Honeywell launched communications systems to cover the entire Public Safety spectrum

Honeywell launched communications systems and bi-directional amplifiers (BDA) that cover the entire Public Safety spectrum, providing scalable solutions to support first responder emergency radio connectivity even in challenging environments, said the company.

The new products also meet regulations of almost any jurisdiction or city. The expanded Honeywell portfolio includes high power 5W BDAs and Fiber DAS systems; PSC/Digital Fiber DAS with redundancy support; and Digital 700/800 MHz BDAs with an easy-to-use assisted wizard providing automatic calibration features. The portfolio includes a “No Noise” performance that reduces uplink noise and potentially harmful interference to public safety radios, helping to keep communications clear between first responder teams on the ground and in the building to better support their safety.

According to a 2017 International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) survey by the Safer Buildings Coalition, 56% of fire departments have experienced a communications failure in a building during an emergency event, leaving firefighters and other first responders virtually stranded in these situations after losing communications. In-building communications systems, like those offered by Honeywell, enable first responders to stay connected throughout a building that may have a poor radio signal due to Low-E glass windows, energy-saving cladding or wall composition, and even in underground areas such as car parks. In-building communications can also support occupant safety with timely, clear, and accurate notifications of emergencies and recommended responses.

"It’s critical for first responders to stay connected with each other when responding to an emergency – not only so they know how to better respond to the situation but to also provide better protection to those who protect us,” said Alessandro Araldi, general manager, Global In-Building Communications, Honeywell. “We believe that every building should be able to comply with this requirement, so we created BDA systems that are scalable for any building size, can communicate on any public safety band and are easier to install, use and maintain. Making buildings safer is key to our business at Honeywell and we believe they should be safer for anyone who is in them or use them, for any purpose."

As per MRC, Honeywell announced an Emissions Control & Reduction Initiative designed to help customers achieve carbon neutrality in a wide range of areas. The initiative will initially focus on helping oil and gas customers with upstream, midstream and downstream operations to monitor and reduce fugitive methane emissions, which are more than 25 times as potent as carbon dioxide at trapping heat in the atmosphere according to the Environmental Protection Agency.
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Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited one of the leading company in petroleum sector in India has been supporting a CSR intervention “Integrated Cancer Care and Cure” in partnership with Indian Cancer Society which encompasses “Preventive” as well as “Curative” dimensions of Cancer Care, said the company.

The project comprises of Cancer Screening camps for Oral, Cervical and Breast Cancer in Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and Maharashtra along with financial support for treatment of cancer in through 10 government/non for profit hospitals PAN India as well survivorship & rehabilitation programs for cancer survivors.

BPCL has supported the entire cancer spectrum through its CSR activities. “Ugam”- a voluntary cancer survivors’ support group is an integral part of the overall program which has been formed by Childhood Cancer Survivors who have completed treatment. UGAM means “To Rise”, underscoring the determination of childhood cancer survivors, to rise above all obstacles in life and be VICTORS. UGAM has been set up with an aim to empower the survivors & become the ambassador of the message “Childhood Cancer is Curable” in society. Throughout the year Ugam volunteers are involved in many activities to create awareness of curability of cancer and foster bonding amongst cancer survivor’s fraternity.

700 Cancer screening camps are also supported by Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited towards the screening of Oral, Cervical and Breast Cancer at Pune, Kolhapur, Varanasi and Kolkata. These camps would be secerning more than 70,000 beneficiaries over a period of two years.

Under this program, Indian cancer society which is one of the national organization for awareness, detection, cure and survivorship of those affected by cancer, has developed a holistic rehabilitation interventions for optimizing quality of life of underprivileged childhood cancer survivor and bringing them into mainstream society. It also includes establishing survivorship clinics, educational support, vocational skill program and UGAM – support group network of childhood survivorship.

As per MRC, Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) has set up a superabsorbent polymer (SAP) technology demonstration plant of 200 tonnes per annum at the Kochi Refinery. The plant was inaugurated by BPCL’s executive director in-charge (refineries) Sanjay Khanna, in the presence of other officials. Using the in-house acrylic acid as feedstock, SAP technology is used in various hygiene products such as diapers and other incontinence products.

We remind that in April, 2020, BPCL shipped the first consignment of acrylic acid from its Propylene Derivative Petrochemical (PDP) complex at Kochi Refinery. Acrylic Acid is one of the six niche petrochemical products produced in the new PDP Complex at Kochi Refinery.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC''s ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,265,290 tonnes in the first eleven months of 2021, up by 14% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market were 1,363,850 tonnes in January-November, 2021, up by 25% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and block-copolymers of propylene (PP block copolymers) increased, whereas supply of injection moulding PP random copolymers decreased significantly.
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BASF has calculated the individual product carbon footprints (PCF) of a large part of its portfolio of chemical intermediates, said the company.

The results were compared with assessments of market-wide average carbon footprints of the corresponding products of third parties2. The outcome of the analysis shows that due to the production set-up the PCF of a range of BASF’s chemical intermediates is significantly below the global average PCF of the corresponding third-party chemicals, all produced from fossil-based raw materials.

The PCF comprises the total greenhouse gas emissions that occur until the BASF product leaves the factory gate for the customer: from the extraction of resources through manufacturing of precursors to the making of the final chemical product itself. On its journey to achieve net zero CO2 emissions by 2050, BASF is the first large chemical company to make the individual carbon footprints of all its sales products available to its customers.

The PCF is determined by various factors. For example, energy generation in BASF’s own gas-fired combined heat and power plants generates significantly less greenhouse gas emissions compared to other conventional energy generation. In addition, production processes of LowPCF intermediates are characterized by high production efficiency in terms of energy and raw material consumption due to BASF’s integrated Verbund system and continuous efforts in operational excellence. Finally, LowPCF intermediates generally use oil, natural gas or Verbund by-products, but not coal, as primary raw materials. Due to its chemical properties, the use of coal generally results in a higher carbon footprint of downstream products compared to natural gas or oil.

ЭCompany CO2 emission reduction targets are playing an increasingly important role in the value chains we serve. With our LowPCF intermediates, we are supporting our customers in achieving their targets: they now have the option to consciously choose a product with a carbon footprint significantly below the global market average,” says Stephan Kothrade, head of BASF's Intermediates division. “By making CO2 emission data at the individual product level available to our customers, we also offer a level of transparency that is unique in the chemical industry."

The intermediates tert-Butylamine (tBA), formic acid (FA), propionic acid (PA), 1,6-hexanediol (HDO) and neopentyl glycol (NPG) are versatile chemicals* that are used as ingredients for numerous everyday products. Examples include plastics, car tires, deicing agents, pharmaceuticals, crop protection products, paints and coatings. BASF customers use these products in the textile, automotive, agricultural, pharmaceutical and furniture industries, among others.

As per MRC, as announced on March 3, 2022, BASF has not conducted new business in Russia and Belarus, in light of the war of aggression against Ukraine ordered by the Russian government. BASF strongly condemns the Russian attack on Ukraine and the violence against the civilian population. The Board of Executive Directors of BASF SE has now decided to also wind down the company’s remaining business activities in Russia and Belarus by the beginning of July 2022. Exempt from this decision is business to support food production, as the war risks triggering a global food crisis.

We remind that BASF is strengthening its global catalyst development and helping customers to bring new products faster to the market. As part of this strategy, BASF is building a new pilot plant center at its Ludwigshafen site. The new Catalyst Development and Solids Processing Center will serve as a global hub for pilot-scale production and process innovations of chemical catalyst.

BASF is the leading chemical company. It produces a wide range of chemicals, for example solvents, amines, resins, glues, electronic-grade chemicals, industrial gases, basic petrochemicals and inorganic chemicals. The most important customers for this segment are the pharmaceutical, construction, textile and automotive industries.
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OMV informs that a mechanical incident occurred today at the Schwechat refinery which has been undergoing its maintenance turnaround since 19 April 2022, said the company.

Two persons were slightly injured. The incident has damaged the main distillation unit for crude oil. For this reason, the start-up of the refinery will be partially delayed. A review of the extent of the damage and the duration of the shutdown is still underway. We will work closely with our customers and suppliers to mitigate any impact on product availability.

With Group sales revenues of EUR 36 bn and a workforce of around 22,400 employees in 2021, OMV is amongst Austria’s largest listed industrial companies.

In Chemicals & Materials, OMV through its subsidiary Borealis, is one of the world’s leading providers of advanced and circular polyolefin solutions and a European market leader in base chemicals, fertilizers, and plastics recycling. Together with its two major joint ventures – Borouge (with ADNOC, in the UAE and Singapore) and Baystar™ (with TotalEnergies, in the USA) – Borealis supplies products and services to customers across the globe. OMV’s Refining & Marketing business produces and markets fuels as well as feedstock for the chemical industry, operates three refineries in Europe, and holds a 15% stake in a refining joint venture in the UAE. OMV operates around 2,100 filling stations in ten European countries. In addition, the activities include Gas & Power Eastern Europe where it also operates a gas-fired power plant in Romania. In Exploration & Production, OMV explores and produces oil and gas in the four core regions of Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa, North Sea, and Asia-Pacific. Average daily production in 2021 included production from a joint venture in Russia and amounted to 486,000 boe/d with a focus on natural gas (~60%). As of March 1, 2022, Russian entities are no longer consolidated. Its activities include Gas Marketing Western Europe, where it also operates gas storage facilities in Austria and Germany.

OMV intends to transition from an integrated oil, gas, and chemicals company to become a leading provider of innovative and sustainable fuels, chemicals, and materials, while taking a leading global role in the circular economy. By switching over to a low-carbon business, OMV is striving to achieve net zero in all three Scopes by 2050 at the latest.

As per MRC, OMV reported utilization of 83% at its European refineries in H1, 2021, down by 3% on the year yet "relatively resilient in light of the COVID-19 impact". It expects the utilization rates at its European refineries to remain at the 2020 level this year. Last year its refineries reported 86% utilization. The company's refineries in Europe ran at 85% utilization in Q2, up from 81% in the year-ago quarter.

As MRC wrote before, OMV is investing EUR40 million (USD48 million) to expand and modernize a steam cracker and associated units at its refining and petrochemicals complex at Burghausen, Germany. The upgrade will increase the site’s ethylene and propylene production capacity by 50,000 metric tons/year. Following a planned turnaround of the refinery, the revamped cracker and petchem units are expected to start operations in the third quarter of 2022. Initial groundwork is already underway ahead of the upgrade.

OMV produces and markets oil and gas, innovative energy and high-end petrochemical solutions – in a responsible way. With Group sales of EUR 23 bn and a workforce of around 20,000 employees in 2019, OMV Aktiengesellschaft is one of Austria’s largest listed industrial companies.
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Advocates for plastics pollution shareholder resolutions see the results of votes this year as a sign of growing investor concern over the issue, pointing to majority and near-majority support for their proposals at companies like Amazon and Phillips 66, said Sustainableplastics.

In late May, for example, 49 percent of Amazon shareholders voted for a resolution asking the online retail giant to detail efforts to cut back on single-use plastics. If you discount company-controlled shares in the vote, it was supported by nearly 60 percent of investors.

Likewise, investors representing 37 percent of ExxonMobil shares backed a call at its May 25 annual meeting to study its financial risks the resin maker faces, if the world moves significantly away from disposable plastics packaging.

That came after 50.4 percent of Phillips 66 shareholders backed a similar resolution in mid-May. Green shareholder groups said they put new focus on plastic resin firms this year, after the release of the Minderoo Foundation's Plastic Waste Makers Index identified the companies who are the biggest suppliers of plastic to single-use packaging markets.

As per MRC, ExxonMobil has made three new discoveries offshore Guyana and increased its estimate of the recoverable resource for the Stabroek Block to nearly 11 billion oil-equivalent barrels. The three discoveries are southeast of the Liza and Payara developments and bring to five the discoveries made by ExxonMobil in Guyana in 2022.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 2,487,450 tonnes in 2021, up by 13% year on year. Shipments of all grades of ethylene polymers increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market totalled 1,494.280 tonnes, up by 21% year on year. Deliveries of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased, whreas, shipments of PP random copolymers decreased significantly.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world's oil and about 2% of the world's energy.
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