Case Studies in Project Feasibility

Techno-Economic and Feasibility Study for the Optimization of the Ethanolamine Production Unit (Case Study: Qatar Petrochemical Company – 15,000 KTY) 💡 What’s this about? In this paper, I developed a full-process simulation of a large-scale ethanolamine production plant (MEA, DEA, TEA) based on one of the best licensors' industrial designs, using Aspen HYSYS V14 on a high-performance computing setup (i9 Gen 14th, 32 GB RAM). We analyzed, validated, and optimized the process technically and economically, delivering results that demonstrate both operational and financial viability. 📌 Key Achievements: ✅ 98.1% EO conversion ✅ 12.4% steam consumption reduction ✅ 9.1% cooling water savings ✅ MEA selectivity improved to 38% ✅ IRR: 21.5%, NPV: $72.4 million, Payback: 4.1 years 📎 Download the full paper here: 👉 https://lnkd.in/gtNgCQ88 #ProcessEngineering #AspenHYSYS #PetrochemicalDesign #TechnoEconomicAnalysis #Ethanolamine #QatarPetrochemical #ChemicalSimulation #MEA #DEA #TEA #SimulationOptimization #ResearchAndDevelopment #LinkedInResearch #EngineeringExcellence

Want to know what a ‘work in progress’ drawing of a relatively large scheme of apartments looks like ? Like this.   Early testing of a scheme’s viability.   About a year ago we were approached by an organisation tasked with selling an old vacant church and their associated plots of land. Somewhere in Yorkshire. Quite a complicated land sale, it involves: -          Old church buildings. -          Ministers house. -          Separate garden space. -          Separate large undeveloped plot of land nearby. -          Graveyard.   We agreed that rather than selling on as it is, we should conduct some loose feasibility studies to find out what could be done with the land to increase its value, ready for a quick exit, without paying out for the full development costs and associated risks.   All plots of land are in a conservation area and some are in the green belt. The old church is a gorgeous Victorian stone building, it oozes character, is totally unique and is built to last. So, several challenges there straight away to overcome.   We agreed to phase the project into separate ‘bite size chunks’ to make the land sale easier to manage. Phase 1 = old church buildings and ministers house. Phase 2 = other parcels of land.   We then worked out the old church buildings could be converted and retrofitted and would probably generate about 16 apartments over three floors and the separate plot of land could generate 2 x new build apartments blocks of 9 units each, 18 total units. Overall total units = 34 apartments. All based on exceeding the Nationally Described Space Standards for dwelling sizes.   To test the viability of this we submitted a Pre-application Planning Enquiry to the Local Planning Authority. About 6 months later we received a 20 page pre-app report. Yep, you read that right, about 6 months later! This informed us the church building conversion was viable and probably a go-er, subject to some highways and landscaping issues that needed to be overcome. We also received some useful feedback about the Phase 2 developments too.   This wasn’t necessarily an exercise in establishing a final agreed scheme, but rather just testing early viability of the schemes to see what was possible and acceptable in principle. This has now enabled the Client to make firm decisions about what to do next and when.   If there any developers who are interesting in finding out more about these sites, please send me a message! Andrew Wootton-Jones MRICS Helen Williams Ryan Malee 🏗️ Property Developer Heather Smail + anyone else..?   #Property #Strategy #Collaboration

Some lessons for me on cost estimating and brownfield project This was around 2016. We got an award for a brownfield project, adding new small to an existing LNG regasification facility. The manhour budget was tight. Phase 1 was a feasibility study. The facility seemingly simple enough. I don't recall many difficult encounters. We have to search for references and codes for this facility. Location selection was done. Piping tie-in points were determined. Seemed quite straightforward. Cost estimation has been done. Phase 1 completed. We were then awarded the next phase: FEED. Seemed like something to celebrate. The devil is in the details. Started working with the team, pipe runs, then electrical and instrumentation work. The design was simple, the challenge was the location, far from any existing facility. The challenge started. Finding tie-in points for electrical and instrumentation was a nightmare. We were determining the cable routing, running a few cables for almost 1-2 km on level 3 piperack (where the cable rack was). This means that we have to include cost of putting up scaffolding for this small project, only for a few cable runs. Slowly, one by one design challenges popped up. Most of the time, addressing those difficult designs means more CAPEX. Not just that, it also meant more engineering manhours required to resolve the issue. The project itself was already running thin on manhours. Fast forward, when all the design was done, construction review was done, we re-calculated the CAPEX. It was 100% higher than that of Phase 1. Way above the +/- 50% target. Difficult news to convey to the customer. I was called to explain what went wrong, from Phase 1 to Phase 2. I was just grateful for the support of the team. The cost estimator manager accompanied me to one meeting, knowing that we will be grilled in that meeting (well, I screw up). On another meeting, I asked my boss to accompany to another meeting. Fast forward, we worked to get the trust back from the customer. We was given additional work to write the EPC scope of work. We worked with an EPC contractor to ensure the cost was accurate (incorporating updated unit rate, getting quotations, etc.) 𝐒𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞: 1. Cost estimation is important data point in investment decision. it determines whether a project is economically feasible. There is always pressure to lower the estimated project cost. 2. All cost changes are results of engineering, thus an increase or decrease must be based on the engineering design. Any change in factors has to have engineering basis. Value engineering typically done to review what changes in design can be done to lower the cost. 3. During feasibility study, there were still unknown aspects that have not been studied in detailed. Get all the tie-ins studied piping, instrumentation, electricals. As much as possible get the construction method early in the project.

I am attaching a solved case study on 𝐒𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐇𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐄𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐒𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦 (𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐌𝐒) where I have explained phase wise responsibilities and deliverables of a Business Analyst in such project. I will definitely recommend the Business Analysts to go through this case study as it will help you in practical learning. 𝐏𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝟏: 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐣𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐒𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: ➡️ Facilitate workshops to define the SHEMS' scope and high-level objectives. ➡️ Identify in-scope and out-of-scope functionalities. ➡️ Develop a Project Charter summarizing objectives, stakeholders, and constraints. 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬: ➡️ Project Charter Document ➡️ High-Level Scope Statement 𝐏𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝟐: 𝐑𝐞𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐆𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: ➡️ Conduct interviews with internal and external stakeholders to understand their expectations. ➡️ Create Personas for different user groups (e.g., tech-savvy vs. non-tech-savvy homeowners). ➡️ Develop User Stories and Use Cases. ➡️ Prioritize requirements using the MoSCoW technique (Must Have, Should Have, Could Have, Won't Have). 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬: ➡️ Detailed User Stories ➡️ Use Case Diagrams ➡️ Prioritized Requirements List 𝐏𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝟑: 𝐆𝐚𝐩 𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: ➡️ Compare current home energy systems with the envisioned SHEMS to identify functional gaps. ➡️ Perform a SWOT Analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) to assess risks and challenges. 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬: ➡️ Gap Analysis Document ➡️ SWOT Analysis Report 𝐏𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝟒: 𝐀𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐁𝐞𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐁𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦𝐬 𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: ➡️ Translate business needs into technical specifications. ➡️ Collaborate with the IoT and Software Development teams to evaluate the feasibility of requirements. ➡️ Define Non-Functional Requirements (e.g., system uptime, data security, response times). 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬: ➡️ Business Requirements Document (BRD) ➡️ Functional and Non-Functional Requirements Specifications (FRS, NFRS) 𝐏𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝟓: 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐨𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐅𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐀𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: ➡️ Work with UX/UI designers to create wireframes and prototypes of the SHEMS interface. ➡️ Facilitate user feedback sessions to validate design and functionality. 𝐃𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐬: ➡️ Wireframes and Prototypes ➡️ Feedback Summary Report BA Helpline #businessanalysis #businessanalyst #businessanalysts #ba

There is a "white lie" at the heart of almost every Ethiopian industrial project. And it's costing entrepreneurs millions. I’ve been in the rooms where these $10,000 feasibility studies are written. Everyone knows the numbers are a "best-case scenario" hallucination. The consultants know it. The banks know it. But no one tells the business owner the truth. Most manufacturing projects in Ethiopia are missing a single number. And no, it’s not the "Profit." I call it the "Resilience Ratio." I once watched a world-class production line engineered to perfection sit dead silent for three weeks. The culprit? A single $250 proximity sensor. The study assumed "Maintenance" was just a line item. It didn't account for the real-world friction: - The FX Ghost - The bank wouldn't prioritize a $250 part while million-dollar grain shipments were in the queue. - The "Quick Fix" Trap - To keep moving, the team bypassed the sensor. Two hours later, a mechanical jam bent the main drive shaft. - The Damage - A $15,000 repair and a specialist flown in from Italy. The study predicted 80% efficiency. The reality was 0% for nearly a month. Why does this keep happening ? Feasibility studies in frontier markets are not prediction tools. They are a conspiracy of optimism that everyone participates in so that the project can get funded. The promoter knows it. The consultant knows it. The bank officer knows it. Everyone plays along because the alternative is the project never gets off the ground. But there is a cost to that agreement. And it is paid on the factory floor. The spreadsheet is always green. The reality is usually grey. #Ethiopia #Manufacturing #SME #BusinessResilience #AfricaIndustrialization #Bankable

Embark on our journey as we delve into the complexities of modular building potential and why it often goes unrealized. 💡 ADL Ventures’ past Modular Building Case Study with a global enterprise expressing interest in modular living units asked us to explain why they had never been able to realize the full potential of modular construction despite dozens of attempts. Here's what we did: 𝐃𝐞𝐞𝐩-𝐝𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐬 We scrutinized 15 previous modular projects, dissecting their costs, schedules, and invaluable lessons learned. 𝐄𝐜𝐨𝐬𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦 𝐄𝐱𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧  We meticulously assessed the offsite construction ecosystem to identify potential partners capable of supporting the ambitious scaling required by our esteemed client. The findings were illuminating: 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐬: Identified investment needs, break-even points, and projected ROI. 𝐄𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐜 𝐌𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠: Revealed the potential for substantial cost savings (up to 30%) compared to traditional construction, contingent on a dedicated, multi-year commitment. More about ADL's case studies here: https://lnkd.in/gKNaa7ds What's your perspective on modular construction's untapped potential? 🤔 #ModularConstruction #ConstructionInnovation Ken Semler Gary Fleisher Daniel Small, Colby Swanson Christina Domecq Doug Tollin, Dennis McMahon Audree Grubesic Ben Hershey Jordie Puchinger Chris Moeller John Lefkus III Joel Hutchines Brent Wadas Nat Zorach, Santiago Ossa Paul Richards Gon Zifroni Jack Maloney John A. Provo Frederic Laure Charles Leahy