Modular construction for petrochemicals: 'A Utopia just beyond the horizon?

摘要

Henry A. Kissinger once said, "For other nations, Utopia is a blessed past never to be recovered; For Americans it is just beyond the horizon." Could a modularization construction provide petrochemical project owners a relief from the rising capital costs seen over the last 15 years? Modularization is seen in many industries including home and building construction ships and even in orbit with the International Space Station. For the oil, gas and chemical industry, modularization is primarily a strategy for the construction stage of the project although needs consideration very early in a project's life. It was originally developed for the offshore oil industry but is becoming increasingly popular downstream. Modules are complete preassemblies of equipment, bulk materials and components that are fabricated offsite into a steel structure to be transported by sea and/or land and installed at another location.