Thermal Plants Tailors for giants


Dedicated thermal plants for special applications: this is the daily activity of the Engineering Division of Bono Energia, dealing only with non-standard machines and high demanding customers. An interview with Paolo Bugatti, Engineering Division Manager, unveils interesting aspects of their business.


Paolo Bugatti, 48, is the Director of the Engineering Division of BONO Energia S.p.A., the Cannon Group Company manufacturing special thermal plants, industrial boilers and oil heaters. Holding a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Politecnico di Milano, he works with BONO since 1994. In the past 18 years Paolo matured significant experience in the sale of special thermal plants and heat recovery boilers.


Cannon News: What is the role of your Engineering Division within BONO Energia organisation?


Paolo Bugatti: The Engineering Division takes care of the special thermal plants made by BONO Energia. Our customers are – for 90% of our activity – Engineering


Procurement Construction companies (EPCs) that design high engineered plants requiring a dedicated thermal plant to produce either steam or hot fluids for process consumers or for power generation. We also sell directly to the end user, a high-scale industrial Company requiring thermal plants for its sugar factory, paper mill, chemical or pharmaceutical plant.


CN: High engineered equipment machines, then, and probably in non-standard execution?


PB: Absolutely yes. We make complete thermal plants, mostly based on water tube boilers, used for the production of steam for process and as auxiliary boilers for power generation. We burn traditional fossil fuels, hydrogen or by-product gas from process. Then we produce high capacity hot water heaters for district heating, delivering hot water to residential quarters through a network of insulated pipes. Here we work in a capacity range going from 10 to 80 thermal Megawatts for single heater.


CN: An impressive portfolio. What kind of competition are you facing?


PB: We know no more than 5-6 big players – from Korea, India, USA and Europe – able to deal with our technological and logistic level. Therefore our rate of success is quite high, compared with the number of offers that we issue every year. As an example, we recently supplied a 14 Million Euro plant to Iraq and this is a size of contract that we can easily deal with.


This large CT type water-tube auxiliary boiler, for a power generation plant in the UK, was installed in 2011


Other successful products are the thermal fluid heaters used for chemical and polymerisation processes, mainly for the production of PET plastics. In this case we supply a fluid heated up to 400 °C to the reactors where the esterification reaction takes place. Finally, we supply a range of HRSG (Heat recovery Steam Generators) that recover heat from exhaust gas of thermal engines motors and gas turbines – that also burn biofuels – in a capacity range up to 15 electric Megawatts.


Our product is always tailor-made, even when we use a standard machine – derived from our Industrial Division – we adapt it to our client's specifications. We always quote very complex equipment, expected to perform at the highest efficiency levels for a very long time. Our range of capacity, to resume, stands between 20 and 200 Tons/h of high-pressure steam, between 10 and 40 thermal Megawatts in thermal fluid heaters, up to 80 thermal Megawatts in hot water and up to 15 electric Megawatts in HRSG.


Combined cycle power generation plant from BONO Energia


CN: What makes you different from your competition?


PB: Mainly the fact that we are vertically integrated, from engineering to commissioning. We manufacture in-house all the pressurized parts, the electronic controls and the ducts. We buy the best components for our equipment, guaranteeing performances and long-lasting operations. Many competitors assemble purchased parts, or delegate to third parties critical steps as engineering and installation.


CN: Where do you obtain your most significant results?


PB: Let me first say that in 2002 we were selling 10 Million Euro (50% in Italy) and today, ten years after, we expect a turnover of 30 Million Euro, with a 70% of export in five continents. While our presence in Middle East is consolidated, we are now working hard in Russia (where we have a dedicated office in Cannon Eurasia) and in Brazil, where we have recently successfully completed the first phase of the preliminary qualification procedure with Petrobras. We received in the past 4-5 years inspections and qualification from important private and public end users, such as Qatar Petroleum, Gasco, ADMA OPCO of Abu Dhabi, EdF, UHDE, Gazprom and other giants of this field.


CN: How do you approach these remote clients?


PB: We first select the country with the highest potential for our range of thermal machines, then we define a strategic location for our local presence and we send on site one of our experts to start up the activity, flanked by a dedicated local hand for the interfacing with the market. When things start to work we try to team-up with the most successful player in the field and we offer him a partnership on the basis of results that have been already obtained. Very pragmatic approach, nothing fancy.


CN: What do you think it makes you the best potential partner for your customers?


PB: A short list of advantages that we can offer and that others can't, according to a survey run through our current clients: • Our ability in understanding our prospect's needs and in preparing an adapt commercial proposal.


• Our know how and solutions • Our list of references for specific, specialty applications.


• Our workshop, able to handle large projects with internal, qualified resources.


• Our competent staff, at any functional level. • Our right local partners, able to bridge efficiently between our clients and our specialists.


2


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12