NEWSROOM

EN Engineering Presentation at the University of Kentucky

By: Eric Gindlesperger

LEXINGTON, KY, October 10, 2014 – Three members from our Industrial Solutions group visited the University of Kentucky (UK) to give a presentation on Process Safety Management to seniors in the Chemical Engineering program who are enrolled in the Fall 2014 CHE 470. This course, taught by Dr. Christina Payne, focuses on Professionalism, Ethics, and Safety. The three members attended were Russ Branham, Sr. Technical Lead, Rob Williams, Sr. Project Manager, and Eric Gindlesperger, Design Engineer. This presentation was unique because both Russ and Eric are graduates from the Chemical Engineering Program at UK. Russ is the most senior Chemical Engineer in the Industrial Solutions sector while Eric is the most junior. The duo was coined the, “Alpha and Omega”, of the chemical engineering staff. The lecture focused on the Process Hazard Analysis (PHA) element of Process Safety Management. It was led by Russ, who has over 40 years professional experience in a petroleum refinery setting, as well as 15 years of experience as a PHA leader. The presentation included using a real life example of an incident that took place in an industrial setting. After a short introduction to the class of the presentation team members and an overview of EN Engineering by Rob Williams, Eric Gindlesperger then reviewed the purpose and definition of the OSHA 1910.119 PSM regulation within the context of a petroleum refinery.

Russ Branham highlighted the main focus points of the PHA element of PSM and led a mock PHA in applying these points to a real life example. This mock PHA included participation by the students, in which they were asked to contribute ideas to the PHA. The topical objective for this presentation was to re-enforce and complement the on-going classroom instruction to the students by Dr. Payne regarding Process Safety Management with emphasis toward the regulatory PHA element. A deeper objective was to foster and form the foundation for further develop a positive professional and business relationship between EN Engineering and the University of Kentucky. The presentation applied to the students’ immediate CME 470 learning objectives and gave them a sample of their possible future work in the industrial world. The presentation also conveyed insight to some of the technical work being done at EN and how the company is involved in critical processes within the industrial sector.

Before the class session, the EN Engineering team met with Dr. Christina Payne, assistant professor and Dr. Douglass Kalika, Department Chairman of the Chemical Engineering program to provide an opportunity for both UK and EN to familiarize themselves with one another and to discuss the future opportunities that were available to both. During this meeting, the topic was brought up about the direct impact of EN Engineering’s growth on potential students from all across Kentucky. EN Engineering provides a place of employment for students from Kentucky to come into and be exposed to various engineering disciplines and projects in their home state, encouraging them to pursue degrees in science and engineering. This makes getting exposure at the university level all the more important for both UK and EN. The University of Kentucky provides EN Engineering with quality engineers and therefore increases the quality of the staff. This is important to EN Engineering now, as well as in the near future, as we are striving to become the premier engineering firm in the state of Kentucky. Hopefully, this particular event will be the stepping stone to a flourishing relationship between UK and EN.

The continued growth of the Catlettsburg office, as well as increased exposure at the University, will not only improve the company, but the surrounding communities as well, by providing quality jobs to people in the area and reliable engineering for prospective industrial companies looking to expand. Therefore, the potential impact of this union is potentially very significant. The future is bright for EN Engineering and this is another step in the right direction for the company.

About Our Industrial Solutions Team

Our Industrial Solutions Team provides multi-discipline engineered solutions to meet the requirements of: Petroleum Refineries, Chemical Processing Facilities, Distribution Terminals and Gas Processing Facilities. We provide practical strategies with a focus on exceeding client expectations.

About University of Kentucky

The University of Kentucky, located in Lexington KY, is a public research university with a diverse student population representing 117 countries, and offering 200 majors and degree programs in 17 academic and professional colleges. The most popular areas of study are arts and sciences, business education, and engineering. The school is known for competing in NCAA Division 1 athletics, and has over 100 acres of gardens on campus.