Honeywell, Shell Enter Technology Contract to Maximize Production

Honeywell has signed a global five-year agreement to be a Main Automation Contractor for Shell. The Global Framework Agreement (GFA) is part of Shell's long-term MAC strategy to maximize production while lowering total operating costs by equipping its worldwide facilities with integrated process automation technology.

As a MAC, Honeywell will design automation and safety systems that will help Shell meet its customers' energy demands in economically and environmentally responsible ways. For more than three decades, Honeywell has served as a MAC on hundreds of Shell projects. Currently, Honeywell is working on three of Shell's largest projects: its new gas to liquids (GTL) plant in Qatar, the Athabasca Oil Sands Project (AOSP) designed to help Shell dramatically increase production in Western Canada's oil sands, and the expansion of its Port Arthur Refinery.

"Honeywell's performance in helping us execute these highly complex projects was one factor in selecting the company for this work," said Ronaldo Marques, Shell's Enterprise Group Categories Manager Equipment. "This agreement allows us to provide consistent global delivery of the highest-quality technology with best-in-class strategic support at sites around the world."

By designing their production facilities with integrated process automation systems, manufacturers can improve overall plant safety, reliability, efficiency and sustainability while ensuring critical information gets to the right people at the right time. Using integrated systems such as Honeywell's Experion® Process Knowledge System (PKS) and Safety Manager solutions, plant personnel at all levels get a better picture of how various process subsystems affect the entire operation. Plant operators, for example, can make better decisions in the control room when systems like Experion can tell them how a specific process is affecting the rest of the plant.

In addition, designing a new facility with an integrated system allows manufacturers to more accurately plan how to integrate new technology in the future. This saves money in the long term by preventing systems from becoming obsolete.

"More and more, our clients want our early engagement and to design integrated process automation systems from the ground up because it's a smart strategy for protecting an asset's long-term viability and the business' profitability," said Norm Gilsdorf, president of Honeywell Process Solutions. "Shell recognizes this opportunity, and this MAC agreement is a proactive step in maximizing its global production while providing a technological path forward as needs change."