Chicago Bridge & Iron Company
Encyclopedia
Chicago Bridge & Iron Company (Chicago Bridge & Iron Company N.V.), , known commonly as CB&I, is a large multinational
conglomerate engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) company. CB&I specializes in projects for oil and gas companies. CB&I operates from more than 80 locations around the world, and as of August 1, 2009, CB&I has a total of approximately 16,000 employees.
,
Netherlands
.
The company's worldwide administrative office is located near Houston, Texas
, in the The Woodlands
, an unincorporated area
in Montgomery County
, Texas
, United States
.
The current Corporate Officers are:
President and Chief Executive Officer: Philip K. Asherman
Chief Financial Officer: Ronald A. Ballschmiede
Executive Vice President—Corporate Planning: E. Chip Ray
Chief Operating Officer: Lasse Petterson
President—Lummus Technology: Daniel M. McCarthy
Chief Administration Officer: Beth A. Bailey
Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer: Richard E. Chandler
, Illinois
, USA, as Chicago Bridge & Iron Company, when Horace E. Horton, a bridge designer, agreed to merge business with George and William Wheelock of the Kansas City Bridge and Iron Company.
While initially involved in bridge design and construction, CB&I turned its focus to bulk liquid storage in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, coinciding with the western expansion of railroads across the United States and the discovery of oil in the U.S. Southwest. CB&I quickly became known for design engineering and field construction of elevated water storage tanks, aboveground tanks for storage of petroleum and refined products, refinery process vessels and other steel plate structures.
CB&I supported the expansion of oil exploration outside the U.S., starting operations in South America in 1924, in Asia two years later, and in the Middle East in 1939.
During World War II
, CB&I was selected to build Landing Ship Tank (LSTs). LSTs carried troops and supplies to American and Allied troops fighting in Europe and the Pacific theaters.
CB&I was chosen because of their reputation and skills, particularly welding.
Since the coastal shipyards were busy building the large vessels for the war effort such as aircraft carriers, battleships, cruisers and destroyers, there was no alternative but to use the inland waterways and shipyards for the production of smaller ships.
Over the course of the company's history, CB&I developed many technologies and achieved a number of industry milestones, including the first floating-roof tank for the oil industry (1923), the first spherical pressure vessel (1923), the first double-wall LNG storage tank (1958), the first site-assembled thick wall steel nuclear reactor vessel (1966), the first marine liquid natural gas (LNG) storage and distribution terminal in the U.S. (1971), the world's largest steel water reservoir (1986), the world's largest vacuum distillation tower (1999), and the world's largest Thermal Energy Storage Tank (2009) to name just a few.
CB&I completed its largest single acquisition to date with the purchase of Lummus Global from ABB on November 19, 2007, adding approximately 3,000 employees to the CB&I payroll.
CB&I's global business sectors are:
CB&I Lummus which performs the global engineering, procurement, modularization and construction work for upstream and downstream oil and gas projects, including complete LNG liquefaction trains and regasification terminals.
CB&I Steel Plate Structures which consolidates CB&I's legacy flat bottom tank, nuclear containment vessel, cryogenic storage and water tower businesses.
Lummus Technology which provides process technology licensing for refineries, chemical plants and gas processing plants, in addition to providing catalysts and technical services.
Examples of recent major projects around the world include:
Multinational corporation
A multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...
conglomerate engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) company. CB&I specializes in projects for oil and gas companies. CB&I operates from more than 80 locations around the world, and as of August 1, 2009, CB&I has a total of approximately 16,000 employees.
Corporate Headquarters and Leadership
The company's registered office is located in The HagueThe Hague
The Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
,
Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
.
The company's worldwide administrative office is located near Houston, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, in the The Woodlands
The Woodlands, Texas
The Woodlands is a master-planned community and a Census-designated place in the U.S. state of Texas within the metropolitan area. The population of the CDP was 55,649 at the 2000 census—a 90 percent increase over its 1990 population. According to the 2010 census, The Woodlands' population rose...
, an unincorporated area
Unincorporated area
In law, an unincorporated area is a region of land that is not a part of any municipality.To "incorporate" in this context means to form a municipal corporation, a city, town, or village with its own government. An unincorporated community is usually not subject to or taxed by a municipal government...
in Montgomery County
Montgomery County, Texas
Montgomery County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas within the Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown metropolitan area. The county was created by an act of the Congress of the Republic of Texas on December 14, 1837. The county was named for the town of Montgomery, Texas. In 2000, its...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
The current Corporate Officers are:
President and Chief Executive Officer: Philip K. Asherman
Chief Financial Officer: Ronald A. Ballschmiede
Executive Vice President—Corporate Planning: E. Chip Ray
Chief Operating Officer: Lasse Petterson
President—Lummus Technology: Daniel M. McCarthy
Chief Administration Officer: Beth A. Bailey
Executive Vice President and Chief Legal Officer: Richard E. Chandler
History
CB&I was founded in 1889 in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, USA, as Chicago Bridge & Iron Company, when Horace E. Horton, a bridge designer, agreed to merge business with George and William Wheelock of the Kansas City Bridge and Iron Company.
While initially involved in bridge design and construction, CB&I turned its focus to bulk liquid storage in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, coinciding with the western expansion of railroads across the United States and the discovery of oil in the U.S. Southwest. CB&I quickly became known for design engineering and field construction of elevated water storage tanks, aboveground tanks for storage of petroleum and refined products, refinery process vessels and other steel plate structures.
CB&I supported the expansion of oil exploration outside the U.S., starting operations in South America in 1924, in Asia two years later, and in the Middle East in 1939.
During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, CB&I was selected to build Landing Ship Tank (LSTs). LSTs carried troops and supplies to American and Allied troops fighting in Europe and the Pacific theaters.
CB&I was chosen because of their reputation and skills, particularly welding.
Since the coastal shipyards were busy building the large vessels for the war effort such as aircraft carriers, battleships, cruisers and destroyers, there was no alternative but to use the inland waterways and shipyards for the production of smaller ships.
Over the course of the company's history, CB&I developed many technologies and achieved a number of industry milestones, including the first floating-roof tank for the oil industry (1923), the first spherical pressure vessel (1923), the first double-wall LNG storage tank (1958), the first site-assembled thick wall steel nuclear reactor vessel (1966), the first marine liquid natural gas (LNG) storage and distribution terminal in the U.S. (1971), the world's largest steel water reservoir (1986), the world's largest vacuum distillation tower (1999), and the world's largest Thermal Energy Storage Tank (2009) to name just a few.
CB&I Today
In late 2000, CB&I embarked on a series of acquisitions that have expanded its services to encompass the entire hydrocarbon industry, from conceptual design through technology licensing, engineering and construction; to final commissioning and technical services.CB&I completed its largest single acquisition to date with the purchase of Lummus Global from ABB on November 19, 2007, adding approximately 3,000 employees to the CB&I payroll.
CB&I's global business sectors are:
CB&I Lummus which performs the global engineering, procurement, modularization and construction work for upstream and downstream oil and gas projects, including complete LNG liquefaction trains and regasification terminals.
CB&I Steel Plate Structures which consolidates CB&I's legacy flat bottom tank, nuclear containment vessel, cryogenic storage and water tower businesses.
Lummus Technology which provides process technology licensing for refineries, chemical plants and gas processing plants, in addition to providing catalysts and technical services.
Examples of recent major projects around the world include:
- Two liquefied natural gas (LNG) import terminals in the UK (South Hook LNG in Milford Haven, Wales which will be the largest LNG terminal in Europe; and the Grain LNG import terminal near London)
- An LNG liquefaction plant in Pampa MelchoritaPeru LNGPeru LNG is a natural gas liquefaction plant in Pampa Melchorita, Peru, at the of the South Pan American Highway. It is the first natural gas liquefaction plant in South America....
, Peru - A natural gas processing and treating complex in Cabinda Province, Angola
- A crude vacuum and decoking unit expansion project for a refinery in Kansas, USA
- The Golden Pass LNG import terminal near Sabine Pass, Texas, USA
- A large tankage facility at Shell Pearl GTL (Qatar)
- Hydrotreating and sulfur removal/recovery facilities for several major U.S. refiners
- A liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal at Quintero Bay, Chile, worth approximately $775 million
- A Cat Gas Hydrotreater (CGHT) in El Paso, Texas, USA
- A hydrogen generation plant in Benecia, Ca, USA
- The world's largest propane dehydrogenation unit in Houston, TX, USA
- A grass roots nuclear contract in the USA
- Multiple middle east storage facilities
- Oil sands storage tanks in Alberta, Canada
- In November 2004, CB&I was awarded a contract by one of the world's largest suppliers of wind turbines to fabricate 150 tubular steel support towers for wind turbines that were installed in wind farms in the western United States. The towers support 1.5-megawatt wind turbines, which are the largest wind turbines assembled in the United States and the most widely sold and tested megawatt class wind turbines in the world.