Funk and his team are currently working on a project that shows how modularization can be the key to success. In the Spanish city of Gijon, the industrial furnace specialists are working with external partners to build the individual modules of an ethylene cracking furnace. At the beginning of 2020, these elements will then be shipped 1,500 kilometers to the remote shores of Scotland. When the industrial furnace has been fully assembled at the customer site and is ready to be commissioned, it will weigh around 2,000 tons – nearly equal in weight to 2,000 Volkswagen Golf cars, for instance. In theory, it would be possible to ship this industrial giant in one go to the customer. In reality, however, the local infrastructure would not be up to it. “We wanted to keep assembly work on site to a minimum and so we decided to pre-assemble 22 modules in Gijon and then send these off to Scotland,” adds Funk.

In the past, modularization often didn’t emerge as the strategy of choice until the engineers had reached the planning phase of a project. Today, Linde’s experts often have the concept on their radar from the very beginning. The company has now established a global network of huge facilities, known as yards, for pre-assembling modules. The yards can be used to build modules or even entire plants. Each location has an experienced team on site with equipment such as specialist cranes and gantries at the ready. Experienced employees, a familiar environment and minimal disruption from the weather – these are all factors that contribute to a project’s success. However, modular construction might not always be the best solution, as Funk explains: “Modularization means that every component has to be transported twice: from the manufacturer to the yard and from the yard to the customer – as part of a module. This last step can be challenging due to the size of the modules. In the case of stick-built plants, which are almost entirely assembled on the construction site, the different components only have to be shipped to the final destination. It’s the job of Linde’s experts to find the best solution for each project based on its specific requirements and context. In the case of this cracking furnace, Selas-Linde decided to carry out 60 to 65 percent of the assembly work at the yard in Gijon.

“We worked on a similar project for the company Noretyl in Rafnes, Norway, clearly demonstrating that we have what it takes to successfully master modularization,” explains Funk. “This is an excellent reference project that strengthens our competitive position.” Modularization with truckable modules is the ideal choice for projects where assembly resources are scarce, where we are upgrading facilities during ongoing operations or where local infrastructure cannot handle the transportation of mega modules. “We have the perfect answer to brownfield challenges,” concludes Funk. The work in Gijon is currently running perfectly to schedule, ensuring that the modules will be ready for transport on time beginning January 2020.