1. 1
Kenneth Ramagost
Senior Electrical / Instrument Engineer
53585 Ware Street
White Castle, La. 70788
Ph # 225-545-8256
Cell # 225-716-2854
Qualified (Education): Bachelor of Science (BS)
Connected (professional affiliations): Instrument Society of America (ISA)
Professional Summary: Kenneth has 40 years experience in instrument and controls engineering
and maintenance which includes 30 years with process control instrument systems engineering,
coordination of design and drafting, instrument specifications; 5 years with analyzer specification and
start-up; 5 years with instrument maintenance. Kenneth has experience with project management and
evaluation of procurement proposals.
Role on project
GHD previous CRA Engineering, Baton Rouge, La 12/14 - Present
Marathon Refinery, Grayville, La;
Front end development for propane/butane spheres with emergency shutdown systems, SIL 1 approvals,
independent sensing and safety shutoff valves. Studied different shutoff valves and recommend a type
that will stay shutoff during a fire. Metal/tight seated bi-directional ball valves meet this requirement.
Engineered independent parallel shut down systems for a new control room.
OXY Chemical, Gramercy, La and Convent, La:
Engineered wiring for a new speaker alarm system and added system to the plant safety alarm
documentation.
Review 5 Ton crane for power supply.
Role on project
Ford Bacon & Davis, Baton Rouge, La 2013 – 2014; Salmon & Associates, Baton
Rouge, La 2012 – 2013
Motiva Refinery at Convent, La:
Refinery assignment: In plant engineering for small projects meeting instrument welding inspection
requirements, MTRs, PMI, NACE, API, NFPA, and NEC standards. Review basis of design documents
with selection of instruments for each application. Replace older instrumentation with more reliable newer
technology applications. FEL assistance and control theory applications. Motor relay systems, starters,
and transformer power panels with power request forms.
Role on project
Wink Companies, New Orleans, La 2004 – 2012
Motiva Refinery at Convent, La 2005 – 2012:
Plant Assignment: Specify of SIL 3 sulphur gas valves with considerations for NACE requirements and
steam heating of valve. Addition of lightening protection system and barrier repeaters to a tank farm
RS485 communication system to increase the robustness of the system. Calculations of reflected wave
dampening and biasing resistors for proper communication with consideration of E.I.A. communication
standards. Specifications of high flow turn down valve instead of using two valves in parallel. These 100
to 1 turn down valves meet EGGS travel turn down requirements. In plant studies of steam flows for
steam educators. Specification and Installation of an EPA listed Vedeer Root leak detection system for
2. 2
Gas Station and design of Key counter system for petroleum dispensers.
Valero Refinery at Norco, La 2004- 2005:
In House assignment: Grass roots project with 600 PSIG de superheater and designed VFD system to
throttle the pump water delivery to the de superheated. Accumulator tank had varying SG liquid and the
boot interface level transmitter was guided radar independent of SG changes.
All instrumentation was purchased with NACE requirements for H2S services.
Role on project
Cora Texas Sugar Manufacturing at White Castle, La 2003 – 2004
As instrument design and maintenance Engineer / Technician duties included engineering a lime slurry
float control system allowing constant pressure for Ph control. Purchasing, installed, and started up of
instruments for a boiler shutdown system and Allen Bradley Logix control system. Calibrated, reworked,
maintained and installed valves, positioners, I/P converters, regulators, Ph transmitters, differential
pressure transmitters, and Honeywell single loop controllers.
Role on project
Ford Bacon & Davis, Inc. (Process Services, Inc.) Baton Rouge, La 1990 – 2002
Murphy Oil Refinery, New Orleans, La 2/04 – 9/04:
In House assignment: Instrument engineer checking of a rebuilt asphaltine plant. Revised 34
specifications for missing process data and or incorrect process data. Manufacturing of valves were
stopped until correct sizing incorporated. Sizing checking for plasma flows, considerations for possible
greater than March 0.7 flows and Qty = 5 API pump seals instrumentation.
Ineose at Plaquemine, La 11/02 - 1/03:
Plant assignment. Project engineering responsible for survey of plant wiring system to be used for
changing to a new DCS system. Field verified Junction boxes and compared to loop sheets. Selected
conflicts and resolved conflicts between loops and Junction box wiring. Any conflicts were set aside for
S/D verification of wiring.
ExxonMobil BRPP at Baton Rouge, La 8/98 - 10/02:
Plant assignment. Managed large projects with outside contractors. Purchased and engineered
Honeywell remote DCS systems with design of interface to field instruments and fibre optics systems.
Engineered pressure control system for a Regenerative Thermal Oxidizer. Purchased and programmed
variable frequency drives for small and large motors. Purchased and engineered 480/4,160 VAC motor
starters. Engineered multi-point explosive gas and gas in water detection systems. Designed flow prover
system for calibrating thermal flow mass flow meters with a Micro Motion Coriolis meter used as the
standard. Engineered gas/vapour collection system for an analyser house. This collection system was an
environmental system discharging to the flare. Purchased test rheometer system and improved heating
controls for excess plastic discharge. Engineered interface controls between motor starter and package
refrigeration unit. Project Instrument Engineer responsible for reviewing and purchasing
instruments/electrical systems for larger projects being engineered and designed by outside contract
companies.
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Exxon Chemical at Baton Rouge, La 1/98 - 8/98:
PALA Switch Condenser Project. Lead Instrument Engineer responsible for instrument specifications and
purchasing, PLC wiring, and specification of Modicon 984 PLC. Engineered logic for the PLC
programming.
Exxon Chemical at Baton Rouge, La 1/97 - 1/98:
Plant Assignment. Job Leader responsible for supervising the instrument and electrical design group,
planning, engineering, and directing design activities.
Exxon Chemical at Baton Rouge, La 1/95 - 12/96:
Xylenes Recovery System Project. Lead Instrument Engineer responsible for instrument engineering and
specifying instruments on recovery system project. Specified and tested triple redundant shutdown
system on a furnace for this project.
Exxon BRPP at Baton Rouge, La. 1/92-12/94:
Control System Modernization Project. Lead Instrument Engineer responsible for instrument engineering
and purchase requisition for instruments, annunciates, and design review of I & E drawings. This project
covered change out of all old instruments on 4 extruder lines.
Cecos International at Livingston, La 9/90 - 12/91:
Hazardous Waste Site Clean-up. Senior Instrument Engineer responsible for installation, wiring and
programming a General Electric PLC for Cecos International. Responsibilities included specifying and
start-up of field instruments.
Role on project
Salmon & Associates, Inc. Baton Rouge, La 2/85 – 9/90
Ethyl Corporation Baton Rouge, La 1/89 - 9/90:
Grass Roots Fire Resistant Material Plant. Instrument and Electrical Engineer responsible for design and
engineering of Texas Instruments Rexnard D.C.S. system. Stared up packaging facilities.
Union Carbide at Taft, La 8/88 - 1/89:
Plant assignment. Pneumatic to Electrical Conversion of Instrumentation. Instrument Engineer
responsible for specifying instruments, installation and construction start-up of a Honeywell TDC 3000
Control System. The project consisted of 1100 loops.
BASF at Geismar, La 3/86 - 8/88:
Plant assignment. Analyser Engineer Involved with specifying analysers, and sample handling systems.
Types of analysers designed and procured were:
Infrared, ultraviolet, pH, moisture, solids monitor, chromatograph, phosgene area monitors, and chlorine
area monitors. Designed and made bill of materials and specifications for sample handling systems of
each analyser. Assisted with supervising the installation and start-up for each analyser.
BASF at Geismar, La 2/85 - 3/86:
Plant assignment. Small Projects Instrument Engineer, involved with instrument engineering, specifying
instruments, assigning DBC for Foxboro Micro spec, intrinsic safety requirements, distillation tower
controls and flare system flow monitoring.
4. 4
Role on project
Gonzalez Engineers, Inc. Baton Rouge, La. 12/82 – 2/85;
Barbay Engineers, Inc. Baton Rouge, La 12/79 – 12/82
Georgia Pacific at Plaquemine, La :
Plant Services. As Instrument Maintenance Engineer, worked in both engineering and maintenance.
Duties consisted of instrument project design, scoping the project, writing specifications for instruments,
routing conduit and wiring, design of instrument freeze protection and following the projects to completion.
The maintenance aspect of the work involved trouble-shooting instrumentation for gas-fired boilers,
distillation towers, accounting flow meters and interface level systems.
Plant assignment. As Instrument Maintenance Engineer, worked in engineering and maintenance
departments to satisfy the required work load deadlines. Duties involved detailed engineering of
instrumentation projects, MOV's and Foxboro spec. 200 equipment. Design of plot plans, loops,
elementary drawings and hazardous areas that required detail design of air purge systems for hazardous
area declassification. Intrinsic safety was used whenever possible for declassification. Follow-up was
done on all construction.
Role on project
Barnard and Burk Baton Rouge, La 7/77 – 1/79
Ethyl Corporation at Baton Rouge, La:
Grass Roots Soap Additive Plant. As Instrument Engineer, duties included instrumentation and
programmable controller design which included the following: specifying instruments; coordinating
delivery of instruments, specifying annunciators and relays; review and correction of ladder diagrams;
specifying a programmable controller (Modicon Corp.); design the matching of inputs and outputs with
this controller; and incorporating ladder diagrams into the controller language. Attended classes (taught
by Modicon) on controller operation, and has 2 months field work for the above design (plant start-up).
Role on project
Evan Hall Sugar Mill at Donaldsonville, La. 12/76 - 7/77
As Instrument Engineer / Technician duties included electrical motor maintenance, running conduit and
wiring for starters and motors, changing transformers, switches, starters, and motors from 220 volt to 440
volt operation, trouble shooting, general electrical work, and instrument maintenance.
Role on project
Tennessee Valley Authority at Knoxville, Tennessee: 1/74 - 7/76
Sequoia Nuclear Plant. Instrument Engineer on this grass roots project. Duties included the development
and final design of instrumentation control and logic diagrams, procurement data sheets, and tabulations
for two T.V.A. nuclear plants. This development and design included the following: review of systems
flow diagrams; detailed piping drawings; electrical drawings; applicable design criteria, engineering
design procedures; and instrumentation and controls design standards and practices; review of vendor
catalogs and equipment specifications to establish equipment availability and suitable applications;
specified the number and types of I&E equipment required to control various processes and gather data;
review and coordination of overall system I&E requirements with construction and power production.
5. 5
Electrical and Instrument accomplishments:
Special designs: I have championed several improvements for instrumentation and to mention a few:
Selected propane safety ball valve with metal seat and true bi-directional tight shutoff, selected 1" orifice
flange meeting piping requirements for critical coolant flow (Piping specs allow for lowest 2" orifice
flanges), Eight large duct conservation vents cost was $200,000 and engineered a pressure damper with
backup damper reducing cost to $30,000 saving $170,000 for the project. Savings allowed for a 26"
automated pressure butterfly valve to be installed as a second back up pressure relief system.
Interface with JE ISBL & OSBL process engineers and Client: Much of my work has been closely
reviewing with process engineers for submitting specification sheets with process information, discussing
the process as it related to instrument selection for process compatibility, temperature and pressure
ratings, NACE requirements, and chemical composition for area classification ratings. Also worked with
mechanical engineers and inspection for in line instrument mechanical integrity; welding, dye penetrate
testing, material certification and mechanical code requirements. I have worked with clients to develop
batch sequences for the PLCs, cause & effect matrix for SIS systems and PLCs, and alarm spreadsheet.
Communications: Experience in many types of switches, gateways, Ethernet converters, RS485 duplex
communication, serial, fiber and Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) standards and engineered large
communication systems. Calculation of termination resistors for long distance RS485 communication and
use of cat 5 cables, Selecting cable length according to data rate.
Electrical and Instrument components: Engineered 480/120 Volt AC Racks, starters, breakers,
transformers with Short circuit current analysis, power panels, equipment amps interrupting capability.
Engineered and wiring size and conduit sizing. Engineered field instruments; orifice plates, Coriolis
meters, PD meters, Rotameters, pressure and DP transmitters, Temperature elements and thermo wells,
control valves, motor operated valves and on/off pneumatic valves. Engineered analysers: Ph, IR,
Chromatograph, and area monitors for explosive and toxic gases.
DCS, PLC & SIS: Requisitioned, programmed, written software, troubleshooted and start up of Modicon
and GE Fanuc PLC's for grass roots plants. Engineered Logic drawings for the software, engineered I/O
cards and drawings for interface of field instruments to Honeywell, Yokogawa and Fisher DCS, many
different PLCs and Triconex/Tricon SIS systems.
Anti-surge systems: Engineered anti-surge systems for compressor turbines and single control loops for
anti-surge, instrumentation. Interface of pressure, temperature, differential pressure, and flow
instrumentation for package anti-surge systems with backup power systems. Closely worked with system
supplier to have a fully compatible field instrumentation anti surge system communication via hard wire
loops, communication switches, gateways, Ethernet, RS485 and fiber converters meeting EIA standards.
Team Management: Electrical/Instrument engineer team lead for 20 designers for several different clients
with managing the teams and generating work schedules.
6. 6
Other related areas of interest
Published
Published Books
Flow and Instrument accuracies based on Bernoulli's equation, 2012 Kindle eBook
Presentations
National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) for
instrumentation, Saint Rose, La. 2005
Hi resolution drawing tool for engineers,SaintRose,La.2004
Process instrumentation in condensable vapor service,Baton Rouge,La. 1995
Presentations Published, Baton Rouge, La. 2015
Horizontal vessel with elliptical end caps,vol. vs. heightcalculator
Small to medium size wire voltage drop calculators
TW distances calculator
Low power contacts will prevent many signal failures
Ken RamagostFull Resume,Publications and Classes
http://krpictpub.webs.com/
or
Ken Ramagost Resume, Publications and Classes