My wife and I were recently watching old movies of our kids, and we stumbled across a favorite: my youngest learning to take his first steps. Every time he falls down in the video, you can hear my wife and me cheering him on – encouraging him to get up and try again.

It got me thinking about challenges – and how our attitude toward “bumps in the road” shifts drastically from childhood to adulthood. Young kids typically don’t mind an audience as they struggle through something new or challenging. In fact, they often ask for help without hesitation. But as we grow into adults, we’re more apt to muscle through challenges on our own because we don’t want anyone to know we’re having a hard time. 

The Monument team has been doing a good job overcoming those barriers – and connecting with each other more to solve challenges and share learnings. But as with most things worth perfecting – there’s still more we can do to enhance those connections…

• Reach out to your “siblings.” There might be an ocean between the U.S. sites and Antwerp, Belgium, but it shouldn’t feel like there is. I was thrilled to see the Antwerp team working with Houston when they were experiencing an equipment issue that led to a product contamination. Houston had faced a similar issue with a comparable product line, and they helped the Antwerp team to consider several additional ways to help mitigate future reoccurrences while improving their own processes stateside.

As another great example, a short while back, the Brandenburg team was having trouble finding a particular fuse, and a team member in Port Arthur was able to find one in about 30 minutes, and shipped several of them to Brandenburg, who was back up and running when they had the fuse in hand.

Please never hesitate to reach out when you’re facing a challenge. You have “siblings” around you who have rich histories of best practices that complement your own.  

• Don’t just appease the issue – solve the problem permanently. Temporary fixes can keep things moving, but they often lead to recurring headaches down the road. I’ve seen quite a few instances where we "put a Band-Aid" on a situation, only to have the same problem resurface later – sometimes even more complicated than before. Take the time to analyze the root cause (especially by working across teams!), and don’t be afraid to dig deeper until you’re sure you’ve found a long-term solution. It might take more effort initially, but we’ll save time, resources, and frustration in the long run. As a team, we should prioritize proactive solutions that prevent issues from becoming ongoing nuisances.


• It’s all about communication. Our HR and Communications teams will love me for saying this, but I mean it fully: good communication is key to our success. When we share information, from lessons learned to the challenges we’re tackling, it strengthens our entire operation. The most efficient solutions often come when teams keep each other informed and engaged. Whether it’s a quick call or a scheduled brainstorming session, keep talking with each other openly. We are a stronger company when everyone is in the loop.

Let me circle back to that video with my son learning to walk – which also got me thinking about WHY we’re so encouraging of “bumps” and challenges with our little ones. The answer is pretty simple: we’re teaching them to be resilient. To bounce back after a challenge. To reach out for help.

To put the puzzle piece in different spots until they find the one that works.

And today, we all need to be more resilient than ever. The more resilient we are, the more we can navigate any challenge that comes our way.

Just last week, my youngest son was struggling with homework, and he was pretty frustrated before he reached out for help. (We all need reminders that we’re not an island – which is why I’m writing this!) 

I’m pleased to say my son got back on track pretty quickly. He’s learning. And so am I.

So are we ALL. 

Let’s keep learning together!

Europe

Business Wins

• Successful implementation of new cooling tower hydrolysis process to boost capacity and meet customers’ demand — Olivier Daelemans, Frederik De Troyer, Pieter-Jan Joos, Sören Mattheyssen and Thomas Maes
• Safe and successful execution of the utility plant shutdown (September 2024) — HSE, technical, production team, and contractors
• Several successful quality audits to support CP and OP business (DOW, Carbogen Amics, Lanzatech Estée Lauder, and more) — Leen Props, Thibeau Opsomer, Tom De Vos, and PI team

Key Projects

• Evaluate re-use of effluent of the wastewater treatment plant as cooling tower water make up
• Several energy saving projects, such as hot standby steam boiler 315 (22 bar), reduction operating temperature incinerator, insulation acetic acid tanks, and others
• Sustainability initiatives, such as Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), Product Carbon Footprint (PCF), climate roadmap, and others

Key Focus

• Continue to identify new opportunities to simplify and digitalize work processes and increase site efficiency and flexibility
• Swift implementation of new business opportunities to fill spare capacity

Solvents

Business Wins

• Reduction of Polysulfide downtime and cycle time improvement — Jake Moehring, Briana Borders, and Ted Olszanski
• Reactor improvements (Bayport) — Romain Vidal-Michel, Alex Willig, and Bayport team
• Preparation for Lyondell acetone trial — Jake Moehring, Tim Prowell. Bill Gundlach, Jesse Lloyd, and the Houston team

Key Projects

• Acetone tank proposal
• Wastewater improvements
• Several new trials at Houston and Bayport

Key Focus: Employee training and retention

Renewables & Fuels

Business Wins

• Transition of HF-295 from external terminal to Baytown — Jerry Traylor, William Hairston, Vernon Harris, and Cody Sanders
• CPChem solvent sales from Port Arthur — Helen Waguespack, Vernon Harris, and Port Arthur logistics team
• External tank lease reduction — Vernon Harris, Kyle Tomme, and Philip Sprague

Key Projects

• ONB capex completion and startup
• Resin Project optimization at Port Arthur
• Several new trials at Houston and Bayport

Key Focus: Operating discipline

Oxides 

Business Wins

• Implementation of Trendminer in Brandenburg and Houston sites (High Performance Teams) — Wendell Borges, Yovanys Hernandez, Lotanna Onyesoh (MCH), Ted Olszanski (MCH), Jake Moehring (MCH), and Bryan Bailey (IT)
• Reduction of changeover times at Polychem (Capacity Increase) — Rehani Shalash, Allie Greenwood, Alexandra Bledsoe, and Gary Coomer
• Powerhouse Economizer Optimization (Sustainability) — Jordan Lindsey, Cody Cole, Yovanys Hernandez, and Phillip Stith
• Steam consumption reduction efforts — Jordan Lindsey, Cheri Greenwell, Matthew Kent, and Michael Wurtman

Key Projects

• CO2 Polyols (Econic) Startup
• EDC Improvements (Reliability)
• Sustainability Roadmap projects
• Pilot Plant Afton Improvements

Key Focus: Planning and execution of continuous improvement projects