119th Edition

Inside this issue:

Shift Safety 2 – 3

A Little History

FPC Commissions

New Ambulance

4 5

Maintenance Staff

Milestones

5

Service Awards

The Big Move

6 - 7 8 – 9

2012 Service Awards

Keeping the Lights

On: Utilities DCS

Upgrade

What do they do in:

Applications Lab

Formosa Family

Achievements and

News

The Formosa Logo

10 – 11

12

13

14 -15

16

From the GM’s Desk

I n this edition of our newsletter you will find an article about how Utilities staff seamless-

ly executed a software transition that updated the DCS controls in the Co-Gen plant and an-

other regarding the movement from the Port to FPC Texas of the distillation columns for the

Frac II unit. In the Utilities plant, the system “reboot,” which took about two hours to actu-

ally implement, was a masterful job of planning, coordination and teamwork. The system

reboot worked flawlessly and the transition to the new operating software went off without a

hitch. The lights never flickered, not even for a second. The transport of the new columns

represented craftsmanship at its finest, first in the production of the columns by Formosa

Heavy Industries and second in the planning and execution of transporting multimillion-

pound structures down a public thoroughfare and into place in the Frac II construction area.

Both of these are examples of the dedication, professionalism, knowledge and skill that our

employees bring to their jobs every day. We are enormously proud of the people who work

here both as full-time FPC employees and as contractors.

On the business front as we head into the final months of 2012, it looks as if Formosa Plas-

tics Corp. Texas will have our second consecutive outstanding year. We have set new pro-

duction records in several of our units and our profitability is strong. Our financial future

looks very promising.

Our Frac II expansion will begin to ramp up in the next year and that — coupled with the

recent announcements by the Port Authority of their expansion plans and enormity of the Ea-

gle Ford shale oil and gas field — suggests that industrial activity in our area will rapidly

increase. With that comes more traffic and more equipment movement. While we are study-

ing ways to improve the traffic flow in the areas near our facility, the roads in and out of the

area will gradually become more congested as much of Texas’ economic growth intersects

in this corner of the state. The statistics gathered by our EH&S staff are convincing: Our

employees are much safer while they are on the job than off the job. Bottom-line is that we

must take with us the safety strategies that we use while we are inside the fence and use them

while we are outside the fence, particularly while we travel to and from FPC Texas.

2012 has been an excellent year for us here in Point Comfort. That did not happen by acci-

dent. My sincere thanks to each of you for all you have done - and will continue to do - to

make FPC Texas a shining star in the Formosa Plastics Group of companies.

Published for the Formosa Family, our Friends and our Neighbors Dec., 2012

Brad Blake (OL II) tees it

up for the United Way in

FPC Charity Tournament.

118th Edition “Shift Safety”“Shift Safety”“Shift Safety”

Ricky Pfuhl Stewart Tanner J.P. Murry

Charles Bethany

At any given time, on any normal weekday, over 1,200 FPC-Texas and contract employees are working inside the

fence line of Formosa’s Point Comfort facility. Scores of chemical-laden tank cars, resin-filled hopper cars and bag-

filled trucks transport the products produced in the plant to all points on the compass. Ships and barges ease into port

to move petcoke or liquid products up and down the coastline. Enormous amounts of energy flow through the produc-

tion processes and power generating equipment in this facility. In short, it is a small city that requires its own fire de-

partment and — for all practical purposes — four highly-skilled “fire chiefs.”

The position of Shift Safety Coordinator brings with it a long list of responsibilities and requires a rock-solid ability to

make sound judgments and accurate decisions. “We have to coordinate the response to any incident, “ said Charles

Bethany, the freshman member of the Shift Safety quartet. “We respond to fires, medical emergencies, hazardous ma-

terials incidents and a host of other types if situations. But there are other responsibilities that are more mundane, like

filling breathing bottles or providing community support, that are very important although less visible.”

“No two days here are ever alike,” offered Ricky Pfuhl, the senior member of the Shift Safety quartet and an Emergen-

cy Response Team member since 1992. “The occurrence of an incident is usually unpredictable and so it is critical

that we have solid teamwork among ERT members. Effective response requires that we effectively coordinate our

activities and that we have confidence in each other. So we train together constantly and strive for that cohesion that

allows us to work as an efficient team and to make smart use of our resources.”

J.P. Murry joined Formosa in 1994 and decided to join the ERT after talking with Steve Phillips (who now is a Health

and Safety Specialist in the EHS Department) about fire school. “It sounded like fun,” he said, “You get to drive a

fire truck and be on a team of people on your shift!” He began service on the ERT in 1995, serving alongside friend

Shift Safety Coordinator Stewart Tanner, eventually becoming the “B” shift assistant Incident Commander. “I en-

joyed that job and the responsibility so when the position for SSC came available, well, I applied and got the position.

It is never the same two days in a row, there are different questions everyday and different issues everyday. We help

solve problems and answer questions about safety procedures, particularly on night shift and on weekends. It is very

Page 2

Page 3 important in this job to be a good communicator. We have to be good listeners and we have to ask the right questions.”

Stewart Tanner joined the ERT in 1994 after finishing the fire training program at Austin Community College and ser-

vice as a volunteer fireman. Tanner moved into the SSC position in 2002. “We preplan everything, “ said Tanner, “But

every situation is dynamic. So we spend over 200 hours per year training with our team, because safety is always first

in our thinking. But in the event of an emergency, we have to be ready to go. And I mean, physically, mentally and in

terms of preparation.”

Bethany moved into the SSC position that was vacated by Steve Phillips, who served in that position for seven years

and was the SSC on shift in the 2005 Olefins II fire. “I think that success as a Shift Safety Coordinator is related to ex-

perience, of course, but also to a level of discipline that leads to competency in firefighting, haz-mat response and medi-

cal emergencies (for examples), said Phillips. “But when emergencies arise the SSC has to be calm, able to respond to

outside influences and possess the judgment to make split second decisions. Situations can be very fluid and can

change very quickly.”

Do they like the

job? “That de-

pends on the

day,” laughed

Murry.

“The Shift Safe-

ty Coordinator is

a jack-of-all-

trades,” added

Pfuhl. “On any

single day we

can be the city

manager, fire

department, po-

lice department,

public works

and the dog

catcher. On a

weekend, if

someone has a

plugged drain,

we are likely to

be the first per-

son they call.

Alligator in the

ditch, snake

spotted in the

Warehouse?

Yep, call Shift Safety.”

On most days, their jobs are rather uneventful. There is gear to be checked, rounds to be made, batteries to be charged,

reports to file and training to be planned and coordinated. They serve as an information repository and a bridge to and

between operating units, fielding the questions that arise about almost anything having to do with safety issues. But

each spoke to the enormous sense of responsibility for the well-being of their coworkers and our facility.

“We will spend over 2,000 hours per year with the guys on my shift, “said Murry. “I think about their welfare every

day, even when I am not here on the job.”

“When I leave here after my shift, I feel real satisfaction in the knowledge that the Shift Safety Coordinators and the

ERT members have done what we need to do to help this place run smoothly,” said Tanner. “It is on my mind every day

that it is my responsibility to make sure all my coworkers go home safe and sound to their families. And I am serious

about that…...”

Formosa “B” shift ERT members executing a medical rescue of a worker exhibiting heat-

related symptoms.

Page 4

A Little Local History: OliviaOliviaOlivia The small community of Olivia, Texas was established on the shore of Keller Bay in 1892 by a Swedish Lutheran colo-

ny led by C.J. Haterius, who came to Texas from Galesburg, Illinois. He named the small settlement after his wife,

Olivia. A year later, the small Eden Congregation was organized and 12 members made up the first congregation.

In 1900, Pastor C.J. Damstrom answered the call to minister in Olivia, relieving a traveling minister from El Campo of

the journey to Olivia, which he had faithfully made twice a month for several years.

The small community grew slowly as Swedish immigrants continued to arrive, including the family of A.G. Haterius

and his family (the brother of the town’s founder) and other families with distinctive Swedish names as Cavallin, Berg-

strom, Lind, Carlson, Olson, Swenson, Larson and Skogberg.

Having immigrated from northern states with cooler climates, the life

of farming cotton in the heat and humidity of the Texas coast was a

difficult one. They suffered through periods of drought followed by

long periods of rainfall. They lacked drinking water and struggled

with boll weevil infestations. Lacking a cotton gin, the first crop had

to be transported by wagon to Edna for ginning, but the industrious

Swedes built their own gin in 1894 at a cost of $800 and named it the

“Farmers’ Gin.”

C.J. Haterius left Oliva and returned to Nebraska but his brother

stayed on and although he died in 1910, his wife Hannah remained

and raised her three children. Hannah Haterius was born in Sweden in

1856 and immigrated to the U.S. in 1879 with her husband and broth-

er. After several years in Kansas and Nebraska, they came to Texas in

1904.

The story of the Haterius family is a reflection of the immense contri-

bution immigrants made to Texas in the mid to late 1800’s and be-

yond. The only son of Hannah and A.G. Haterius became a Lutheran

minister and eventually moved to Fort Worth where he led a large

congregation. Their daughter Susanna taught school for many years

after graduating from Sam Houston Normal College.

Two descendants of these Swedish immigrant colonists, whose head-

stones can be found in the Olivia Cemetery, would serve gallantly in WWII and beyond. Oscar Cavallin volunteered

for service in the 82nd Airborne Division and parachuted onto French soil in Normandy on D-Day. He was captured

about a week later and survived imprisonment in a POW camp for seven months before he was repatriated. He returned

home where he served a long career in law enforcement and later ranching

Fernley H. Damstrom, grew up in Calhoun County where he was a mem-

ber of the local 4-H club and then attended Victoria College. He finished

pilot training at the Army Air Force’s pilot training at Drew Field, TX on

29 July 1943. He was assigned to the 7th Fighter Squadron at Tacloban,

Leyte in late December 1943.

While flying the P-38 Lightning in the Pacific Theater, Damstrom became

an “Air Ace,” shooting down eight enemy aircraft in aerial combat opera-

tions over the Philippine Islands. Damstrom was tragically killed 11 April 1945 when

an engine failed during take off from Laong Airfield, Luzon, Philippines. Unable to gain enough airspeed with one en-

gine, his plane ran off the end of the runway and came to rest upside down. His Decorations include the Silver Star,

Distinguished Flying Cross, and the Air Medal with six Oak Leaf Clusters.

Hannah Haterius and Children

Capt. Fernley Damstrom

Page 5

Maintenance staff members John

Chiang, Mike Tolar and David Tsai

each accomplished significant career

milestones.

Chiang and Tsai both passed their

Fundamentals of Engineering Exam-

inations, an important step in their

engineering certification process.

Tolar was awarded his Certified

Welding Inspector Certification by

the American Welding Society. The

pass rate for this welding test is less

than 50% .

Our sincere congratulations to these

FPC-Texas employees on these out-

standing career accomplishments! John Chiang, Danny Su, Mike Tolar and David Tsai

Formosa Commissions New StateFormosa Commissions New StateFormosa Commissions New State---ofofof---thethethe---Art AmbulanceArt AmbulanceArt Ambulance

Formosa Plastics Corp. Texas has added a second ambulance

to its emergency vehicle fleet. The vehicle was delivered to

the company in September and represents a significant addi-

tion to the medical response and rescue capabilities of the

Point Comfort EH&S Department.

“With the planned growth of our facility it was clear that we

had to prepare for that growth, said Darren Downs, EH&S

Emergency Response Coordinator. “Prior to the acquisition

of the new ambulance, we could only transport two patients at

the same time and that was only if they were at the same

location. This new ambulance allows us to respond to

two completely different locations if necessary. With

the increase in the number of employees working outside

the main plant area, for example the CFB Power Plant or

the railroad marshaling yard, our management decided

that the prudent course of action would be to make this

investment in the health and safety of our employees.”

The ambulance is built on a Dodge Ram 450 chassis and

is diesel powered. It is “self powered” and can generate

sufficient electricity to run the onboard medical equip-

ment, even if the engine is not running.

“This new ambulance represents our commitment to providing the best medical care possible to our employees,” said Formo-

sa General Manager, Randy Smith. “At the end of the day, the safety of the men and women who work at Formosa Plastics

Corp. Texas is our single highest priority.”

Darren Downs and Shift Safety Coordinator Ricky Darren Downs and Shift Safety Coordinator Ricky Darren Downs and Shift Safety Coordinator Ricky

Pfuhl examine circuitry in new ambulance.Pfuhl examine circuitry in new ambulance.Pfuhl examine circuitry in new ambulance.

Page 6

45 Years

Larry Karl - Formosa Hydrocarbons

40 Years

Ching-Hsing “Star” Lee - PVC/VCM

35 Years

Min-Yen “Peter” Chang - Mech. Maint.

Chung-Yin “Joey” Chen - SPVC

Tun-Min “Tim” Chen - HDPE I

Yih-Sheng Chen - Technical

Tien-Fu “Karl” Hsieh - VCM

Jen-Chih “Jerry” Lai - Accounting

Wu-Cheng “W.C.” Pai - EC-Electrical

Ding-Yeong “Frank” Wang - Admin.

30 Years

Donna Brandes - GMO

David Bullock - Olefins II

Dwayne Burkett - HDPE I

Jerry Cepak - PVC

Mel Gonzales Jr. - PVC

Richard Hebert - VCM

Donald Janis - Mech. Maint.

Robert “Bobby” Janis - Mech. Maint.

Jush-Fuh “Jeff” Lee - Utility Plant

Shiuh-Horng “Sonny” Lin - Mech. Maint.

Mark Novak - VCM

Larry Pena - PVC

Tsung-Pu “T.P.” Tai - PPI

25 Years

Hung-Chih “George” Liu - Mech. Maint.

20 Years

Danny Graham - Mech. Maint.

Twyla Greer - EHS

Curtis Griggs Jr. - Mech. Maint.

Mary Hall - Purchasing/Contracting

David Hill - EHS

Charles Holloway III - Mech. Maint.

Hwei-Ling “Linda” Kao - HDPE I

Lynn Kolar - Mech. Maintenance

Jon Lambert - Instrument Maintenance

Dan Laza - Mech. Maintenance

Lisa Ledwik - EC Construction

Martin Lewis - CFB

Chih-Yung “C.Y.” Lin - Technical

Ming-Tien Lin - Agricultural

James Linam - Chlor-Alkali

Carlos Luna - Instrument Maintenance

Philip “Rick” Manning - EC Instrument

Ronica Marshall - Neumin Production

Lupe Martinez - Instrument Maintenance

Martin “Shorty” Martinez - VCM

Willie Matak - Mechanical Maintenance

Tommy May - Instrument Maintenance

2012 Employee Service Awards Page 6

20 Years (Cntd.)

Willie Moses - Olefins I

John “Chris” Neel - EC Schedule Control

David Nichols - Mechanical Maintenance

Dionne Nobles - EHS

Gary O’Hara - Mechanical Maintenance

Benny Ozuna - Predictive Maintenance

Oscar Padron - Neumin Production

Tomas Pena Jr. - Civil Maintenance

Robert Reyes - Vinyl Lab

Adam “Donnie” Rodriguez - SPVC

Robert Serrata - Neumin Production

Floyd Smalley - Mechanical Maintenance

Harold Spence - Formosa Hydrocarbons

Sharon Tyler - Central Maintenance

David Wilson - Instrument Maintenance

Jimmy Almanzar - Mechanical Maint.

Bud Beldin - Formosa Hydrocarbons

Anthony Blinka - VCM

Matt Brittain - Technical

Theresa Cashio - Instrument Maintenance

Ernest Cisneros - Mech. Maintenance

Clay Coffey - Mech. Maintenance

Glenn “Andy” Coleman - Mech. Maint.

John Cranfill - Instrument Maint.

Julie Crober - Accounting

Melissa Dworaczyk - GMO

Dominic Fikes - VCM

Terry Floyd - Mech. Maintenance

Henry Garza - Mech. Maintenance

15 Years

Arturo Bazan Jr. - PO Shipping

Tony Blanton - PPI

William “Thor” Carruthers - EG

Clark Charbula - Formosa Hydrocarbons

Darren Drastata - Human Resources

Rudy Garza - Chlor-Alkali

Roger Green - Olefins II

Albert Hernandez - PO Shipping

Ricky Ibarra - Formosa Hydrocarbons

Tanya Kusak - Inland Traffic

Martin Law - Mechanical Maintenance

Shu-Ying “Shirley” Lin - Accounting

Gary Mills - Technical

Karim Moghanloo - Inst. Maintenance\

Israel Nunez Jr. - Utilities

Stacy O’Donnell - Inst. Maintenance

Ramsey Padron - Chlor-Alkali

Mark Rother - PPI

Tomas Sanchez - PVC Shipping

Vance Schulte - Mechanical Maintenance

Curtis Short - Agricultural

Jamie Slaughter - Inland Traffic

Jeffrey Smith - Mechanical Maintenance

Paul Spinks - PP II

Paul Tristan - HDPE I

Andrew Ureste - PVC

10 Years

William “Billy” Billings - Technical

Claudia Cowen - Technical

Randall Flessner - Technical

Yue Hua “Yvonne” Gu - PP II

Michael Hall - Mechanical Maintenance

Michael Hall - Mech. Maintenance

Gapgoung “Brian” Kong - Technical

Angelica Lara - Technical

Michael Lev - Utilities

Zhongyan Liu - Technical

Alan Lorfing - Chlor-Alkali

Ricardo Martinez - CFB

Larry Nelson - HDPE I

Michael Resendez - Technical

William Roller - Technical

Alex Rubio - VCM

Daniel Cervantes - EC Mech. Const. II

Jingyi “James” Wu - PP Operations

Demin Xu - Technical

David Zwerschke - Chlor-Alkali

5 Years

Joseph Alvarez - Olefins II

Robinson Ball - VCM

Justin Boedeker - Electrical Maintenance

Jason Bonuz - Electrical Maintenance

Jeffrey Brown - EG

John Bullock - Marine Traffic

Juan Caltzonzin - OL. Proc. Eng. Dept.

Jose Cano, Jr - PP II

Hing Chan - Technical

Ko-Ming “Wallace” Chen - Chlor/Alkali

Jose Davila - HDPE II

Glenn Eastwood - Olefins II

Joe Estrada - Inland Traffic

James Finster - PP II

Russell Foehner - ISC

Joseph Galloway - Inv. Control

Enrique Garza - HDPE II

Samuel “Sammy” Grimaldo, Jr. - EHS

Keri Harlan - Accounting

Kevin Harlan - Inst. Maintenance

Jerry Hinojosa - Neumin Production

Kuo-Feng “George” Huang - Mech. Maint.

Chris Neuman - Olefins II

Chad Ott - Olefins II

Michael Powers - Olefins II

Raj Ranjan - Technical

Clifford “Glenn” Schott - EC Design

Grant Sinclair - Olefins II

Eldridge Stewart - Predictive Maintenance

Shih-Hua “Poki” Sung - Neumin Prod.

Christopher Taylor - Technical

Jerry Thigpen - HDPE I

Jesse Vasquez Jr. - Utilities

2012 Employee Service Awards Page 7

The Big MoveThe Big MoveThe Big Move

T he clock began ticking at the moment the HHL Richards Bay inched away from the dock at Formosa’s Mailiao facility and headed out to sea. Carrying a load of crates loaded with equipment and four distillation columns

produced by Formosa Heavy Industries, it was headed for Calhoun County, Texas. For six weeks the ship steadily steamed across the Pacific Ocean , through the Panama Canal, up the coast of Central America and into the Gulf of Mexico, through the Matagorda Ship Channel and then into port.

“We were tracking the ship’s position every day,” said Tommy Hunt, who would be coordinating the movement of the equipment from the port to FPC Texas and then into its final destination, the “Frac II” construction site. “Timing was critical because we had to have everything staged and ready to go when the ship docked, “ he added. “We had to have it all unloaded and transported into the plant by noon on Nov. 21st so that we did not interfere with holiday traffic.

The ship had to sail on time as well, because if we didn’t, it would cost FPC somewhere between $35,000 to $50,000 a day in extra charges. Secondarily, with the Thanksgiving holiday beginning Thursday, we would have almost a whole week delay in construction if we didn’t finish on time. The clock starts ticking on a cer-tain day and that day can change. Delays may take place at the start of a job like this, but the finish date is not flexible: it stays the same..”

Planning for the Big Move began long before the ship left port. “We had a couple of major issues to overcome “ said Johnnie High, who coordinated the initial planning phase. “First of all, we knew that the diameter of the largest vessel was such that we could not come under any existing pipe racks so the equipment would have to come through Gate 6. The length of the columns meant that we needed a longer turning radius on the final turn into the Frac II area, so that we would need to construct

a temporary transport road with a turning point just north of the Ethylene Glycol unit. We also knew that the total weight of the equipment was near two million pounds and we were not sure that the dock area could sustain that load. So, we needed to have engineers assess that carrying capacity of the dock area.”

Getting the load off the vessel and into the plant would require meticulous planning, coordination and execu-tion. “Externally, we had to coordinate and plan with Alcoa, the Sheriff's Department, AEP, TexDot and the Port. Internally this was going to require a team effort and coordination with our Mechanical Construction staff, EH&S, Traffic, Civil Maintenance, Frac II and Ole-fins II Operations and our security guards,” added Hunt.

Once a column was moved to the Frac II construction site, contractors would be staged to immediately begin assembling scaffolding to begin the process of applying insulation to the exterior of the vessels.

All of this would require smooth off-loading, safe transport, and down to the minute timing if it was going to be done by the deadline.

The ship arrived in port at 10:30 AM, Nov. 17th and was greeted by the Coast Guard, Homeland Security, and U.S. Customs before being turned over to stevedores, at 2:30 PM., for unloading. FPC had made an agreement with Hansa Heavy Lift (the shipping company) to allow unloading until 8:00 P.M. and brought in two light towers so that the first

HHL Richards Bay arriving in port with distillation column on deck. Total equipment weight was two million pounds.

Columns and equipment crates loaded in the ship’s hold.

Page 8

day unloading could be maximized.

“We were a little concerned that the cranes would lack the lifting capacity to handle the weight of the columns,” said High. “If that turned out to be the case, we would have to bring in cranes on barges to execute the lift. That could cause a significant delay. Fortunately, that problem did not arise.”

One by one, the columns were gingerly lifted from the ships hold and placed on the transports. Operated by remote control, the transport vehicles crept along (resembling giant centipedes in both

number of legs and speed) FM 1593 to the inter-section at SH 35. “The electrical lines had enough slack in them that they could be lifted out of the way, “ said High., “and some of the traffic signals were actually temporarily removed during the transport. The phone lines to Civil Maintenance had to be completely disconnected for over a week, though.”

“Once we had the columns unloaded, my only real concern was that during the transport process, someone in a vehicle might hit one,” said Hunt. “The transport company was very good and had equipment that was perfect for this type of move. We were confident in their ability to

get the equipment transport-ed into the plant as long as a vehicular accident did not occur. Sometimes things happen that are out of our control and I always worry about that happening. But, the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office did a great job of traf-fic control for us, particularly at the SH 35 intersection and as the columns made the turn into the plant through Gate 6 . With their help we completed it safely.”

It all went off without a hitch. By noon on Tuesday, the last column and the last crates of heavy equipment were securely in their places in the Frac II construction area. “It was an excellent team effort,” smiled Hunt. “We finished up about 36 hours ahead of schedule and we are thankful that the move

went so smoothly. This was the heaviest total load ever unloaded at the port and one of the columns was the single heaviest piece of equipment offloaded there.”

Distillation column making the slow right-hand turn from FM 1593 onto SH 35.

Sometimes it’s a just a matter of a few inches.

Tight turn between PPII and EG unit, the column is 186 ft. in length

Column is lifted from the ship’s hold onto moving vehicle.

Tommy Hunt (L) and John Warren inspect Frac II column

Page 9

Edgarth Rivera— Process Engineer in

Olefins. He holds a Chemical Engineer-

ing Degree from TAMU—Kingsville.

Christopher Nojiri—Process Engineer

in Olefins II. He holds an M.S. from

Columbia University and lives in Port

Lavaca.

Amanda Carriker—Admin. Asst. in

E/C Civil. She resides in Point Comfort

and has one daughter, Madison (10).

Nathan Rippee—Bulk loader in

HDPE II.

Enrique De La Rosa—Elect. Tech in

Electrical Maintenance.

Rex Johnston—Operator in CFB. He

holds a M.Ed. From Sam Houston St.

He lives in Victoria with his wife Lorie

and their children Brianna (10) and

Chloe (5). He enjoys hunting and fish-

ing.

Manuel Reyes—Process Operator in

PPI. He is married and lives in Victoria.

Dustin O’Connell—Process Operator

in PPI. He holds a B.S. in Criminal

Justice from Sam Houston St.. He lives

in Bay City with his wife Blair. He en-

joys hunting, fishing and the outdoors.

Shane Stolz—Process Operator in

SPVC. He holds a Process Tech degree

from Victoria College. He has two chil-

dren, Dakota (18) and Jaden (11) and

enjoys hunting and fishing.

James Wilson – Process Operator in

SPVC. He lives in Palacios and has one

daughter, Macy (9).

Marci Grantland - Admin. Asst. in

SPVC. She lives in Inez with husband

Clint (CFB) and children Katie (17),

Haley (11) and Teagen (8).

Rodolfo (Fo) Cortez—Process Opera-

tor in C/A. He holds a B.S. degree from

TAMU-CC, and lives in Port Lavaca

with wife Jamie and children Adrianna

(8) and Ayden (4). He enjoys hunting,

fishing, his children and sports.

Thomas Thornton—Process Operator

in C/A. Holds B.S. degree from Univ.

of Houston - Victoria and lives in Victo-

ria with his wife, Sarah.

Bryan Shook –Process Operator in C/

A. Holds a B.S. in Agriculture from

TAMU-Kingsville. He lives in Victoria

with wife Kaye. He enjoys taxidermy

and rodeo.

Brittany Meador - Admin. Asst.

Maintenance Center. She lives in Port

Lavaca with her son A.J. (13).

Kristie Ford— Lab Tech in SPVC.

She holds an AS in Chemical Technolo-

gy from TSTC and lives in Palacios

with children Mallorie and Chase.

Jake Nolen—Operator in PP I. He

holds an Assoc. Degree from Victoria

College.

Kenneth Schupbach - Electrical

Maintenance. He holds an Assoc. De-

gree in Electronic Engineering Technol-

ogy from I.T.T. Technical Institute. He

is married and lives in Edna with his

wife Margaret. He has one son, Christo-

pher (20). His hobbies include bowling

and has bowled a 300 game.

Marcus Ortega—Electrician in Elec-

trical Maintenance. He lives in Port

Lavaca and has one daughter, Allyssa

(15).

Tyson Brown—Operator in CFB. He

holds a Master’s degree from the Uni-

versity of Houston. He is married and

lives in Victoria with his wife Beth and

children Sean (16), Tyson (4), Caleb (3)

and Peyton (six months).

Marc Cuellar—Operator in CFB. He

holds an A.A.S. from Victoria College.

He is married and lives in Victoria with

wife Lori and children Steven (18), Xa-

vier (15) Ethan (8) and Joaquin (5). His

hobbies include coaching Little League

baseball.

Chieh-Wen Chen – Process Engineer

in SPVC. He holds a MS from the Uni-

versity of California, San Diego

Zhao Wang – Process Engineer in HDPE.

He holds a Masters Degree in Chemical En-

gineering from McNeese State Univ.

Churng-Guang Hou– Mechanical Engi-

neer in Mechanical Maintenance. He holds

a M.S. degree from the Univ. of California,

San Diego. He is single, lives in Port Lavaca

and enjoys swimming, baseball and basket-

ball.

Wen-Chuan Chen – Process Engineer in

SPVC. He has an engineering degree from

Chung-Yuan University in Taiwan. He is

married and has two children, Kenny (22)

and Maris (10).

Ming-Hao Chiou – Process Engineer in

SPVC. He lives in Houston and has an M.S.

from Texas A&M University. He enjoys

running and sports.

Clinton Meaux – Process Operator in Util-

ities. He is single, and holds a B.S. from

Texas A&M—Kingsville.

David McAfee – Process Operator in

SPVC.

Shawn Marshall – Process Operator in

CFB. He lives in Victoria with his wife

Monique and children Nathan (18), Jasline

(18) and Madison (5).

Shane Wenske – Instrument Tech in In-

strument Maintenance. He holds an A.S.

degree from Victoria College and lives in

Ganado.

Harrison “Chance” Odell– Process Tech

in Utilities. He holds an A.A.S. in Nuclear

Power Technology from Wharton Jr. Col-

lege. He lives in Edna and enjoys hunting,

fishing and boating.

Wei-Hsuan Wu – Mechanical Engineer in

Mechanical Maintenance. He holds a Mas-

Page 10 119th Edition Welcome New Hires – 2012

Back: Nolen, Wang, Quellar, Brown

Front: Schupbach, Ortega, Chen

Chen, Hou, Chiou, Meaux

ter’s Degree from the Univ. of Illinois. He

lives in Port Lavaca.

Nathaniel Crowley – Millwright in Me-

chanical Maint. He lives in Wadsworth

with his wife Rebecca and Payton (9).

John Seals – Electrical Maintenance. He

lives in Hallettsville and enjoys hunting

and fishing.

Leonard Coones II – Millwright in Me-

chanical Maintenance. He is single and

lives in Victoria.

Matthew Klacman – Process Operator

in CFB. He lives in Victoria and enjoys

playing golf.

Frank Garcia – Maintenance Tech in

Mechanical Maintenance. He lives in

Victoria with his wife Patsy. He has four

children and three grandchildren. He en-

joys golf and service to others.

Vincent Kacir - Millwright in Mech.

Maint. He lives in Port Lavaca with his

wife Jennifer and children Erica, Ariah,

Cora, Brianna and Danielle. He enjoys dirt

track car and bike racing.

Andrew Sheu - Mech. Engineer in Mech.

Maint. He holds a B.S. in Mech. Engineer-

ing from the U.T.- Austin.

LaQuesha Rhodes - Lab Tech in SPVC. She is a graduate of TAMU-Kingsville

with a degree in Biology. She enjoys mu-

sic and cooking.

Alberto Fonseca, Jr. - Lab Tech in

SPVC.

Sandra Molina - Lab Tech in SPVC.

Dustin Snell - Process Operator in Utili-

ties. He holds a B.S. in Economics from

UTSA and lives in Port Lavaca.

Alvin Simmons - Process Operator in

CFB. He holds a BS in Management

from Grambling St. Univ. and lives in

Victoria.

Brett Harriss - Instrument Maint. He

holds an I/E degree from TSTC in Waco

and lives in Port Lavaca.

Shih-Shian “Stanley” Ho - Mechanical

Engineer in Mech. Maintenance.

Garrett Spraggins - Elect. Tech in Elec-

trical Maintenance. He lives in Lolita, is

single and enjoys hunting and fishing.

Jody Hickl - Olefins I. He is married

and lives in Blessing.

Ray Wilkinson - Process Operator in

OL I. He holds a B.S. degree from Sam

Houston St, Univ. He is single and lives

in Port Lavaca.

Stephen Tucker - Millwright in Mech.

Maintenance. He lives in Bay City.

Homer Zepeda- Instrument Tech. in

Instrument Maintenance. He holds an

AAS from TSTC in Waco. He is single

and lives in Palacios.

Ang Li– Mechanical Engineer in EC

Mechanical PM2. He holds a Master’s

Degree from Texas A&M Univ.

Christopher Hill - Process Operator in

CFB. He is single, lives in Victoria and

has one child, Breana (17).

Matthew Pfeifer - Process Operator in

Fractionation II. He is single and lives

in Port Lavaca.

Patrick Hosey - Process Operator in

Fractionation II. He hold a B.S from

Howard Payne Univ. He lives in Bloom-

ington and enjoys sports and exercise.

Matthew Frankson - Process Operator

in PP I. He holds a B.S. from Texas

A&M in Ag. Development. He is single

and lives in Bay City. He enjoys hunting,

fishing, and Aggie football tailgating.

Chad Clark - Process Operator in Ole-

fins I. He lives in Brazoria and enjoys

anything that is outdoors and on the wa-

ter.

Collin Haynes - Bulk Loader in PVC

Shipping. He lives in Port Lavaca and

hobbies include hunting and fishing.

Clinton Lambert - Sr. Technician at

Neumin Production. He holds an A.S.

in Process Technology from Victoria Col-

lege. He has one child, Cayme (3) and

enjoys hunting.

Joseph Pirosko - Process Operator in

Fractionation II. He has a degree in

Environmental Planning from Univ. of

Wisconsin-Green Bay.

Leslie Springer - PP I.

Daniel Alfarao - Bulk Loader in PP I.

He lives in Ganado and has two children

Aubry (4) and Alanna (11 months). He

enjoys sports and time with his family.

Rudy Figuerova Jr. - Lab Tech in L.S.

and Q.A. He lives in Victoria with his

wife Courtney and daughter Kalista (10).

His enjoys sports and video games.

Marcus Rogers - Bulk Loader in Poly-

olefins Traffic.

Dennis Kalisek - Process Operator in

Utilities. He holds a A.S. in Process

Technology from Victoria College.

Cody Barton - Tech. in VCM. He lives

in Port Lavaca and enjoys hunting and

fishing.

Page 11 119th Edition Welcome New Hires – 2012

Back: Wenske, Coones, McAfee, Seals

Middle: Marshall, Crowley

Front: Hsuan, Odell, Garcia, Klacman

Back: Frankson, Lambert, Hill, Clark,

Hosey

Front: Pfeiffer, Haynes, Pirosko

Back: Kalisek, Rogers, Figuerova

Front: Springer, Alfaro

Utilities Plant Installs DCS UpgradesUtilities Plant Installs DCS UpgradesUtilities Plant Installs DCS Upgrades Page 12

Nestled near the center of the FPC Texas complex, the Utilities Plant operates in relative obscurity. But without the industrial water, steam and power that is produced in the plant, the lights don’t light, processes don’t process and cooling towers don’t cool.

“We produce industrial water, steam and power in the Utilities area,” said Dave Metting, Asst. Utilities Operations Manager. “Most of our industrial water is used for cooling tower supply and we pipe steam at 600, 300 and 150 PSI throughout the plant. We provide electricity for the entire facility.

Utilities operates a raw-water treatment plant and a series of electrical generators, six of which are powered by burn-ing natural gas and three by steam. “The gas-fired turbines are similar in operation to a jet airplane engine, “said Metting. “Air is compressed and mixed with fuel in a combustion chamber. The heat and high velocity air flow then flows through a turbine which turns an electrical generator. We recover the heat from the gas turbines and then use it to make steam to power our steam turbines.”

Managing the electrical demand is a delicate balance of supply and demand. The overall system is both monitored and controlled by the DCS in the Utilities control room. As the plant has aged and as it begins another expansion, the existing Utilities plant DCS software was clearly in need of an upgrade. “Our vendors had given us the heads-up that parts for the existing system were becoming hard to find and that an upgrade should be on our horizon. We sub-mitted the B-1 in 2010 and began preparing for making the switchover,” added Metting.

The difficulty lay in the fact that the DCS control system would have to be down for a system “reboot,” but the Utili-ties plant would have to remain operational. That meant that control of the system would have to be reassigned to the backup “Mod-30” single loop controllers. If the plant was in full operation, each of those 34 controllers would have to function perfectly (there is no backup for the backup) and all would have to be monitored. In addition, the process itself would have to be carefully engineered to make sure that when the new system began to come online, it did not cause unforeseen disruptions.

“We had some experience in a similar situation in the past when we prepared for the Y2K concerns,” offered Metting. “We went back to our old check sheets and began the process of determining what we had to have in place so that the plant would still function smoothly.”

Of all the operational plants at FPC, Chlor-Alkali is the most power hungry. The dissolution of brine water into its most simple chemical components takes a lot of “juice,” so the planned October turnaround in C/A was the best win-dow of opportunity for implementing the changes. “Having C/A’s down for turnaround meant that three turbines would be offline and that 12 control loops would not be in use. That was a real advantage because we would not have to monitor those loops, engineer them for possible problems during reboot or deal with unforeseen problems. That reduced the complexity of the project,” said Metting. “We had to make sure we isolated and maintained our critical processes, because not everything can be controlled with the backup system. “

The system reboot itself would take about two hours to complete, during which the control room monitors, which routinely provided layers of screens and information about the status of the system, would be totally dark. Imagine sitting at your home computer for two hours waiting for the inviting icons to appear on your screen all the while wondering if it was all going to work. As the process ran, the system slowly came back to life and the Utilities staff knew they had pulled the whole thing off without so much as a flickering light in the hallway.

“It was a outstanding team effort; a lot of skilled people did a great job of making sure that we kept the power on, the water flowing and the steam traveling down the pipes,” said Metting. “We will continue to run the old system while our Operations staff become fully accus-tomed to the new system, but it is up and functioning.”

We were pretty confident that we had it right,” said Metting. “But waiting for those screens to come up was the only way to know that we had been successful. It was the only way to know if we had missed

something. But we didn’t……”

Metting and William Chang review new DCS system screens.

What Do They Do In The:What Do They Do In The:What Do They Do In The:

Application & Development Research LabApplication & Development Research LabApplication & Development Research Lab

Page 13

Right across the street from the Business and Technology Development building and just west of the LLDPE pro-duction unit is a simple, plain and unmarked building that brings to mind the brainiac wallflower teenager standing against the wall at a high school dance with taped-glasses and no name tag. It is there, but no one really seems to notice. Steam doesn’t rise from its roof on cool mornings, railcars don’t line up outside the door and no noticeable noise comes from its interior. But inside that building is one of the most important labs in the Formosa Plastics com-plex and its functions are critical to the company’s products and to its future.

Inside, Larry Patterson (the lab supervisor) and Kenny Marody stood over a bench looking at a blown film extruder that Marody was reworking and upgrading. “We need to check the tolerances on this die,’ said Patterson. “It has to fit perfectly for this extruder to work correctly. It has to be within 2/1000 of an inch; that is pretty tight.” Over their shoulder, Dustin Kulak methodically stood guard over a machine that created plastic “plaques” and as they were col-lected began to closely inspect them for imperfections and uniformity.

“Our job in this lab is to help predict our product performance,” said Patterson. “As the units go through the product development process, we ensure that the functionality of the resins and, in some cases, finished products. The lab has some of the end-user equipment scaled down for research and development as opposed to full-scale production.”

The A&D lab makes some of the finished products that Formosa’s customers produce, plastic milk jugs and PVC pipe for example, and then tests those products to make sure they will perform as they should. But that activity is only as part of the research and development that goes on in the A&D lab.

“In the past,” said Patterson, “Formosa would develop a product and find a market for the product. It was a strategy that worked well, but in recent years we have begun to work closely with our customers to develop specific resins for their individual applications. A customer may be using one of our resins, but requires a different melt index for a con-sumer product they are developing. So, we work with our research staff and the production units to make it happen.”

As a resin is in development, it may take several “lab-scale” production runs before the new resin meets new stand-ards. “We work very closely with the production units in product development,” added Patterson. “We do the appli-cation testing to see how well a formulation performs. We then provide those results to the production staff and they make changes as needed. We do a back-and-forth trade of information and resin until we get exactly what we want. Then we can move on to pilot-scale and unit-scale production. We are constantly looking at improving our products and at helping our research and production units as they work to develop new products for the market.”

The A&D Lab is a maze of small-scale blown film machines, extruders, pipe testing tanks, and even a rather magical machine that converts a slug of plastic resin into a milk bottle. “We have to continually find ways to get better,” said Patterson. “This is a competitive industry and we can’t afford to be complacent.”

Lab Supervisor Larry Patterson inspects a plastic milk bottle pro-

duced in the A&D Lab.

Kenny Marody, Raj Ranjan and Patterson measure toler-

ances on new extruder die.

Lab Tech Dustin Kulak checks plastic plaques for uniformity.

Dara Marie Burgin, daughter of Shane (EH&S) and Angie Burgin was named 2012 Homecom-ing Queen at Industrial High School. Dara is a

Senior and is considering both Texas A&M Univ. and Texas Tech. She is interested in be-

coming an RN or Registered Dietician.

Morgan Vogt, daughter of Jon Vogt

(PVC Shipping), was named 2012

Brazoria County Fair Queen. Vogt is

a Senior at Sweeney High School, a

cheerleader and three year FFA mem-

ber. She is considering Sam Houston

State University or Wharton Jr. Col-

lege after graduation.

Tyler Gorman

Ganado High School

Grandson of Bud (Formosa Hy-

drocarbons) and Pam Belkin

Allen Odell

Hope High School

Son of Scott (Inst. Maintenance)

and Theresia Odell

More 2012 Grads!

Members of the Formosa Plastics Group Overseas Operations delegation sport the medal they won at the 2012 Formosa Plastics Group Olympics in “Fishing.” Team members included (top) Jackie Lovett (FPC Texas), Michael Richard (FPC Baton

Rouge), Artie Gouveia (FPC-NJ), (middle row) Jeff Brown (FPC Texas), Jason Bonuz (FPC Texas), Larry Patterson (FPC Texas), (bottom row) Tommy Minatrea (FPC

Texas), Michael Flickinger, John Sullivan and Brandon Moebes (Nan Ya, S. Carolina)

Karagan Kusak was named Junior

Miss at the Jackson County Youth

Fair Pageant , Sept. 29th, 2012.

Karagan is the daughter of J.J.

(LLDPE) and Tanya (Traffic Rail)

Kusak. She is the granddaughter of

Tommy (E/C) Mechanical and Irene

Hunt.

Courtney (left) and Cassidy High , daughters of Johnnie (EC) and Debra High, competed in the 2012 State Cross Country

Meet. Courtney placed 5th and Cassidy placed 35th in a field of 110 runners from Class 2A. Both attend Industrial High

School where Courtney is a Senior and Cassidy a Freshman. Courtney was 1st in District competition and Cassidy was 2nd!

Jordan Edison, Tallen Hermes and Melina Ortiz (L-R above) along with Megan Tschathchula (above right) were all named to

the District 30-4A All-District Volleyball Team. The Sandies had an outstanding season finishing as Bi-District Champions.

Jordan is the daughter of Misty Cobb (PVC Lab), Tallen is the daughter of Kevin (Utilities Instrument Maintenance) and

Michelle Hermes, Melina is the daughter of Joe (Electrical Maintenance) and Laura Ortiz and Megan is the daughter of

Mark Tschathchula (LLDPE).

Formosa Plastics Corp. Texas welcomed six new interns from Ming Chi University of Technology in Taipei, Tai-wan. Standing right to left as they point to the Ming Chi Univ. logo are Tun Hao Yang, Yu Kai Chien, Chieh Cheng Chen, Bing Han Chou, Yu Ci Huang and Lou Chang Wang. They will be working in the Engineering Center for the

next ten months before returning to their college studies.

The Logo

Ever wondered which members of the Formosa Plastics Group are represented in symbols of the FPG logo? Top to Bottom, Left to Right—The mystery is solved.

1. Formosa Plastics Corporation

2. Formosa Chemicals and Fibre Corporation

3. Chang Gung Memorial Hospital

4. Nan Ya Plastics Corporation

5. Chang Guan University (notice the clever graduation cap (mortar board) in the design)

6. Ming Chi University of Technology

7. Formosa Petrochemical Corporation

8. Formosa Heavy Industries (the “I” beam design is rather appropriate)

9. Chang Gung Institute of Technology

10. Nan Ya Technology Corporation

11. Formosa Plastics Marine Corporation