LEHIGH VALLEY, Pa.,
Sept. 9, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Air
Products (NYSE: APD), the world's leader in liquefied natural gas
(LNG) technology and equipment, today held a ceremony to celebrate
the rollout of the first completed liquefied natural gas (LNG) heat
exchanger manufactured at its new production facility in
Manatee County, Florida.
At the conclusion of the event, the heat exchanger was
transported from the Air Products facility, crossing over Route 41
directly onto the property of Port
Manatee, where it will be loaded on a barge this weekend and
shipped to a customer for a major liquefied natural gas project
along the United States (U.S.)
Gulf Coast.
"I am proud to say that no one in the world builds coil wound
heat exchangers as large as we do. The largest LNG plants in
the world use our technology. We needed a second
manufacturing location, which would eliminate any transportation
limitations regarding product size," said Sandy McLauchlin, general manager - LNG &
CryoMachinery Engineering & Manufacturing at Air
Products. "When we selected this site, we believed it
provided us with everything we needed in an operational
location. I can tell you we made a wise choice. This new
facility will help us maintain our market leadership position."
Typically an LNG heat exchanger can be as large as over 15 feet
in diameter and 180 feet long, or about two-thirds of the size of a
football field. A finished unit can weigh as much as 500
tons. "It remains to be seen how big we will build one here,
but we are confident that at this new location, we can build an LNG
heat exchanger to the size of whatever the market requires,"
McLauchlin said.
Interestingly, while Air Products has already shipped 116 LNG
heat exchangers to 17 countries around the world, this first unit
produced here at Port Manatee is
also the company's first shipment to a Gulf Coast location, and is
the second U.S. location for Air Products' LNG technology as part
of responding to the needs of the LNG export industry in the U.S.
In fact, the first two units to be produced at the
Port Manatee facility will travel
by barge to locations on the U.S. Gulf Coast for LNG export
terminal projects.
"As the world's energy needs continue to increase, demand for
cleaner energy is at the forefront, and natural gas is the cleanest
of all the fossil fuels. In order to achieve the greatest
economies of scale, even larger capacity LNG heat exchangers for
LNG plants are being required by our customers," said Jim Solomon, director – LNG at Air
Products. "Our process technology and the LNG heat exchanger
are the heart of an LNG plant. Our technology operates at
some of the most remote locations around the world where vast
fields of natural gas are located, and it is our liquefaction
process that unlocks this stranded natural resource and thus makes
it economical to be shipped around the world for energy use."
One of the key draws for Air Products to locate the facility in
Port Manatee was its ease of
access to a port berth for shipping the proprietary and large
equipment. The Chair of the Manatee County Port Authority was
on hand and made some comments marking the event. "Both Air
Products and Port Manatee benefit
from their strong collaboration," said Betsy Benac,
Chair of the Manatee County Port Authority. "Air Products has
proven to be a huge asset to Manatee
County in providing high paying jobs and other economic
benefits, and we are looking forward to many more years of
cooperation."
The Port Manatee facility
doubles the company's manufacturing capacity. The over
300,000 square foot facility was dedicated in January 2014.
Air Products completed the land purchase for approximately 32 acres
in November 2012, after announcing
plans for the manufacturing facility in July 2012.
Air Products' proprietary technology, vital to helping meet the
world's increasing energy needs and desire for clean energy,
processes and cryogenically liquefies valuable natural gas for
consumer and industrial use. Air Products has manufactured
LNG heat exchangers at its existing Wilkes-Barre facility for over 45 years.
In July 2012, the 100th
coil wound heat exchanger made at the location was shipped from the
facility.
A majority of total worldwide LNG is produced with Air Products'
technology. In support of the LNG industry, Air Products provides
process technology and key equipment for the heart of the natural
gas liquefaction process for large export plants, small and
mid-sized LNG plants, floating LNG plants and LNG peak shavers.
Upstream, Air Products provides both nitrogen and natural gas
dehydration membrane systems for offshore platforms. Downstream,
Air Products provides dry inert gas generators for LNG carriers,
shipboard membrane nitrogen systems, and land-based membrane and
cryogenic nitrogen systems for LNG import terminals and base-load
LNG plants.
About Air Products
Air Products (NYSE:APD) is a world-leading Industrial Gases company
celebrating 75 years of operation. The company's core Industrial
Gases business provides atmospheric and process gases and related
equipment to manufacturing markets, including refining and
petrochemical, metals, electronics, and food and beverage. Air
Products is also the world's leading supplier of liquefied natural
gas process technology and equipment. The company's Materials
Technologies business serves the semiconductor, polyurethanes,
cleaning and coatings, and adhesives industries.
The company had fiscal 2015 sales of $9.9
billion and has a current market capitalization of more than
$30 billion. Approximately 19,000
employees in 50 countries strive to make Air Products the world's
safest and best performing Industrial Gases company, providing
sustainable offerings and excellent service to all customers. For
more information, visit www.airproducts.com.
NOTE: This release may contain forward-looking statements
within the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements are
based on management's reasonable expectations and assumptions as of
the date of this release regarding important risk factors. Actual
performance and financial results may differ materially from
projections and estimates expressed in the forward-looking
statements because of many factors not anticipated by management,
including risk factors described in the Company's Form 10K for its
fiscal year ended September 30,
2015.
EDITOR'S NOTE:
Photos from today's LNG heat exchanger rollout event in
Port Manatee are available in
Air Products' online News Center.
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/air-products-celebrates-the-rollout-of-the-first-lng-heat-exchanger-unit-at-its-new-florida-manufacturing-facility-300325596.html
SOURCE Air Products