for employees, suppliers, customers, and the community always comes first.
Established in 1995 as Kuwait’s first international joint-venture in this industry, EQUATE Petrochemical Company (EQUATE) embodies its “Partners in Success” slogan through the partnership between Petrochemical Industries Company (PIC), The Dow Chemical Company (Dow), Boubyan Petrochemical Company (BPC) and Qurain Petrochemical Industries Company (QPIC). Commencing production in 1997, EQUATE is currently the owner and single-operator of several fully integrated world-class petrochemical units, within the Greater EQUATE joint-venture, that annually produce over 5 million tons of the highest quality grades of Ethylene, Polyethylene (PE), Ethylene Glycol (EG), Polypropylene (PP), Styrene Monomer (SM), Paraxylene (PX), Heavy Aromatics (HA) and Benzene (BZ). The products are marketed throughout the Middle East, Asia, Africa and Europe. Alongside with being a leading industrial organization, EQUATE dedicates its utmost commitment and care to overall sustainability wherever it operates in cooperation with public and private bodies, including employees, the society and customers, in all relevant fields, such as human development, environment, education, health and public awareness. www.equate.com