1. Systematically Move Toward Better Operation
Quantitative BenchMarking (QBM™) is based on the operations research method of
frontier analysis. Starting with existing process data, it ranks current operations using a
customized performance measure. QBM™ tools then calculate moves to improve the
score of the operation. This is explicit, in the sense that delta moves to operating handles
are displayed for operations to invoke.
This methodology provides operations insight that had formerly been obscured by details.
10
The data in the figure come from an Alkylation unit example. The best scoring operating
points are green, and the worst red. The size of the ball indicates magnitude, so the
largest green balls are the best overall and the largest red balls are the worst overall. The
first result from QBM™ is the indication of the operation frontier, indicated by the green
segments between the best operating points.
Improving Efficiency of Case 10
Case 10 is indicated by the large dull red ball in the lower middle of the figure. To
improve the efficiency of this case, a combination of the best operations cases 19 and 11
is used. The QBM™ result is shown in the following figure. The improvement weights
from QBM™ are given in the small table; best operation 11 is given a weight of 0.067
and best operation 19 is given a weight of 0.217. The improvement in case 10 is
indicated by the arrow, resulting in new case 10.5.

2. Relating back to the operating handles is shown below.
Case numbers are in the left most column. Cases 11 and 19 are the best operations cases,
and the weights to move from 10 are indicated in the top right of the table. The process
variables in yellow were calculated based on these weights and the values of the process
variables for the best operations (in grey). In this way a new operating point 10.5 was
calculated.
The performance is improved from 45% for operation 10 to 83% for operation 10.5.
It is important to note that since the improvement calculations use actual operating data
as the basis, it is most likely that the adjustments to the process operating variables to
achieve the move from 10 to 10.5 are operationally feasible.
The corresponding improvement in profit was $5.8/BBL.
QBM™ products and services are offered by Process Frontier Inc., San Diego, California.
Emails: lanny@processfrontier.com, greg@processfrontier.com, dave@processfrontier.com.
Patent pending.