Hello All,
I hope this message finds each and every one of you doing well.
Here is a weekly glimpse of what January 2010 had in store:
January 4 - 8: Back to work after the Holiday Break. The NCERC began preparations for a client trial which would occupy the pilot plant and analytical laboratory the week of January.
January 11 – 15: Tuesday January 12 John Caupert (Director) and Brian Wrenn (Research Director) traveled to University of Illinois to participate in a meeting of the Illinois Ethanol Research Consortium. The Illinois Ethanol Research Consortium was borne out of an idea of the Illinois Corn Growers Association. The Consortium has brought together research competencies from the NCERC, University of Illinois, USDA/ARS, Western Illinois University, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Argonne National Laboratory and others. The Consortium focus is the pathway to commercialization of corn kernel fiber to ethanol.
January 18 – 22: Preparations for a major client trial the week of January 25 continues. This week the NCERC firms up an industry client for pilot plant utilization the week of February 22. Along with Siemens Corporation, the NCERC hosted a training symposium on Process Control Systems. Wednesday January 20 saw more than 12 ICM designed ethanol plants management personnel attend the NCERC to participate in the Siemens Process Control Systems training.
January 25 – 29: A long awaited, heavily prepared, technically challenging industry client trial gets under way in the NCERC pilot plant and analytical laboratory. Perhaps more than ever, an entire NCERC team effort was required to meet the challenges presented by this trial. Upon completion of the trial, the industry client sought me out to tell me, “John, you have a great team here. I was very impressed, all of your people worked very hard. We look forward to coming back”.
Until next time, have a good, productive and safe month.
Regards,
John Caupert
Director, National Corn-to-Ethanol Research Center
Phone: 618-659-6737 Ext 226
Email: jcaupert@ethanolresearch.com
