Projects

Refinery Expansion and revamp, hydrotreater and crude unit
Highlights: 3 million safe workhours
Challenge: Multiple simultaneous additions and modifications
Solution: Commonwealth’s project scope expanded from a diesel hydrotreater to include new sour crude, revamped vacuum and dewaxer units, as well as 28 utilities and offsites projects. The overall program allowed the plant to produce ultra-low sulfur transportation fuels, reduce operating costs, enhance processing of sour crudes, and expand production of high value specialty lubricants and waxes. Grassroots units were mechanically complete 19 months from the start of front-end (FEL) loading. All units started successfully and produced on-spec products within 96 hours of the last turnover package.

ULSD debottleneck
Challenge: Environmental compliance project needed to be complete within a 10-month window.
Solution: Commonwealth, using its revamp work process with concurrent engineering, completed front-end loading and engineering and procurement in eight months. Commonwealth’s procurement plan included sourcing refurbished equipment to relieve critical path equipment items. The project was completed and started up within 10 months of kick-off, a 60 percent advantage over a standard execution schedule.

ULSD HDT revamp
Highlights: 14 months FEL through start-up
Challenge: Modification to meet revised environmental standard
Solution: Commonwealth met the challenge by utilizing its revamp work process and parallel engineering, expediting the fabrication and delivery of a new reactor vessel and minimizing plot modifications. The project cycle time was 14 months to meet the client’s objectives.

FCC seal pot replacement and turn around
Highlights: Complete T/A management in addition to capital project engineering
Challenge: Client underwent restructuring and was limited in staff, late initiation of engineering and planning effort, and complex design verification and instillation due to equipment thermal deformation.
Solution: Compressed planning by forming an integrated team with client to manage T/A.  Unique rigging plan devised to accommodate safety concerns and early equipment procurement delivery.

Octane conversion and water wash tower modification
Challenge: Worked with two licensors, very aggressive schedule to meet T/A, and the Client requested to maximize use of existing equipment.
Solution: Commonwealth developed specialized product within 72 hours of start-up, compressed FEL by 30%, DE by 20%, and TIC reduced by $6MM through process effort.

 
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GOHT unit revamp
Challenge: Phase 3 for gas oil hydrotreater (GHOT) hydrogen make-up compressor
Solution: Commonwealth completed the design and installation of instruments and electrical equipment for the GHOT compressor and associated platforms and vessels.   

 
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FCC heat integration
Highlights: Commonwealth reduced TIC 15% during FEL
Challenge: Energy efficient project
Solution: The project improved the unit energy efficiency by adding a light cycle oil (LCO) pump around circuit, revising the heavy cycle oil (HCO) pump around circuit, reconfiguring the feed preheat train, exporting the top pump around and the HCO pump around streams to the gas plant to replace steam at three reboilers and increasing the operating pressure of the deethanizer/absorber column

 
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Flare gas recovery
Highlights: Commonwealth reduced TIC 8% during FEL
Challenge: Compliance driven schedule
Solution: Installation of three flare gas recovery systems for seven existing flares and one future flare for a $100MM flare gas recovery project.

 
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Coker revamp, flare addition
Challenge: Delayed coker expansion, including addition of two new drums to existing two drum coker, unheading devices, unit expansion and flare.  Flare scope required alternate ground and elevated flare analysis and use of existing flare gas recovery unit vs. new flare gas recovery unit.
Solution: Commonwealth completed conceptual design through basic and detail engineering in the delayed coker expansion of two coker drums unit (14.000 BPD) to a four Coker drums unit (33,500 BPD), and flare, in addition to construction assistance, start up and commissioning services.

FCC unit emissions control project
Challenge: Compliance project; scope consisted of a wet gas scrubber for SOx and particulate control and ozone injection system for NOx control.
Solution: Commonwealth was responsible for engineering, procurement, and construction management in providing technology selection support.  Our team also developed the front end engineering project scope definition, as well as the project estimate and schedule. 

 
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Delayed coker study 
Challenge: Client requested process studies in the delayed coker area, including: heater pass control strategy review; heater performance improvement; incremental coker expansion study; coke fines separation; quench cycle optimization and blowdown revamp; sludge injection.
Solution: CEC provided engineering support throughout the various phases of these studies up to detail engineering.

 
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Crude expansion, FCC heat recovery
Challenge: T/A driven event; Project consisted of crude expansion for extensive  crude debottleneck, fluid cat cracker heat recovery improvement for  energy efficiency project, and LPVGO replacement, low pressure vacuum gas oil project, laser scanned complex piping layout.
Solution: Commonwealth completed detailed engineering for of the project to replace an existing 30 MM BTU/Hr box type Distillate Hydrotreater (DOT) heater with a canned heater system equipped with low NOx burners, an SIS system, a CEMS System, and two fuel gas coalescers.  Associated piping, instrumentation, electrical, civil and structural modifications were also included as part of the scope.

 
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Delayed coker expansion and flare aggregation
Challenge: Coker capacity increase and rationalization of the flare system
Solution: Commonwealth completed phase 1 of the project to increase capacity and simulation of main fractionator and gas plant along with development of equipment sizes for budgetary cost estimate.  Commonwealth performed FEL1, 2 and 3 studies and conceptual design for the flare.  The team evaluated several flare system alternatives, analyzing multiple flares/locations, elevated vs. ground flares, etc.

 
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Crude expansion, DOT heater replacement, furnace replacement complete with SIS controls
Challenge: T/A driven event; scope of the projects was to implement SIS systems on eight (8) heaters within the refinery in the following areas: Cumene Heaters (3), Guard Case Preheaters (2), VDU Heater, LPCCR Heaters (2).  Included in the scope was a Triconex shutdown system, shut down valves, flame monitoring, and instrument panels.
Solution: Commonwealth completed a 60% model review of the detailed engineering.

 
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Flare gas recovery
Challenge: Project included front-end deliverables and estimate for the installation of a flare gas recovery system for two existing flares for a flare gas recovery project.
Solution: Commonwealth developed conceptual design of offsites, utilities and tie-ins for flare gas system, coordinated with ISBL equipment fabricator on a two compressor FGRS skid design, and provided conceptual design for HF alky acid gas flare system and restart of idled flare.

 
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Flare gas recovery
Challenge: The project included front end deliverables and estimate for the installation of a flare gas recovery system for two existing flares for a flare gas recovery project.
Solution: Commonwealth completed FEL2, determined siting plans and recommended locations to determine radiation shield requirements and acceptable locations, and coordinated with ISBL equipment fabricator and Client on a four compressor FGRS skid design and system design for new flare seal drums.

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NAAQS compliance project