(18a) Industry 4.0 – Challenge and Opportunity for the Chemical Industry

Disruptive trends come whether industry is prepared to accept them or not. Today we are observing rapid increases in computing ability, application of data analytics, implementation of machine connectivity, and other platforms that are influencing the future designs of manufacturing. Manufacturing is moving from the optimization of the individual unit, plant, or production line to the optimization of the entire production eco-system. These trends represent the 4^th, and latest, manifestation of the industrial revolution, the so-called Industry 4.0. Industry 4.0 has been defined as the growth of cyber-physical systems within the constructs of the Internet of Things (IoT), big data and ancillary capabilities. In the chemical industry, Industry 4.0 is manifesting itself in rapid advances in enterprise analytics, robotics and other key elements that could combine to create a strategy for a chemical producer and has spawned many Government-Academic-Industry consortia such as the Digital Manufacturing and Design Innovation Institute (DMDII), the Smart Manufacturing Leadership Coalition (SMLC), among others. This paper will reflect on the challenges that Industry 4.0 sets before the chemical industry, and then explores the Dow Chemical Company’s plans to turn these challenges into opportunities.

Speaker biography:

Billy B. Bardin is the Global Operations Technology Director. His responsibilities include driving technology and innovation strategy within Manufacturing and Engineering (M&E) and oversight of all commercial technologies as well as development of technical talent across manufacturing and supporting operations.

Billy began his career in 2000 with Union Carbide/Dow in the Catalyst Skill Center in South Charleston, WV where he led alternative feedstock and catalytic process development programs. In 2001, he joined the Chemicals Sciences group within Core R&D, leading programs in the areas of alternative feedstocks, paraffin functionalization, and olefin partial oxidation. While in Chemical Sciences, Billy relocated to Dow facilities in Midland, Michigan; Horgen, Switzerland; and Terneuzen, The Netherlands as leader for the development of Dow’s high throughput heterogeneous catalyst testing capability.

In 2007, Billy was named leader for the North American Production Support Group within the Hydrocarbons and Energy business in Freeport, TX. He led efforts in cracker plant support and developed R&D programs in next generation cracker technology. The following year, he accepted the combined role of R&D Director for Chemicals and The Dow Technology Licensing and Catalyst (DTLC) Business where he drove both internal R&D programs and technology/catalyst development efforts for licensee sales. In 2010, Billy became R&D Director for the Feedstocks, Hydrocarbons, and Chemicals businesses, leading the technology strategy for Dow’s hydrocarbons and alternative feedstock efforts and developing options to provide cost advantaged chemical feedstocks to Dow’s downstream product portfolio. He was named to his current position in 2014.

Billy holds a Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering from North Carolina State University (1995), and a Master of Science (1997) and a Ph.D. (2000) in Chemical Engineering from the University of Virginia. He is a Registered, Professional Engineer (PE) with the WV State Board of Registration for Professional Engineers. He is chair of the Industrial Advisory Board for the School of Chemical Engineering at Purdue University and a member of the advisory board for the Dept. of Chemical Engineering at the University of Virginia.