Huntsman Pigments won the top prize at last night’s IChemE 2011 Awards ceremony for its revamped site in Calais, France. More than 400 guests from all over the world were in Birmingham, UK for the event celebrating chemical engineering innovation and excellence.

Huntsman was awarded the Outstanding achievement in chemical and process engineering award (sponsored by BP) after turning a site threatened with closure into a thriving new revenue stream.

In 2008, the future of Huntsman’s Calais site looked gloomy, being difficult and expensive to run. However, by turning waste filter salts into sustainable fertilizers and securing new markets, Huntsman now has plans to build a new £25m fertilizer plant on the site.

Elsewhere, Sellafield Limited and Costain Energy and Process both celebrated double success. Sellafield Limited won the Health and safety award and the Core chemical engineering award, the latter with Leeds University and BHR Group Limited. Costain’s Robert Smyth and Steve Jackson lifted the Young chemical engineer of the year award and Innovator of the year award respectively.

The event, hosted by BBC television personality Hugh Dennis, also saw three UK universities clinch prizes.

The University of Manchester won the Bioprocessing award for discovering a new process to turn waste substance glycerol into succinic acid; University College London won the Education and training award for its modular bioprocessing training program; And the University of Surrey clinched the Water management and supply award for its Manipulated Osmosis Desalination (MOD) process, having already received a special achievement award earlier in the evening in recognition of 100 years of chemical engineering.

Other award winners were E2V Technologies who won the Energy award for its ProWave microwave technology; Hertel, winner of the Food and drink processing award for its cold wort evaporation technology and dealcoholisation of beer; and Australia’s Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, winner of the Sustainable technology award for its Magsonic process for handling magnesium..

IChemE chief executive David Brown says: “Once again, we’ve been able to recognize some of the world’s best innovation. An event like this really does demonstrate the breadth of work taking place in the chemical and process engineering community.”

Tags: IChemE