Tracerco has launched a new technical insight series, “Andy’s Classroom”, giving engineers and industry professionals access to practical expertise on shutdowns, turnarounds and advanced diagnostic technologies.
The six-month series features 18 short lessons from Andy Burleigh, Senior Technical Advisor at Tracerco, drawing on more than 20 years of downstream industry experience.
The series follows the recent publication of a thought leadership article from Fabio Pires, Managing Director of Tracerco’s Process Diagnostics business, exploring how better diagnostic information can help operators make more informed decisions around shutdowns and turnarounds.
Shutdowns and turnarounds are essential to maintaining and upgrading refining, petrochemical and chemical assets, but they can also introduce significant downtime, cost and operational uncertainty. Understanding what is happening inside an asset before, during and after these events can provide valuable insight for planning and decision-making.
Introducing Andy's Classroom
Through Andy’s Classroom, Tracerco is sharing some of the practical knowledge and experience behind its advanced tracer and scanning technologies in a series of accessible, focused lessons.
Topics covered throughout the series include how operators can:
- Identify inefficiencies and hidden risks before, during and after shutdowns and turnarounds
- Investigate parameters that can be difficult to measure using conventional techniques
- Understand catalyst distribution, phase separation and residence time
- Assess the internal condition and performance of packed and trayed towers
- Use diagnostic data to support maintenance and operational decisions
- Reduce uncertainty and improve turnaround planning
- Optimise asset performance and maximise throughput
Each lesson focuses on a specific challenge or area of diagnostic insight, combining Andy’s technical experience with practical examples from the downstream industry.
“Shutdowns and turnarounds involve an enormous amount of planning, but there will always be questions about what is actually happening inside an asset,” said Andy Burleigh, Senior Technical Advisor at Tracerco.
“Advanced diagnostics can help operators answer some of those questions with evidence rather than assumption. The aim of Andy’s Classroom is to share some of that knowledge in a straightforward and practical way, giving engineers and operations teams insights they can consider in their own plants.”
Make better decisions.
Fabio Pires, Managing Director of Diagnostic Services at Tracerco, said:
“Diagnostics are most valuable when they help people make better decisions. It is not simply about collecting more data, but understanding what information is needed, what it tells us and how we can act on it.
“Andy has decades of experience working with operators and their assets, and Andy’s Classroom provides an opportunity to share some of that knowledge with a much wider audience. We hope the series will encourage engineers and industry professionals to think differently about how diagnostics can support shutdowns, turnarounds and ongoing asset performance.”
Lesson one - 11th November 2026
The first lessons of Andy’s Classroom will be shared across Tracerco’s LinkedIn and Facebook channels, with new episodes released throughout the ten-month series.
The series is aimed at engineers, operations managers, maintenance planners and other professionals involved in refining, petrochemical and chemical processing who are looking to make shutdowns and turnarounds more efficient, predictable and data-driven.
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