Oil, Gas & Petrochemical
Refinery and Petrochemical Control Rooms, Upgraded While the Plant Runs
A refinery does not stop for a control room project. Operators keep the units under control while consoles, screens and lighting change around them, and every intervention goes through your permits and management of change.
Oculus Operational Innovations designs control rooms for refineries, polymer plants and other hydrocarbon facilities. We have upgraded live control rooms at two South African crude oil refineries and a polymer plant, working alongside the DCS vendor from concept to handover. See also our process and industrial control room design service.
The building comes first
Blast-rated walls, limited glazing and pressurised ventilation are set by the siting study. The room has to work inside them.
Alarm floods decide the workstation
Console layout, screen count and overviews are built around your alarm philosophy and HMI hierarchy.
Fewer operators, wider spans
Regrouping units so one operator sees their whole area is often the biggest gain, and costs far less than more screens.
Live upgrades
Staging plans, temporary operator positions and pre-terminated services keep the plant controlled.
Long, continuous shifts
Lighting, acoustics, temperature and seating designed for alertness through a 12-hour night shift.
Recent Refinery & Petrochemical Work
Coastal refinery, Western Cape
6 operator groups, 21 operator and alarm stations, 48 monitors and a new video wall. Live upgrade, 2024.
Concept design, consoles, video wall, live upgrade
Inland refinery, Free State
4 DCS consoles and supervisor consoles replaced one at a time while the refinery ran. 2018, phase 2 in 2022.
Detail design, consoles, live upgrade
Polymer plant, Free State
New consoles, acoustic ceiling and walls, LED lighting and flooring in about 2.5 weeks on site. 2020.
Consoles, interiors, lighting and acoustics
Upgraded While the Refinery Ran
6
operator groups, regrouped after a restructuring
21
operator and alarm stations in one live upgrade
48
monitors, one operator group changed at a time
4
DCS consoles swapped one by one, no shutdown
Two South African crude oil refineries and a polymer plant, delivered alongside the DCS vendor. Client names are not published.
How we work in Southern Africa and the GCC
Four stages, each with a fixed fee: concept, FEED, detailed design and site supervision. In Southern Africa we can take the whole room as one accountable party. In the GCC we deliver with our regional partner MCPM, and local contractors supply and install to our specification: see control room design for the GCC.
Standards Behind Every Design
We design with reference to the standards that matter for people in control rooms. Tap a card to see what each one covers.
ISO 11064Ergonomic design of control centresTap to read more
Layout, workstation, display and environmental requirements for control rooms, from concept to evaluation.
ISO 6385Ergonomics of work systemsTap to read more
The principles behind designing work around people: tasks, equipment and environment together.
EEMUA 201Control room design guidanceTap to read more
Practical guidance on human-centred control room and HMI design for process industries.
EEMUA 191Alarm systemsTap to read more
How to design, manage and measure alarm systems so operators are not flooded.
ISA-18.2 / IEC 62682Alarm management lifecycleTap to read more
The lifecycle for alarm philosophy, rationalisation and performance monitoring.
ISA-101HMI designTap to read more
How operator screens should be structured, from plant overview down to equipment detail.
IOGP 454Human factors in projectsTap to read more
Human factors engineering built into capital projects from the start.
Your site codesLocal and owner specificationsTap to read more
Your own specifications and the codes in force where you build always take precedence.
Frequently asked questions
Can you replace DCS consoles without a shutdown?
Yes. We have done it at two operating refineries, with temporary operator positions and pre-terminated power.
Do you work with our DCS vendor?
Yes. We design the room around their system; they own the control system.
Do you work in the UAE and the wider GCC?
Yes, with our regional partner MCPM.
Do we need a full redesign?
Not always. Regrouping units, moving overview content or fixing glare often solves most of the problem. We will tell you if a smaller fix is enough.
When should we bring in a control room designer?
Before the control building and the console order are fixed.