In early March, the University of Tennessee, Knoxville Reliability and Maintainability Center (Center) presented Torrance Refining Company, LLC (TORC) with the Reliability of EverythingTM “Best Culture Start-Up Award,” in recognition of their successful efforts to improve asset reliability at the Torrance Refinery.
Torrance Refinery operates 24 hours per day, seven days per week, producing cleaner-burning transportation fuels that make modern life possible. Operating reliably is critical to the refinery. In simple terms, Reliability is one of our key objectives: Achieving consistent, continuous operations, with as few unplanned events as possible. Reliability Functional Manager Taylor Kang explained, “We recognize reliable operations goes hand-in-hand with safety and drives operational excellence. That’s important to us because reliable operations translate to minimizing risk to keep our workforce, community. and environment safe.”
With this foundational perspective, the Torrance Refinery team has been focusing on improving reliability since being acquired by PBF Energy in 2016, earning TORC the award. Reliability Department Manager Meir Snir, who accepted the award with Routine Maintenance Manager Rudy Rojas, noted, “We are extremely proud and honored to receive this award. The key to our reliability success so far is attributed to our employees’ collaborative team approach, valuing the knowledge, experience, and expertise each person brings to the job, working together with different refinery functions and communicating openly to create solutions.”
The “Best Culture Start-Up Award” recognizes refinery employees’ resiliency, for implementing successful reliability and maintainability processes, and a culture that supports operational excellence and sustains industry best practices. Center Director Dr. Klaus M. Blache noted the importance of developing a reliability-oriented culture, especially as organizations address the impacts of the global pandemic. As Dr. Blache explained, “Torrance Refinery employees success in in improving reliability earned them the award. They have built a collaborative team whose members are empowered and encouraged to take a proactive approach to identifying, preventing, and resolving operational issues.”
Refinery Manager Jerry Forstell commented on how proud he is of his Refinery family, stating, “I commend our entire team. This wonderful achievement comes as the result of highly skilled, diverse and talented individuals working together toward a common goal. The award reflects our workforce’s dedication to demonstrating our commitment to operate safely, reliably and in an environmentally responsible manner.”
Click here to view the award presentation.