Tuesday, 17 October, 8:30 - 10:00

Hurricane Katrina's Effects on the ConocoPhillips Alliance Refinery

Peter M. Batey, refinery manager at the Alliance Refinery for ConocoPhillips, will discuss the extensive 235 day recovery process to regain full operations of the refinery and the many challenges faced by hundreds of employees and people in the area. He will also share a very important lesson learned during the recovery of Hurricane Katrina, and his refinery plans for the future. This will be a rare opportunity to hear an "on the ground" success story, and take away some proven tactics for the challenges you may be facing.

As Batey says, "We faced an unbelievable combination of unique challenges in trying to recover from the damage Katrina caused. Things you take for granted like communications, transportation, and accommodations became huge stumbling blocks in our recovery efforts. There's no training for the combination of challenges that we faced."

Reconnecting all of the instrumentation systems and repairing the physical damage caused by the storm was crucial in the months after Katrina, and Batey will recall an important lesson learned during that time. "As a manager of a facility, never underestimate the drive of employees and loyal contractors to really commit themselves to rebuilding. Hundreds of people, whose own homes had been destroyed, chose to work hours on end to reestablish refinery operations. They could have been home, waiting for their insurance claims, but they were here, working hard every day to bring this refinery back," he said.
 
Batey began his career with the company in 1974 at the Humber refinery in England as a process engineer. In 1976, he moved to Ponca City, Okla. to work in the engineering headquarters. Between 1976 and 1983, Batey occupied various process engineering positions in Ponca City and at the Humber refinery. He was appointed to the lead design team for the fluid cat cracker unit at Humber, which was successfully commissioned in March of 1986. He was operations superintendent at the Lake Charles refinery until 1990, when he relocated to Houston as director of operations planning for the four Conoco U.S. refineries. In 1991, he became the production manager for the Billings refinery in Montana and was named chief operating officer at the Melaka refinery in Malaysia in 1996. After the merger of ConocoPhillips in 2002, Batey managed the Trainer refinery in Pennsylvania.

Wednesday, 18 October, 9:00 - 10:00

SAFETY IN THE PROCESS INDUSTRIES - EQUIPMENT & PROCEDURES THAT CANNOT DO WHAT WE WANT

Process industries in the western world are now some 40 years into formal programs and record keeping with respect to safety, lost time accidents, explosions, and fires. Much progress has been made; but many more and varied processes are now operating.

Engineers are sometimes surprised to find that equipment, including instrumentation, just doesn't do what they had envisioned. It may be because the designer is defying the laws of science; but more often, it is due to the designer not being aware of some feature of the plant and/or process.

Key to the effectiveness of accident prevention and safety procedures is the attitude and diligence of top management. Plants can produce for years with slowly decaying interest in safety programs and spending on proper maintenance or upgrades. Often associated with perceived cost savings are insufficient training and inspections. Industry seems to learn of such lapses time and again in the course of a costly accident investigation.

Such topics along with a half-century of accident investigations are part of the vast experiences which will support the 2006 Rimbach Lecture. A number of examples covering various operations will be cited. 

Recognized as a worldwide expert on process safety, Dr. Trevor Kletz is the author of eleven books, including the multi-million dollar seller, What Went Wrong? Case Studies of Process Plant Disasters. Kletz's work includes studies of human error, accident case histories and investigations, hazards of modifications, and hazards of computer control.

The Rimbach Lecture is made possible due to the generosity of the Rimbach family. Honoring Richard Rimbach, long considered the Father of ISA for his lifetime service to the industry and for his leadership in founding the Society, the Rimbach Lecture Series reflects Rimbach's vision in technology advances, training, and motivation.

Thursday, 19 October, 9:00 - 10:00

Dick's Last Retort

Back by popular demand, this irreverent and thought-provoking look at technology, government, regulation, and innovation, is guaranteed to stimulate and entertain.

Morley and his panel will cogitate such weighty issues as the flight of jobs, innovation, and commitment; global warming; government regulation and it's impact on technological development; the illusion of freedom; and whether every president is an idiot. Standing room only the last time it was offered, this discussion is a "can't miss" event. 

Moderator: Dick Morley
Best known as the father of the PLC, Morley is the leading visionary in the field of advanced technological development. He is also an entrepreneur whose consistent successes in the founding of high technology companies has been demonstrated through more than three decades of revolutionary achievements. He holds more than twenty US and foreign patents, including those for the parallel inference machine, the hand-held terminal, the PLC, and magnetic thin film. As an inventor, author, consultant and engineer Dick Morley has provided the R&D community with world changing innovations.

Panelists:
Avi Nelson received a bachelor's degree from Yale in electrical engineering, an MBA from Cornell, and a Master of Science degree in applied physics from Harvard. His first job was as an R&D engineer in high-powered microwave tubes at Raytheon, but he has been a political analyst and commentator in Boston since 1973. Avi has hosted his own television programs, and currently appears regularly as an analyst on a New England news program. At the national level Avi was an advocate on the PBS series "The Advocates," moderated by Mike Dukakis, and was a panelist on the PBS series "The Constitution, That Delicate Balance."

Dr. Joel N. Orr is a futurist, speaker, and writer, specializing in engineering automation and computer technologies. He is part of Cyon Research Corporation, a publishing and consulting firm. Orr was also co-founder and president of the NCGA (National Computer Graphics Association) and president of the Virtual Worlds Society. Many Fortune 500 manufacturers see Dr. Orr as a major resource in the areas of business restructuring, automation, and the future of technology. He counts among his clients Ford, IBM, Chrysler, Lockheed, Xerox, Apple, General Foods, Dow Corning; Becton-Dickinson, US Surgical, the US Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force, and Army, NASA, government agencies in several countries, and many other organizations.  Dr. Orr's PhD is in abstract math, from SUNY, he's listed in "Who's Who," and is an internationally recognized speaker.

Shari Worthington is President of Telesian Technology Inc., a firm providing marketing and Web development services to the manufacturing industries.  A scientist turned engineer turned marketer, Worthington's specialty is real-time computing in laboratory and manufacturing applications. She holds a BS in biology and psychology from St. Lawrence University, an MA in psychology from Framingham State College, and an MBA in marketing from Babson College. Worthington has spent thousands of hours analyzing the latest and greatest technologies offered by the Net. This, combined with 25 years of experience in industrial and technology marketing, has established her as an expert in innovative business practices, both online and off. Worthington is an international speaker on the topics of e-business, guerilla marketing.