By the time he graduated from the University of Wisconsin with three degrees, Jim Hillier said he had thoroughly been bitten by the petrochemical and polymer bug. But it almost wasn't so. Hillier, site manager of the LyondellBasell Clinton, Iowa, Complex, began studying chemical engineering, and within a few years, he was certain he would enter a career in biomedical engineering. However, that changed after he attended a career fair and met with LyondellBasell representatives.
"I was impressed with the drive and passion they had in describing the roles and responsibilities of their jobs," he said.
Hillier completed four terms as a co-op engineer for the company's Morris, Illinois, facility by graduation. By then, he knew what he wanted to do, and following graduation, he started working full-time in production engineering at the LyondellBasell Morris facility, where he had interned.
Through LyondellBasell's engineering rotation program, Hillier was able to take on subsequent assignments at the Fairport Harbor, Ohio, and Clinton, Iowa, sites. He credits this program for broadening his career horizons and exposing hi
m to nontraditional engineering roles, such as supply chain, commercial and finance.
Since 2017, Hillier has led the LyondellBasell Clinton Complex, which is celebrating its 50th year of operation this year. The complex began as a $60 million investment by the City of Clinton -- the largest industrial municipal bond at that time in the U.S. -- and has evolved into one of the most successful petrochemical facilities in the Midwest.
"In many ways, moving to Clinton last year was like coming back home for me," Hillier said. "I was an engineer at the site from 2004-2007 and credit the individuals at the site with coaching and mentoring me during some of my most formative years."
Hillier also holds responsibility for the Global Technical Learning Solutions group at the corporate level, which is a group focused on standardization, consistency, and best practices to identify, design, build and deliver innovative technical learning solutions to the manufacturing workforce.
Employees: The foundation of success
At the Clinton Complex, being safe is always the No. 1 goal.
"The employees of the Clinton site are the foundation upon which our success is built," Hillier said. "There exists a deep culture of challenging the status quo -- individuals at all levels of the organization help drive continuous improvement and take ownership and accountability for results."
That drive and accountability have led to widespread recognition of the facility's health, safety and environmental performance. The site was recently honored with the Elite Gold Safety Award by AFPM, representing the top 1 percent of the industry. The Clinton Complex is also a proud leader in the OSHA Voluntary Protection Program. There are six contractor companies at the Clinton site that have also achieved this distinction -- the most in the state of Iowa -- and were awarded the Star among Stars Award for 2017.
Hillier added that, besides the traditional process safety management excellence programs, experiential learning, mechanical integrity and behavioral-based safety, the complex has advanced a number of corporate initiatives that focus on human factors and performance.
Employees at the Clinton Complex don't just take responsibility at the workplace; they are known for being driven in helping their community. In 2017, the employees at the Clinton site contributed more than $170,000 to the United Way of Clinton County -- 30 percent of their operating budget. In addition, the site provided more than $50,000 in community grants to local organizations. However, according to Hillier, giving back to the community doesn't stop with financial donations.
"We're proud of the way in which our folks contribute their time -- thousands of hours -- through many organizations, including Junior Achievement, Habitat for Humanity, Enviro Kids and numerous boards for charitable organizations," Hillier said.
He added in 2016, the site received the Clinton Regional Development Corp. Impact of the Year Award, recognizing the many different aspects in which the people at the Clinton site supported their community.
Lyondell's Clinton, Iowa, Complex
One Clinton Center and growth
Before this year, the most recent expansion of the Clinton Complex, Hillier said, was a 100-million-pound-per-year debottleneck in 2013.
Earlier this year, however, the Clinton Complex completed a new state-of-theart operational center on-site called One Clinton Center (OCC), combining a centralized control room, lab, maintenance, engineering, training, administration, and health and wellness functions.
"The OCC is the culmination of a nearly $50 million investment to fundamentally change the operational efficiency of the site, and we're very excited to see the potential that it unlocks in the future," Hillier said.
The 85,000-square-foot building contains more than 13 miles of wire and cable and the newest technology, but more importantly, it combines what was previously 15 separate workgroups under one roof, he added. This allows employees to work and interact with one another more directly.
Beyond Clinton, LyondellBasell is currently working on its most ambitious organic growth campaign in company history, Hillier noted. In La Porte, Texas, a new $725 million Hyperzone high-density polyethylene plant is in the works that will come on line next year. In Channelview, Texas, the company is currently building the world's largest propylene oxide/tertiary butyl alcohol (PO/TBA) plant, a $2.4 billion project that is the single biggest capital project in LyondellBasell's history.
Additionally, studies are currently taking place to build new plants in the U.S. and Europe between 2022-2025.
Looking to the future
Hillier said he sees the progression of the global and circular economy as a core element in the future of the industry.
"Free and fair trade will be critical to competitiveness in a global marketplace, and as technology continues to improve both processes and products, we need to focus on advancing solutions to global problems with sustainable outcomes," he said. "Globally, there are several large trends that are providing tailwinds for our entire industry. First, the shale revolution has allowed U.S.-based production facilities to capitalize on ample supplies of nearby and affordable feedstocks."
Second, he said, evolving consumer preferences are driving up demand for many of the facility's most common products.
To better prepare for the future, LyondellBasell works to educate policy decision- makers and general stakeholders about the importance of the chemical industry in the U.S. The company also advocates for government resources to train and equip American workers for the skills they need to participate in an increasingly technical workforce, Hillier said.
At the state level, the company advocates to ensure state tax systems are fair and equitable for industry and promote economic investment, job creation and global competitiveness.
Hillier said the Clinton Complex works to prepare for the workforce of the future through strategic workforce planning, talent development and technical tools such as the technology and knowledge management platform coupled with the company's operational excellence management system.
"We look to equip our new generation of the workforce to build on our successes and learn from our failures while recognizing the unique characteristics of the different generations," he said.
LyondellBasell Clinton Complex
3400 Anamosa Road
Clinton, Iowa 52732
(563) 243-5500
www.lyondellbasell.com
Employees: 442 employees and contractors
Products: Ethylene and propylene, polyethylene, plexar tie-layer resins.
Size: 239 acres