Welcome to R² Controls

Staff Resume of: Rick Rys P.E. – Principal – R2 Controls

CAREER EXPERIENCE

Mr. Rys has 11 years experience as an independent engineer and consultant after forming R2 Controls in 1996. Clients include DCS and Control system vendors, Consultant groups, Validation & Compliance vendors, Chemical, Pharmaceutical, Natural Gas, and Refining Industries. 20 years experience at The Foxboro Company. Focused on instrumentation, control system analysis, process and control system simulation, process dynamics, optimization, software development, and system integration. Roles of engineer, consultant, software development manager, and project manager. Experiences and training at Foxboro and R2 Controls have given significant technical and leadership skill. Qualified to provide consulting, design engineering, training, and technical project management. Major areas of expertise are associated with measurement, control, process design, pharmaceutical validation and PAT, BIO reactors, gas plants, chemicals, and refining processes both domestic and international.

SUMMARY OF MAJOR PROJECTS

June 2007 – present Tesoro, HI refiney DCS migration from Bailey to IA series. Defined complex control schemes, assist with implementation, testing, and commissioning at site.

Jan 2006 – June 2007 Worked with the Foxboro Field and the Foxboro Houston office to support several project sites. Worked with hybrid Mesh/Nodebus/ATS translator mixed UNIX, NT, and XP systems. Includes Verso paper, ME, Cyro Chemicals NH, BASF Freeport, TX, and BP Gas plants in Texas.

March 2004 – Dec 2006. Working at the Valero refinery (previously Premcor/Motiva) as staff support for the refinery control systems group. Designed and implemented new advanced controls for the PolyAlky Unit. Implemented new controls and several PLC interfaces, for 2 new SO2 scrubber units. Analyzed newly installed 180 MW co-gen facilities (IGCC technology) focusing on control of a large (42,000HP) N2 compressor used for NOx emission control. Designed, implemented, and started up new control algorithms for compressor and NOx controls.

June 2003. Completed the assignment as overall lead engineer for 3 complex DCS batch projects for Invensys (Foxboro). The assignment included developing, documenting, and managing a group of engineers to develop a highly automated process for cell culture and bacterial fermentation. The controls are installed at the Genentech SF plant site.

Feb 2002. Traveled to site at the Sincor Oil refinery in Venezuela to assist with last minute changes to the control system for a Foster Wheeler designed delayed Coker. Helped to get this critical control application off of the critical path for initial startup of this new 250,000 B/D refinery. The coker and the rest of the refinery started up in March 2002.

Jan 2002 – Working with Valicor, wrote a detailed IQ and OQ test plan for a new Delta V DCS system being installed at Rhodes Pharmaceuticals in Coventry RI. Assisted with meeting FDA validation requirements.

Implemented 2 separate successful multivariable control applications for exothermic Reactor controls. Built steady state BJAC and Aspen+ flowsheet simulation models for Cumene to CHP reactor complex, and for CHP decomposition reactor at Sunoco Chemicals. Designed and executed a comprehensive reactor operational test to verify Aspen+ models and predicted optimization results. This test has lead to significant production improvements by setting the correct objectives for APC and by optimization of operational variables.

Implemented I/A series DCS system (5 CP60's) for grass roots Refinery involving complex Reactor controls for Dedienization, Hydrotreater, and Hydrocracker reaction systems for Sincor in Venezuela. Wrote scope-of-work/bid specification for an Oilfield production reporting and shareholder information management system for a new 2000+ well Oilfield and pipeline for Sincor in Venezuela.

Experienced group manager, good experience estimating and managing complex projects, and demonstrated capability of taking an idea from concept to commercialization. Initiated and negotiated several partnerships and cooperation arrangements with third parties. Performed several economic benefit analysis studies to improve customer asset utilization.

From 1991 to 1995 was the main proponent, product champion, and development manger for the BOSS software package, an Oracle and Gensym based multivariable and optimization system for refinery blending. Additionally, played a major role in marketing and sales for this product. This program is now an established and growing international business at Invensys/Foxboro with many successful installations that meet the tough California and EPA reformulation requirements. BOSS is running over both Foxboro level 1 blender and Honeywell BRC systems.

Worked on numerous projects with KMI/Parexel involving pharmaceutical validation of control systems. 

COMPUTER/SOFTWARE EXPERIENCE

Operating Systems: Windows2000, DOS, Win95/98/ME, Unix, Venix, Solaris, some Linux.

Software: Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Project, Access, Oracle, MathCad, Axum, Vissim ChemCad, TK Solver, Lotus 123, Micrographics Designer, Microsoft Visio, Hummingbird Exceed, "vi" and other editors, Aspen+, BJAC, DMC/DMI, Misc. FAX/Communication/mail packages, custom optimization tools, Network admin.

DCS: Foxboro I/A series, Foxboro Spectrum, Some Taylor Mod300, Some Fisher Delta V.

Controllers: Foxboro 761/762/743, Spec200, Spec200 Micro, Pneumatic & Electronic analog, Spectrum UCM, I/A series control processors, some ladder logic, some A/B PLC experience, some HVAC controls.

GENERAL EXPERIENCE

As Manager of Process Application Engineering was responsible for application software packages for the Chemical Oil and Gas group. Specifically, I have managed the design, development, licensing, manufacture, and warrantee of various software packages including Digital Blender, Blend Management System, BOSS (Blend Optimization and Supervisory System), R-Batch, Octane Engine, Distillation Consultant, and Distillation Simulator.

This role has required the merging of process expertise, computer programming, and systems engineering while working closely with both US and international sales and marketing organizations,

Performed the lead engineering role for the first "BOSS Dynamic Study" in the US. The study involved both a gasoline and a distillate blender at Stars Delaware City refinery (Motiva). The dynamic study established a basis for making LP computations, simulated several 20 day periods of the plant operation using the BOSS LP, and made recommendations for analyzers, blending equipment, software options, and expected economic results.

Designed control strategies for more than 100 distillation columns and has extensive experience in the implementation and startup of distillation advanced controls.

Played major role starting up Foxboro's recent business segment in compressor control. Organized Foxboro/Triconex successful multimillion dollar compressor control project at Aramco's Shedgum and Uthmaniyah Saudi Arabian gas palnts (26 10,000 HP machines each).

Working for customers such as Texaco (now Equilon), Texaco Chemicals (now Huntsman), Koch Oil, Tosco, Star Refining (now Motiva), Amoco, Sonatrac, Allied, PPG, Vulcan, GPM, and Aramco have performed economic benefit analyses, advanced control studies, and project engineering activities. Working with customers like Genetics Institute, Lonza Biologics, Warner Lambert/ParkDavis, and Bayer, have been involved with control system specifications, installation issues, and validation protocols.

Experienced with many reactor systems including Phenol, ethylene, ammonia, ethylene oxide, hydrocracker, Chlor/Alkali and many other specialized chemical continuous and batch systems. Have also designed more than 30 pH control systems. Have consulted on process operation, process design/modification, and also on various control technologies including multivariable control, feedforward control, adaptive control, expert systems, modeling, simulation, optimization, and systems integration especially with VAX, Sun, & Intel PC's.

While employed at Occidental was a process engineer in the Chlor-Alkali area. Responsible for operational and process improvements of the brine purification, diaphragm type electrolytic cells, chlorine liquefaction, and caustic evaporation processes.

As a summer job during school, worked in the truck tire manufacturing department at Uniroyal. Operated tire machines to assemble truck tires. This position required me to join the URW United Rubber Workers union, a real world educational experience.

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS

ISA Associate member

IEEE Member

Registered Professional engineer in Chemical Engineering in Massachusetts PE# 30342

PERSONAL

6'0" height, 205 lb., Excellent Health, Wife Claudia 50, Children Jonathan 28, Jeremy 24, and Erika 23. Enjoy Hiking, Golf, Automotive and motorbike maintenance, solar energy and Home design.

PUBLICATIONS

Performance of Simple Multivariable Control Systems, "Fall ISA Conference, October 1981.

Advanced Control Methods Chemical Engineering Magazine 1984

Advanced Control Techniques for Distillation Columns Chemical Engineering Magazine 1984

Using a relational database as a foundation for advanced control of Gasoline Blend Optimization - Hydrocarbon Processing Magazine September 1994.

Improved Control Performance of Centrifugal Compressors Hydrocarbon Processing August 1998.

Steady State Modeling and Dynamic Control technologies team up to Optimize Reactor operation in the Phenol Process The Future of Advanced Process Control in Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Pharmaceutical Manufacturing March 2006

Send mail to rys@R2Controls.com with questions or comments about this web site.
Last modified: May 8, 2008