In this seminar, Process Automation Hall of Fame member Greg McMillan delivers a masterclass on the foundational concepts that drive process control improvement.
Managing Change in Process Control: Lessons from Greg McMillan
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Jim is a 37-year veteran in industrial automation with Emerson and leads Emerson's global social marketing practice. He is the chief blogger of Emerson Automation Experts.
Jim received his BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of Texas and an MBA at the University of New Orleans. He began his career as a systems engineer for Conoco's offshore oil & gas production operations, based in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Posts by or with Jim Cahill
Solving LNG Valve Challenges from Production to Storage and Transport
Poorly specified or undersized valves in critical services can cause unplanned shutdowns, fugitive emissions, and safety incidents, so getting valve selection right at the front end of a project and revisiting it whenever process conditions change are among the highest-leverage actions an operator or engineering contractor can take.
Slurry, Corrosion, Remote Operations and Water: Valves That Keep Mines Running
Valve failures in mining drive unplanned downtime, safety hazards, environmental exposure, and lost production. Abrasive slurries, cavitation, and corrosive acids each attack valves in different ways, yet all lead to the same outcome: shortened service life and rising maintenance costs. A podcast analyzing available solutions.
From Manual Rounds to Real-Time Insight: How Non-Intrusive Monitoring Is Reshaping Integrity Management on FPSO Vessels
Many floating production vessels now operating off Africa and elsewhere were converted or built decades ago and are approaching or exceeding their original design lives. The monitoring equipment installed during that era is equally dated, leaving integrity teams dependent on manual ultrasonic inspections, retrievable corrosion coupons, and intrusive probes.
Tuning and Control Loop Performance: Practical Lessons for Process Engineers
Process Automation Hall-of-Fame member, Greg McMillan’s freely available Tuning and Control Loop Performance, presents a field‑tested body of knowledge built on decades of industrial application.
Non-Intrusive Measurements: Closing Critical Gaps Without Shutdowns
The challenge for many refiners is whether the installation risk, outage dependency, and ongoing maintenance burden can be justified. When those barriers remain in place, uncertainty forces conservative decisions. Non-intrusive measurement directly targets those constraints by allowing new measurement points to be added without cutting into piping, breaking containment, or waiting for outages.
From Simulation to Splashdown: The Testing That Powered Artemis II
Watch the keynote presentation that highlights the extensive testing for the Orion spacecraft, including the ability to withstand 5000 degF heat generated from 25,000 mph re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere.
Corrosion Risks in Biofuel Processing and How Operators Can Respond
The shift toward renewable fuels has introduced new operational realities for refiners. While biofuels offer clear sustainability benefits, their chemical composition and processing paths create corrosion mechanisms that differ in both severity and location from those seen in traditional petroleum refining.
Catching the Weak Signals: Improving Refinery Safety Through Better Visibility
Most major refinery incidents do not start with dramatic failures. They start with small, unremarkable changes that go unnoticed until it is too late.
Global Mining Investment Boom: What $1.5 Trillion in Projects Means for Operations and Automation
The $1.5 Trillion Mining Boom newsletter highlights that the global mining industry has entered a new investment super-cycle with roughly $1.5 trillion in active mining projects worldwide, while operators and suppliers alike are navigating tighter timelines, more demanding operating conditions, and higher expectations for execution reliability.
Strengthening Isolation Valve Support Across Europe Through Channel Partners Podcast
Jim Cahill’s podcast conversation with Emerson’s Knut Riegel explores what “proximity to the customer” looks like in practice, and which leading indicators signal a healthy service ecosystem.
Autonomous AI at the Edge
In oil and gas, edge intelligence has become central to how operators run complex, distributed assets. They collect data at the well, run inference locally, and adjust how they extract based on whether a well is just coming online or in a more mature phase.
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