A chemical refinery seeking to consolidate its system operators into a central control room away from pumps, heaters and valves located in hazardous areas needed a video surveillance system that could reliably monitor equipment in sensitive locations.The move would help the client limit exposure of its personnel to potentially dangerous areas, with a special focus on areas most likely to experience a failure or event.
With the presence of highly corrosive chemicals in the hazardous areas, the monitoring system would require intrinsically safe explosion-proof rated cameras and enclosures able to withstand exposure to corrosive materials.
The ability to access accurate and timely information is critical to allow the plant to respond swiftly to incidents that could affect the quality and safety of its operations and overall security. A turnkey design and installation was provided to convert an analog video surveillance system to a digital CCTV system that would allow the operators to remotely monitor hazardous areas of the plant from a new central control room. The system was designed to support future expansion while being efficient with the use of fiber infrastructure.
The engineering team selected camera housings and mounts that are explosion-proof rated and resistant to corrosion, and high-resolution cameras to accommodate extreme lighting conditions.
The project team installed more than 36 CCTV cameras in five different units to provide video surveillance coverage of all of the facility’s critical operation areas. Camera placements were selected based on providing maximum coverage, with additional cameras mounted in areas that had experienced past incidents of fire or explosion. Monitors for each of the 36 video surveillance cameras were incorporated into control room consoles.
In some areas where traditional methods for camera mounting was an issue, the team configured a lens designed to allow the camera/housing to be mounted in safer areas, but still provide the field of vision needed to monitor the equipment.
.
The new video surveillance system allowed the client to locate its employees to a central control room away from potentially dangerous equipment and chemical hazards.
The video system has already provided a return on the investment by allowing operators to discreetly manage key operations areas and respond rapidly to equipment failures. The rapid response to failures based on the surveillance systems has contributed to the overall safety of the plant.
