UOP Holds 2nd R&D Refining Panel Meeting with Customers
“Fuels of the Future” was the theme of UOP’s 2nd Research &
Development Refining Panel on May 19 & 20 in Madrid, Spain. A select
group of UOP customers met with a high-level focus on the refining
industry going forward into the 21st century.
UOP customers from all over the world gathered at the Westin Palace Hotel in Madrid for an
intense two-day R&D Refining Panel meeting to discuss the world’s Future Fuel Mix. Topics
presented ranged from global fuel demand and feedstock availability to the impact of sustainable
development on the future fuel mix. Included in each day’s activities were respected keynote
speakers: Dr. Hartmut Heinrich from Volkswagen on “Future Fuels Needs: An Automotive
Perspective,” Dr. Fatih Birol of the International Energy Agency spoke on “The Future
Energy Mix,” and Bjorn Stigson, president of The World Business Council for Sustainable
Development, presented “Sustainable Development: Challenges and Opportunities for
Business.”
While day-to-day customer meetings typically involve solving immediate issues, the primary focus of
the Refining Panel is the global perspective on the future of the industry. Utilizing a model of
rotating participants from year to year, the groups are kept small, thereby enabling a dialog with
customers concerning their most pressing problems, long-term objectives and insights into new ways
of applying technology. “This two-way dialog helps us to work with customers to identify
their unarticulated needs,” explained UOP CEO Carlos Guimaraes. “These discussions
force us to question and revalidate assumptions about the direction of the refining world and if
our R&D project portfolio is in alignment with that direction.”
The R&D Refining Panel was begun in 2004 upon a suggestion from a UOP customer. Fueled by
UOP’s desire to find out what keeps our customers up at night, UOP organized the panel as an
effective way to identify key issues as well as to get a global view of the industry and analyze
sustained development goals.
This year’s invited guests included customers from India, Saudi Arabia, Japan, France, Spain
and Russia. During a number of panel forums, each panelist gave a presentation on the future of
fuels. Of those attendees who also participated in the first panel in 2004, feedback was unanimous
that this conference was even more effective at targeting the core issues than the first meeting.
Looking forward, UOP plans to hold the R&D Refining Panel on a regular basis--annually or
biennially--to keep abreast of the evolving refining industry environment. “As the leader in
providing refining technology solutions, UOP has a responsibility to build and focus the collective
knowledge within the industry,” said Chief Technology Officer Stan Gembicki. “By
overlaying the needs of UOP with those of our customers, UOP should be able to better create a
sustainable future for the industry.”
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