Tracking rapidly changing new technology while keeping communication and collaboration moving amongst a large global team is a key part of Denise Burcham’s role with ExxonMobil.
ExxonMobil’s Burcham pushes to expansion project finish line
Denise Burcham, Venture Executive, ExxonMobil’s Baytown chemical expansion project
Burcham, venture executive for the company’s Baytown chemical expansion project in Baytown, Texas, leverages the global expertise of ExxonMobil to coordinate the supply chain, technology and project-planning experts to keep the project on track and deliver products to customers in a safe and environmentally responsible way.
"I started on this project when it was an idea on a dozen pieces of paper seven years ago, and it’s been incredibly rewarding to see this project through to almost completion," she said. "I am enormously proud of our project team as they managed global suppliers through the pandemic to build a world-scale investment in Baytown where we will produce products that people use every day."
ExxonMobil began construction on the $2 billion Baytown chemical expansion project in 2019. The project created 3,500 jobs during construction and involved the installation of two new chemical production units which are ready for startup this summer.
One unit will produce performance polymers that are the building block materials to make the things we use every day softer, more elastic and flexible in automotive, construction, medical and packaging applications, Burcham said.
The company expects to produce 400,000 tons of Vistamaxx™ performance polymers a year there.
The second unit will produce linear alpha olefins, marking ExxonMobil’s first entry into this market. Linear alpha olefins are components used in numerous applications, including high-performing engines and industrial oils, waxes and building blocks for surfactants, polyethylene plastic for packaging and other specialty chemicals. ExxonMobil aims to produce more than 350,000 tons/yr of linear alpha olefins.
ExxonMobil’s Baytown facility is the largest integrated petrochemical complex in the U.S. and is one of the most technologically advanced refining and petrochemical complexes in the world.
Founded in 1919, the complex is located on approximately 3,400 acres along the Houston Ship Channel, about 25 miles east of Houston. The facility includes a refinery, chemical plant, olefins plant, plastics plant and global technology center in nearby Mont Belvieu, Texas.
The two new sites at the expansion project are highly integrated, which makes the plants and products more efficient, Burcham said.
Weighing in on the investment involved in these type of project expansions in the initial project announcement press release, Darren W. Woods, ExxonMobil chairman and CEO, said: "Our substantial investments in the U.S. support ExxonMobil’s long-term growth plans and will result in thousands more high-paying jobs. The Baytown chemical expansion will put us in a solid position to maximize the value of increased Permian Basin production and will deliver higher-demand, higher-value products produced at our Gulf Coast refining and chemical facilities. Global demand for chemicals is expected to be greater than energy demand growth and GDP growth over the next 20 years."
ExxonMobil’s Burcham pushes to expansion project finish line
ExxonMobil’s Baytown chemical expansion project facility
Innovation and collaboration are keys to ExxonMobil’s success, so to that effect the Baytown chemical expansion project used a suite of immersive technologies and content-creation tools to enable technicians to virtually walk through and collaborate on construction, Burcham said.
A comprehensive, 3D engineering model was developed to allow engineers across the company and globe to enter an up-to-date unit model at a real-life scale before it was ever in the ground. Operators were also able to develop plant procedures much sooner than before with the virtual model, Burcham said. The time savings from these tools not only has kept the project on schedule, but also improved consistency and reliability.
While managing such expansive projects and a large global team, Burcham keeps the safety of the employees and community front of mind. The start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 added another layer of complication, she said.
"We have many layers of protection within our procedures, equipment and people that we must ensure work every day. Credit goes to our entire team to make this expansion one of the safest projects in our industry," she said.
"As the pandemic reached our area, the team focused on protecting our workforce to keep them healthy and employed. These were some of the hardest days as we navigated science that was evolving and supply chains that were struggling.
"Collaborating across experts and other ventures was key to staying a step ahead of the situation."
The challenge of strengthening energy supply and reducing emissions to support a net-zero future will be a key challenge for the industry moving forward, Burcham said.
"The products from this expansion support this goal," she said.
Burcham is originally from Ohio and graduated from Ohio State University with a chemical engineering degree. She came to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, with her husband, Michael, to work as a process engineer at the Exxon Baton Rouge Chemical Plant in the Vistalon Unit.
She and her family have moved between Baton Rouge and Houston while navigating their careers with ExxonMobil.
"I have had many assignments in manufacturing including plant manager at our Baton Rouge Plastics Plant," she said. "I have also had positions in finance, marketing, supply chain, sales and now ventures. In my venture roles, I really enjoy bringing new technologies from our research labs to full-scale investments."
Burcham finds local news and specialty magazines such as BIC Magazine helpful to keep up with industry news and trends. She has also supported the United Way through financial giving as well as volunteering for more than 35 years.
Earlier in their careers, she and her husband focused on giving back to underprivileged schools in their area. As their own children grew, they began volunteering as a family as science ambassadors and for neighborhood cleanups and cooking at a homeless shelter.
More recently, Burcham and her family have had wonderful experiences with Rebuilding Together Houston, an organization that works to repair homes and revitalize communities, as well as the nonprofit Houston Food Bank, she said.
"These experiences helped our neighbors, reminded us of our blessings and brought us together in service," Burcham said. One of the main things Burcham hopes to achieve through this project expansion is to see that the next generation of incredibly talented people continue to find ways to innovate and to meet the ever-evolving needs of ExxonMobil’s customers.
Ultimately, Burcham said the project will "bring value to ExxonMobil and the Baytown community for decades to come."
For more information, visit exxonmobil.com.
