Introduction to Refinery Planning

Learn how to use Aspen Petroleum Scheduler effectively for daily scheduling operations. This course is geared for daily users rather than model developers.

Audience:

  • Course is designed for anyone interested in learning how to use Aspen Petroleum Scheduler (APS): Event and Flow Sheet Interfaces.
  • Scheduling professionals that want to gain experience using APS -  "A Day in the Life of an APS Scheduler"

Training Details

  • Course Id:

    RBS101

  • Duration:

    2 day(s)

  • CEUs Awarded:

    1.4

  • Level:

    Introductory

Benefits

Set up your processes in Aspen Petroleum Scheduler and observe the following benefits:
  • Increased throughput
  • Improved block switching
  • Reduction of quality giveaway
  • Elimination of crisis decision making
  • Better control over inventories
  • Reduced demurrage
  • Ability to evaluate special opportunities

Approach

  • Instruction on basic topics
  • Instructor-guided demonstrations of features
  • Hands-on exercises
  • A comprehensive training manual
The course is divided into two parts:
  • PART I leads you step-by-step through building a model of a medium conversion refinery and scheduling the refinery operations in Aspen Petroleum Scheduler
  • PART II explains different processes including: simulation, publishing, overall scheduling and integration tools to build reports, getting data from tables, importing event and inventories

Pre-requisites

  • Microsoft Excel proficiency
  • General knowledge of Microsoft Access
  • Awareness of the interaction between refining technology operations and planning is strongly recommended Suggested Subsequent Courses

Agenda

Introduction to Aspen Petroleum Scheduler
  • Discuss refinery scheduling management issues
  • Discuss the benefits of using Aspen Petroleum Scheduler
  • Review the key refinery activities affected by the scheduling best practices 
  • Identify the Planning, Scheduling and Blending integrated work process

System Overview
  • Identify and explain the Aspen Petroleum Scheduler (APS) system structure
  • Describe the Aspen Petroleum Scheduler user interface
  • Demonstrate how to open and login to the APS application
  • Workshop: Open/Model Login
  • Workshop: Access Rights
  • Workshop: Multi- User Environment
  • Workshop: UBML File Missing

Interfaces and Navigation
  • Identify and explain the Aspen Petroleum Scheduler interface components
  • Discuss the Event Interface navigation features and options
  • Workshop: Create a material pool using the APS demo model

Simulation Environment
  • Develop a working knowledge of the Aspen Plus Simulation Environment
  • Build  a process flowsheet and enter stream and block information in an Aspen Plus simulation
  • Run the simulation

Model Building / Structure
  • Describe the concept of “the model” for refinery representation
  • Identify and explain the four types of APS elements (Stream, Tanks, Pipelines, Units)
  • Identify and explain how Units are used and defined to perform refinery calculations
  • Describe the order of unit calculations
  • Identify and explain the other commands in the Model Menu
  • Workshop: Use APS to build a flowsheet
  • Workshop: Review excel worksheet user-defined unit

Event Application
  • Identify and explain the Event Interface
  • Discuss the general actions and event types
  • Identify and explain User Calcs for event automation
  • Workshop: Use the Event Interface to schedule events for a typical refinery

Cases and States
  • Identify and explain usage of cases and states in Aspen Petroleum Scheduler
  • Examine the “Evaluate ‘what-if’ scenarios” activity
  • Review the Case Menu options
  • Workshop: Use APS to compare multiple cases

Simulation and Publishing
  • Identify and explain the modeling approach used by the Aspen Petroleum Scheduler Simulator
  • Differentiate between the Crude Simulator and the Process Simulator
  • Discuss the simulation sequence and task executed for a simulation period
  • Identify and explain the APS publishing options
  • Workshop: Create a publish set to publish selected data and view results

Scheduling Process
  • Identify and explain the scheduling work process activities:
  • Baseline the Model
  • Schedule the Events
  • Optimize, simulate, analyze and Publish Results
  • Identify and explain input data import and audit capabilities within APS
  • Discuss the importance of synchronize refinery & logistics schedules
  • Review inventory interface setup and event import
  • Review the process for reconciling events

Integration
  • Identify and explain inventory interface setup and integration requirements
  • Demonstrate how to run a template to extract crude unit yield result from Aspen Petroleum Scheduler using Aspen Report Writer
  • Demonstrate how to use the Refinery Report Wizard
  • Workshop: Use Excel Integration (EIU) functionality to import beginning inventories, qualities and events
  • Workshop: Use Aspen Report Wizard to export a crude table, create a template and generate a report 

Register for a Class

Date Class Type Location Price Language
Date(s): 08/4/2025 - 08/5/2025 Type: Public Virtual Location: Virtual-EMEA Price: (USD) 2000.00 Language: English Register
Date(s): 02/2/2026 - 02/3/2026 Type: Public Virtual Location: Virtual-EMEA Price: (USD) 2000.00 Language: English Register

Aspen Technology, Inc. awards Continuing Education Units (CEUs) for training classes conducted by our organization. One CEU is granted for every 10 hours of class participation.