Advanced Diagnostics Cut Maintenance Costs and Prevent Downtime at Mitsubishi Chemical’s Kashima Ethylene Plant

Mitsubishi Chemical Corporation’s ethylene facility in Kashima, Japan, was honored as the 2009 HART Plant of the Year by the HART Communication Foundation. The award recognized the plant’s pioneering application of HART communication technology to enhance real‑time operations, cut costs, and boost availability.

The deployment of advanced diagnostics enabled a 10 % reduction in maintenance spend and prevented unplanned shutdowns that could have cost up to $3 million in lost production.

“HART has allowed us to shift from scheduled maintenance to condition‑based strategies,” said Takayuki Aoyama, instrumentation group team leader. “We now predict and avert issues by monitoring detailed diagnostic data from field devices, such as the statistical process monitoring (SPM) offered by Emerson’s Rosemount 3051S transmitter.”

Aoyama showcased these capabilities at the 2009 Emerson Global Users Exchange in Orlando, Fla., illustrating how his team resolved problems ranging from clogged impulse lines to entrained air in pump intakes. A full video of his presentation is available at Emerson Process.

The award‑winning plant also employs other HART‑enabled assets, including Emerson’s Rosemount radar level and vortex flow instruments, Micro Motion Coriolis meters, Fisher digital valve controllers, and AMS Suite predictive‑maintenance software.

“Because HART diagnostics integrate with existing equipment, the upfront investment was modest,” Aoyama noted. “We quickly realized the benefits and plan to replace older devices with HART technology wherever possible, continuing to partner with Emerson to extend these gains across the operation.”

The HART Plant of the Year Award celebrates end‑user companies that creatively leverage the full spectrum of HART technology. This marks the third consecutive year that Emerson products have played a pivotal role at the winning site. More details on the award can be found at hartcomm.org.

The HART Communication Foundation, an international, not‑for‑profit organization supported by over 230 member companies, is the steward of the HART Protocol. Established in 1993, the Foundation sets standards, oversees technology development, and provides global support for the protocol, which powers more than 30 million intelligent field devices worldwide.