COVER STORY: GRANDPERSPECTIVE GMBH
Why multi-compound facilities need round-the-clock data-driven monitoring
By Peter Maas, CEO, Grandperspective GmbH
What is the greatest challenge for the chemical and petrochemical industries?
Ask any operator – whether they work in a chemical park or an individual site- and they will tell you it is protecting the people who work in their facilities, and also those who live beyond the fence-line.
But how can safety be achieved in multi-compound environments, where HSSE teams have to solve highly complex emission detection conundrums?
It requires vastly talented, experienced and knowledgeable professionals, who understand the nuanced and unique hurdles that must be negotiated to protect the many thousands of people who work on petrochemical sites and the millions more who live close by.
Take Peter Schmitz, for example. Mr Schmitz is the HSEQ Manager for Fibrant B. V., a leading chemicals producer situated in the Chemelot Industrial Park. Chemelot, one of the largest chemical park in Europe, is an 800-hectare site located in the Netherlands, and is home to more than 8,000 people who work in 60 plants and 200 companies.
Having worked in the chemical industry for over three decades, and having published a landmark thesis while studying at the highly prestigious Delft University of Technology, Schmitz, is an expert in risk mitigation and barrier monitoring. At Fibrant, the largest Caprolactam and Ammonium Sulphate producer in the world, he has combined decades of real-world world experience with the ideas explored in his doctorate, to create a world-class HSE model for preventing major accidents.
6 FUGITIVE EMISSIONS JOURNAL • APRIL 2025