Hydrocarbon Processing - July 2022 - 47

History of the HPI-The 1980s
Lummus Technology
Lummus Technology and
a Legacy of Industrial Innovation
Lummus Technology was founded in 1907 with the foresight, planning
and entrepreneurial spirit of Walter E. Lummus, the company's
namesake. Starting out in Boston, Massachusetts, with a manufacturing
facility in nearby Everett, MA, Mr. Lummus set the course for
a company that would stretch geographically and conceptually far
beyond its modest beginnings.
The company's first order was for a single distillation column, which
represented the beginning of an organization whose expertise would
be called on by firms and governments around the world. The Walter
E. Lummus Co. would initially be chosen to develop and produce specialized
equipment for the process industries and later to construct
complex facilities. The first process technology the company worked
on was the production of transportation fuels from bio-feeds such as
molasses. During its early years, Lummus produced pot stills and condensers,
scrubbing columns, caustic soda dissolvers, heat exchangers
and distillation columns.
LAUNCHING A NEW LICENSING COMPANY
Leading into the 1980s, Lummus had become a global engineering,
procurement and construction (EPC) company with only a few proprietary
process technologies, a heat transfer business and a capable
process technology organization that operated as an enabler for the
large project business.
However, the decade proved to be a tumultuous period. By
the mid-1980s the world economy was hit with high inflation and
depressed oil prices that led to an extreme downturn for the hydrocarbon
processing industry. Many EPC projects in the company's backlog
were cancelled, leading to reduced business, financial difficulties and
office closures - but the market turbulence gave way to a fresh vision
of what Lummus could become.
During this economic upheaval, Lummus leadership took notice of
the process technology licensing business holding its own and moved
to invest heavily in its technology portfolio. Starting with the addition
of catalytic distillation technologies, and then again with the enhancement
of its ethylene technology, Lummus began its transformation
journey into a full-fledged technology licensor.
SPONSORED CONTENT
POSITIVE TRAJECTORIES
More than 30 years later, Lummus has evolved significantly from the
EPC-focused company it was then to the technology leader it is today.
The company continues to expand its portfolio, leverage its proven
licensing business model and undertake R&D development to extend
its technology offerings. All these efforts have been key in shaping Lummus
into a forerunner of innovation solutions that serves the hydrocarbon
processing industry, which includes refining, petrochemicals, gas
processing and polymers, to help supply the world's demand for energy
solutions and end-user durable and non-durable consumer goods.
Lummus' focus on efficient and cost-effective solutions for its customers
has delivered breakthrough technologies such as ethylene
SRT® pyrolysis heaters, mixed-feed CATOFIN® paraffin dehydrogenation,
C4/C5 olefins conversation technology (OCT), CDAlky® catalytic
alkylation technology, SRDC FCC conversion solutions, LC-MAX technology,
and many others.
THE NEXT CHAPTER
As the page is turned, Lummus is squarely focused on delivering
technologies and services across a plant's entire life cycle and
supporting customers' endeavors in the energy transition, circular
economy and desire to drive sustainable industrial operations. With a
heritage spanning more than 110 years and a focus on innovation that
has resulted in approximately 130 technologies and 3,400 patents,
Lummus Technology stands apart in developing and implementing
process technologies that make modern life possible.
CONTACT INFORMATION
5825 N. Sam Houston Pkwy. W., #600
Houston, TX 77086, United States
Phone: 281-368-3000
www.lummustechnology.com
Hydrocarbon Processing | JULY 2022 47
http://www.lummustechnology.com
Hydrocarbon Processing - July 2022

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