Remote Control Room Upgrade

A major global petroleum company had invested heavily in a plant expansion in South Asia. The footprint was set, the concrete had been poured, the rebar was in, and the clock was ticking.

A top executive at the petroleum company in Houston could tell something wasn’t right. Having worked with BAW Architecture in the past, he was able to sense some inefficiencies—namely a lack of attention to human factors that would fundamentally impact productivity—and he picked up the phone.

BAW was tasked with upgrading the plan entirely from our Denver office. We approached this 100% remote project armed with an overarching raison d’être: have the most impact with the least alteration, while keeping the whole project on time and within the original budget.

BAW reworked minor yet essential design elements that significantly changed the space for the better. Human factors considerations drove our recommendations; for example, we redesigned the console layout and moved a proposed stairway, which freed up the floor plan. The original schematics were much too cramped and congested for the plant operators, and would have resulted in communication, traffic, interruption, and distraction problems.

Communication of these essential upgrades was via weekly conference calls between Denver, Houston, and South Asia. We presented our plans in 2-D overlays on the original interior architectural drawings, with no exterior changes, since the structure was already in the ground. The whole project was done in a few weeks, and the Houston client got exactly what he wanted: a quick, cost-effective, efficient upgrade with minimal changes that significantly impacted overall plant productivity.