Renewable diesel facilities share many of the complex building requirements found throughout the refining and process industries. Operators need spaces to manage production; electrical equipment needs to be protected from the surrounding environment; laboratories support testing and quality control; and access-control buildings help manage personnel entering and leaving the facility. Each application brings its own operational and safety requirements.
Those requirements can also vary significantly from one location to another. The level and type of protection required for a building depends on its application, location and the hazards identified for that area. Fire protection, electrical or chemical classifications, occupancy, site conditions and other hazards can also influence how a building is designed and where it can be located.
Modular buildings for renewable diesel facilities give owners and EPCs the flexibility to address those different requirements while taking advantage of off-site construction. RedGuard can design control rooms, operator shelters, MCC and electrical buildings, laboratories, production buildings and access control facilities around the needs of each application rather than applying the same building specification across an entire site.
Matching the Building to the Actual Requirements
Not every building at a renewable diesel facility requires the same level or type of protection. Building requirements should be based on the hazards identified for its location, how the space will be used and the personnel or equipment it is intended to protect.
For example, a control room or MCC located within an identified blast hazard area may require blast-resistant construction, while the same type of building located elsewhere on the site may not. Blast resistance is only one consideration. Depending on the application, building design may also need to account for fire protection, combustible dust hazards, electrical classifications, chemical classifications or other site-specific requirements.
This is especially important at renewable diesel facilities because operations and hazards can vary considerably from one site to another. Some facilities are integrated with existing refinery operations, while others may include processes associated with handling or preparing different feedstocks. Rather than making assumptions based on the type of facility alone, owners and EPCs need building solutions that can be designed around the requirements identified for each application.
RedGuard's SafetySuite product line provides custom-designed and engineered blast-resistant and non-blast modular building options, allowing the protection level and building features to be matched to the project's actual requirements.
Modular Construction and Project Scheduling
Building requirements are only one consideration when planning a renewable diesel project. How and when those buildings are constructed can also affect the overall project schedule, particularly when work is taking place on a congested site or as part of a refinery conversion.
Modular construction allows much of the building fabrication to take place off site while foundations, process equipment and other facility construction move forward. This parallel approach can reduce the amount of building work that must be completed at the project site and give EPCs greater flexibility when coordinating construction activities.
That flexibility can be especially valuable when space, site access or construction sequencing limits when a building location becomes available. Instead of waiting for the site to be ready before beginning building construction, the modular structure can be fabricated in a controlled environment and prepared for delivery and installation when the project reaches the appropriate stage.
For renewable diesel projects working within existing industrial facilities, this approach can also help accommodate the realities of construction around existing infrastructure and ongoing site activity. The building becomes one part of the larger construction sequence rather than another structure that must be built from the ground up once its footprint becomes available.
Supporting Renewable Diesel Facilities Beyond Initial Construction
The need for specialized buildings does not end when a renewable diesel facility becomes operational. Like other process facilities, these sites require ongoing maintenance and periodic turnarounds that can temporarily change where personnel work and how occupied spaces are used.
During a turnaround, contractors and additional personnel may need offices, meeting spaces, break areas and other temporary facilities near the work being performed. When those buildings must be located within an area where blast hazards have been identified, standard construction trailers may not provide the appropriate level of protection.
RedGuard's LeaseFleet provides temporary blast-resistant buildings that can be deployed to support turnaround and maintenance activities. Building selection and placement can be coordinated with the facility's siting requirements, allowing temporary occupied spaces to support the project without treating them as an exception to the site's broader personnel-protection strategy.
For renewable diesel operators with experience in traditional refining, these requirements may already be familiar. As renewable diesel units become part of long-term facility operations, planning for temporary occupancy during maintenance and turnarounds becomes another component of managing the site throughout its operating life.
RedGuard's Experience in Complex Industrial Environments
Renewable diesel may represent a different approach to fuel production, but many of the challenges associated with designing and constructing facilities in complex industrial environments are familiar. Building location, occupancy, equipment requirements, site hazards and construction constraints all influence what type of structure is appropriate for a particular application.
RedGuard brings experience designing modular buildings for refining, petrochemical and other process-industry environments where those considerations are part of everyday project planning. That experience can be applied to renewable diesel projects without assuming that every facility—or every building within a facility—has the same requirements.
Whether a project calls for a non-blast operator building, a blast-resistant control room, a specialized electrical or laboratory building, or temporary BRBs to support a future turnaround, the solution should start with the needs of the application. RedGuard can support that process from concept and design through fabrication and installation, providing modular buildings designed around the requirements of the project.
Discuss Your Renewable Diesel Project
Every renewable diesel project has its own operational, site and building requirements. Schedule a meeting with Donna Brown at RedGuard to discuss your project, building needs and next steps.
