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Press Release
White Energy Invests in Performance Improvement With Pavilion Technologies’ Ethanol Solution
Dallas-based biofuels producer selects Pavilion's Model Predictive Control (MPC) technology to help increase production and efficiency
AUSTIN, Texas, June 16, 2008 - Leading ethanol producer White Energy Inc. (Dallas, Texas) has awarded a multisite Model Predictive Control (MPC) project to Pavilion Technologies, a Rockwell Automation company. The project will help improve ethanol production at White Energy's three plants located in Russell, Kansas, Hereford, Texas and Plainview, Texas. White Energy is the first and largest producer of ethanol in Texas and the fifth largest ethanol producer in the United States.
"Pavilion has an impressive record and reputation for providing major and sustainable benefits to ethanol producers," said David Diwik, president and Chief Executive Officer of White Energy. "This project will help maximize plant performance, increase ethanol yield, and reduce energy consumption, helping us meet our goal of becoming one of the most efficient producers of ethanol in the biofuels industry."
Pavilion's Model Predictive Control (MPC) solution creates a comprehensive model of the production process that predicts and analyzes variable process parameters to optimize nearly every step of production, including milling/cooking, fermentation, distillation/sieving and stillage.
White Energy will also implement Pavilion's Production Performance Management (PPM) at each plant as well as its Dallas headquarters to manage and adjust ethanol production and yield based on shifting materials, energy costs and ethanol prices.
"I've spent more than 15 years in ethanol plant operations and strive to get every last ounce of ethanol out of a plant and a bushel of corn," said Ron Dunbar, vice president of Operations for White Energy. "The Pavilion solution will help us do exactly that - maximize our resources while helping our plants run at top efficiency and capacity."
Pavilion has installed its MPC Ethanol Solution in more than 30 ethanol plants, consistently helping customers increase production, improve product consistency, reduce energy consumption, and generate a return on investment within six to 12 months.
"We are very proud that White Energy has chosen Pavilion Technologies to help continually improve its long-term performance and production," said Ralph Carter, director of Pavilion Technologies. "Their investment will provide great returns, and we look forward to delivering major results."
About White Energy Inc.
Dallas-based White Energy Inc. was founded to develop, fund and manage business
opportunities focused on renewable energy sources. Currently, White Energy owns
and operates three ethanol production plants: a 100-million-gallon plant in
Hereford, Texas, a 50-million-gallon plant in Russell, Kansas, and a 100-million-gallon plant scheduled in Plainview, Texas. During the next several years, White Energy plans to grow its production capacity through the development of technology, acquisition of operating plants, development projects, and internally-developed greenfield sites in the ethanol sector. For more information, please visit http://www.white-energy.com.
About Pavilion Technologies
Pavilion Technologies is a recently acquired Rockwell Automation Inc. (NYSE: ROK)
company, that provides model-based software to drive profitability for leading
manufacturers such as Cemex, Glacial Lakes Energy, NOVA Chemicals, Nestle, Fonterra
Co-operative Group, SABIC Europe and TOTAL Petrochemicals. Based on the industry's
most powerful predictive modeling software, Pavilion's solutions help improve
production processes to respond quickly to market demands, continuously reduce
costs, consistently achieve quality targets and improve environmental quality.
Pavilion is the leading supplier of control software solutions to the U.S. ethanol
industry. With a commitment to delivering the highest ROI in the industry, Pavilion's
ValueFirst customer engagement methodology yields predictable results.
For more information on capabilities for the biofuels industry, please visit http://www.pavtech.com.
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ValueFirst is a trademark of Pavilion Technologies.
Media contacts: Rebecca Archibald
Rockwell Automation
414.382.1363
rkarchibald@ra.rockwell.com
Katie Paulson
Padilla Speer Beardsley Inc.
612.455.1706
kpaulson@psbpr.com