Fire at ethylene cracker

Incident

A fire in an ethylene cracker plant disrupted a significant proportion of the insured’s production via its downstream business units (through which business interruption was measured).

Claim

By engaging with the insured from the outset, Integra’s loss adjusting team was able to facilitate speedy decision-making on the scope of physical damage. Use of an existing 3D model of the facility enabled the scaling and measurement of replacement components prior to demolition being completed. Components such as structural steel, piping, electrical and instrumentation were key drivers of the timeline.

Our understanding of the reinstatement process enabled us to agree opportunistic workarounds with the insured, which in turn significantly improved the duration of critical path. The facility’s configuration supported a phased re-start and allowed a major element of production to be restored within five months of the incident.

Solution

Thanks to the open-access construction of the production model used to measure the business interruption exposure, speedy and accurate measurement of the time element effects resulted in early payments on account and settlement of the claim within nine months of the loss event. This is a powerful example of the benefits of securing clear and open dialogue with all interested parties through the loss reinstatement and measurement process.