As U.S. refiners and petrochemical manufacturers strive for zero injuries and incidents, we at AFPM utilize every tool possible to ensure the safety of our workers and communities — including adopting innovative and cutting-edge technologies.
AFPM Abby Esterly
AFPM’s Abby Esterly demonstrates immersive learning training on how to start a fired heater from a cold start. This VR training allows participants to fail safely and gain experience in a controlled setting.
From smart helmets to VR training modules, our industries continually seek out and deploy new technologies to keep our employees safe.
Marathon’s smart helmet enables workers to engage in real-time video communication with offsite users, which facilitates collaboration, troubleshooting and training. The remote capabilities of the helmet also came in handy during the pandemic, when Marathon was able to use the technology to give EPA officials a virtual tour of its Lansing, Michigan terminal when the EPA was not yet authorizing travel due to COVID-19 restrictions.
Investments in safety technology also help us identify potential safety issues before they emerge. INEOS, for example, uses an advanced ultrasonic device to locate compressed air and control air leaks at distances of over 50 meters, helping to reduce safety risks to workers by immediately determining whether a leak is safely accessible. And Phillips 66’s new Advanced Integrated Mechanical Integrity project is aiding refineries in finding corrosion threats even earlier by systematically standardizing and digitizing design and process information to improve inspection planning, communication across operating groups and access to information. This process also links corrosion threats to specific equipment while sharing that information with appropriate personnel across an entire site.
Chevron, meanwhile, has added a robotic dog called Spot 2.0 to its roster of breakthrough technology tools. Using its embedded camera, Spot 2.0 conducts facility scans and routine operator duties at Chevron’s El Segundo Refinery in California, sharing visual data with colleagues in real-time and supporting the facility’s larger efforts to enhance safety, environmental stewardship and operational efficiency.
Given that our industries are both complex and safe, technology also offers opportunities to solve a longstanding training dilemma — training employees for complicated tasks that rarely, if ever, occur. ExxonMobil, for example, worked with eight local IT firms in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to develop VR training modules for its Polypropylene Growth Project, which allows operators to safely practice critical tasks like hazard identification and the appropriate emergency response.
AFPM’s Immersive Learning Committee is creating similar custom-designed multimedia and cutting-edge educational content for the industry at large. The committee’s first Immersive Learning VR project involved a simulation of how to start a fired heater from a cold start. This is an infrequent task that nonetheless needs to be done properly to maintain safety, making it the kind of "low-frequency, high-consequence" training that lends itself to VR.
As safety technologies advance, refiners and petrochemical manufacturers will continue to invest as part of their fundamental commitment to safety excellence.
For more information, visit afpm.org
