Siemens Announces 100th Alternative Fuels Plant Installation

ATLANTA — Today, Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc. announced its 100th alternative fuels plant installation in the United States.  The 100th U.S. installation was completed at the Center Ethanol plant in Sauget, Ill., and includes the Simatic® PCS 7 process control system. The plant has the capacity to produce 54 million gallons of ethanol and 172,000 tons of dry distiller grain annually.

Siemens has been a leader in alternative fuel technology well before the push to reduce the U.S. dependence on foreign oil hit full stride in 2007 with the passage of the Energy Independence and Security Act (HR6) that calls for 36 billion gallons of renewable fuels by 2022.

“Across the country, the majority of alternative fuel plants have taken advantage of Siemens control and automation expertise,” said Dave Hankins, vice president of Siemens Chemical and Pharmaceutical Center of Competence. “Our products and services have helped these companies reduce the time market, lower installed production costs, improve plant operation efficiencies and increase bottom line profits.”

Many of the employees at the Center Ethanol plant were trained at another Siemens installation -- the National Corn to Ethanol Research Center (NCERC) at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. The 35,000 square-foot NCERC facilitates the commercialization of new technologies for producing ethanol more effectively, resulting in improved yields and reduced costs. It also plays a key role in filling the growing need for qualified personnel to operate and manage biofuel refineries across the country.

The Center Ethanol employees training at the NCERC spent 25 percent of their time learning to operate the PCS 7 system.

“The employees really liked the system and said it was well designed,” said Center Ethanol plant manager Tony Newton.  “Information flows from screen to screen and is easy to understand.  It was also easy to comprehend how the different characteristics of the process were controlled.”

Newton said the trending capability of the PCS 7 system is important to the success of the plant. He said operators have at least three months of historical data available instantly that can be loaded into an Excel spreadsheet, eliminating the need for time consuming manual data entries.

Additionally, faceplate and interlock screens allow operators to click on a symbol, including a pump, drive, valve or PID loop, to quickly determine the status of the device and process interlocks. Operators also have a comprehensive view of the entire plant from the control room. They can then drill down into a specific process area or to a specific device to get more information.

Delta-T Corporation, an ethanol technology firm based in Williamsburg, Va., provided the process design and execution support for the Center Ethanol installation.   Delta-T Vice President of Projects, David Hughes said the reason why Delta-T specifies Siemens for their facilities can be found in the quality of its PCS 7 system and technical support.

“Siemens is more aware of its customers’ needs than any other controls or automation supplier in the United States,” Hughes said.  “You ask a question and you get an answer quickly. The customer request becomes a priority.”

Siemens continues to support research into emerging feedstock technologies and options – including non-food crops (wood, switch grass, landfill gas, algae and municipal solid waste) that will increase ethanol, other alternative fuels and biochemicals production. For more information, log on to www.sea.siemens.com/biofuels or call (800) 964-4114.