Science in the Work Place

Brunner Mond is an international business which has various locations around the world to cater for the worldwide demand for theses products. The United Kingdom based site is situated in Northwich, Cheshire, and the address for this site is situated below;

Brunner Mond

Post Box 4

Mond House

Northwich

Cheshire

CW8 4JD

United Kingdom

The original site which was the United Kingdom based site is located in an area which can make their business needs. The Northwich sites are in close distance from the locations of the raw material needed. The sites are near to the Cheshire Salt plain which Northwich is upon and that provides Brunner Mond with Brine (Sodium Chloride solution), Limestone can be quarried and transported from Buxton which is a mere twenty miles distance from Brunner Mond. Some other materials collected from nearby areas are Carbon or also known as Coke which are imported from South Yorkshire coal fields and water from the River Weaver. All these areas of raw material are close to Brunner Mond which makes transporting and receiving these materials much easier. There are many transport links nearby to transport raw materials to Brunner Mond and to export the products from the site to valued customers. Local transport links vary in types and methods, these local transport links are by using the roads, motorways, rail and in the past canals and the River Weaver were used.

The map above shows that there are many railway stations situated near Brunner Mond; railways are used for transportation of goods.

Key

= Brunner Mond = Nearby Railway Stations

Brunner Mond is one of the world’s leading chemical manufacturers; these chemicals are used in many of the household products names. Brunner Mond’s products are used by a wide range of applications, for example glass making, cheap lighting, road safety, personal care products, pharmaceuticals, food and other chemicals. The chemicals below are produced by Brunner Mond and used by well-known brands;

Sodium Carbonate

Sodium Carbonate is a solid material and is also known by the name of Soda Ash and it is manufacture in two different densities, one is light and the other is denser; the lighter density is more granular and appears similar to powder where the coarse and more denser version appears like small stones. Brunner Mond produces three million tonnes of Soda Ash per year and it is used in other products such as glass, detergents, food additives and it is used in the treatment of water.

Sodium Bicarbonate

Sodium Bicarbonate is a solid material which Brunner Mond produces one hundred and seventy million tonnes per year. Brunner Mond produces many particle sizes of Sodium Bicarbonate to meet the needs of the customers and the products that it is used in. Sodium bicarbonate is in shelf products such as mouthwashes, baking powders, detergents and animal feeds. Other products which are created from the use of Sodium Bicarbonate are Alkakarb which is used in animal feed, Dessikarb which is a speciality-formulated grade of Sodium Bicarbonate.

Calcium Chloride

Calcium Chloride is a liquid which is created in the Solvay Ammonia Soda Process. This process uses Limestone and salt (both found locally) with Ammonia as an intermediate forms Sodium Carbonate and Calcium Chloride, once the process is complete Ammonia is recycled.

Brunner Mond’s products are vital to everyday life as they are used in many products which society uses daily; Brunner Mond’s products are used in food, personal care products and pharmaceutical products, Brunner Mond's products are also used in fire extinguishers.

Food

Brunner Mond produces a major food application ...

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Calcium Chloride

Food

Brunner Mond produces a major food application in their laboratories and that is Sodium Bicarbonate or alternatively known as Baking Soda. Sodium Bicarbonate is used in baking products, baking powder, self-raising flour, cake mixes and finished baking products; to cater for the wide range of demand Brunner Mond produces many different grades. Without Brunner Mond’s products we may be facing the fact we wouldn’t be able to produce many food products. Brunner Mond’s major food consumers are McVities, Rank Hovis, Cadburys and Coca Cola.

Detergents

Soda Ash which Brunner Mond provides is a raw material which is used in the production of Percarbonates, Phosphates and Silicates; these products then are used extensively in household products. Percarbonates are water-soluble chemical compound Sodium Carbonate and Hydrogen Peroxide.

Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products

Brunner Mond’s Sodium Bicarbonate is not only used in food but it is also used in Pharmaceuticals and personal care products; these products consist of effervescent antacids, analgesic, denture cleaning tablets and antacid gel formulations. The high purity of Brunner Mond’s Sodium Bicarbonate is perfectly safe as it meets the requirements of the European Pharmacopoeia (EP) and the United States Pharmacopoeia (USP). The EP is a council of Europe which regulates the use of pharmaceutial products in the 36 states of Europe and USP is the counter-part which controls the same usages in the United States of America. Sodium Bicarbonate is also used in vital personal care products such as toothpaste and mouthwash, additionally it is used in bath additives. Brunner Mond’s major pharmaceutical consumers are GSK, Bayer, Cambro, Sanof and Astra Zenica; their personal care consumers consist of Boots, Proctor and Gamble, and LUSH.

Glass Production

Brunner Mond’s Soda Ash is a vital raw material in the glass production industry (Na2CO3) is used to lower the melting point to about 1500 °C in ; the soda makes the glass water soluble therefore (), which is generally extracted from Limestone, Magnesium Oxide (MgO) and Aluminum Oxide are added to provide for a better chemical durability.

Soda in Everyday Life

Brunner Mond’s Soda Ash is a major component in the making of tableware, light sources such as light bulbs and light tubes and glass fibre which are used for energy conservation. Brunner Mond’s Soda Ash is used in specialised applications such as televisions, optical lenses and reflective road paint.

Chemicals

Brunner Mond’s produce is used as vital raw materials in a wide range other chemicals, it is used in both the production and synthesis of many chemicals such a chrome and silicates. Some of Brunner Mond’s products are used as intermediates in the manufacturing of some chemicals. Brunner Mond’s products are used in leather tanning, brine purification and desulphurising iron; other applications consist of paper, refrigerants, foamed plastic and carpet underlay.

The Importance

Without Brunner Mond’s input in the production of the raw materials of some of life’s everyday such as toothpaste and mouthwash. If Brunner Mond did not exist we might be facing a big fact that these products may not exist or prices of these products would be considerably more expensive due to the fact that these raw materials would have to be imported from other nations; the expense of this would be past down to the demanding customers. Glass is used for various things such as windows, drinking glasses and for screens, without Brunner Mond we may not have windows in our homes to keep it insulated. The list goes on, Brunner Mond is essential to everyday life in the United Kingdom; whether is drinking, eating, warmth, health, maintaining the environment , it is so important that the products are produced in a good quantity to meet our demand.

Brunner Mond employ approximately five hundred employees within the two UK based Northwich sites, the majority of these are scientists and engineers. These scientists and engineers work at all different levels of managerial and working levels. Below is a list of jobs which are occupied at Brunner Mond;

Managing Director

The Managing Director at Brunner Mond must ensure that the company operates as efficient as it possibly can; the Managing Director must create ways of making BM efficient. Managing Directors ensure the day-to-day running of the company is at it’s long-term business plan; they do the occupation of a manager but unlike a manager they are involved in the Board of directors.

Brunner Mond’s Managing Director is a Chemical Engineer by trade and has a degree level qualification. This allows the Managing Director to be experience in this field of industry as Brunner Mond is a chemical manufacturer. To obtain a degree level in Chemical Engineering applicant can choose from four degrees, these degrees are;

MEng in Chemical Engineering which is done over four 4 years
BEng in Chemical engineering which is completed in three years and then a industrial placement

To be accepted for this course, applicants must already have A-level and AS-level if they have been educated in England; applicants must have A-level in Mathematics, A-level science and A/S in a relevant science subjects such as Chemistry, Physics, Computer Science, Biology, Technology, Geography. Level 1 at AS-level is acceptable if applicant has obtained A-level Mathematics.

To be successful at this occupation the Managing director must have qualities and skills which consist of team-work, punctually, organisation and consistency.

The Operations Director

The Operations Director must plan, direct, manage, and oversee the maintenance activities and operations of the entire plant such as the laboratories, raw material importing, product exporting, chemical manufacturing, and waste management also to provide support to Managing Director.

Brunner Mond’s Operations Director is also a Chemist which allows him to be more aware of the goings on at the site. To be qualified to perform they must have a degree; however the employee currently in this occupation as a PhD. Applicants for a PhD must have obtained a 2.1 or higher first degree or equivalent in Chemistry or a relevant chemical science. Applicants can also be accepted for the course with a taught Masters degree.

The Principle Scientists

The Principle Scientists work in the laboratories and produce safe products from the raw material this raw material must be analysed before they are used to construct the products. To do this test are performed on a sample of this raw material to ensure absolute safety. The Principle Scientists also construct the products by causing chemical reactions between raw materials to eventually produce their products. Brunner Mond expects their principle scientists to have obtained a degree level in analytical chemistry.

The Corrosion Engineer

The Corrosion Engineer must know theory and practice to prevent corrosion and mitigation; mitigation is a process which makes the corrosion less severe. They also evaluate metals and polymers for new or existing facilities or processes.

Applicants interested in Corrosion Engineering should have obtained a degree in Chemistry, Materials and Metallurgy. To be accepted for this course applicant should have a high A-level in Chemistry and a standard GCSE in Mathematics. To Obtain an A-level Chemistry applicants must have five General Certificate of Secondary Education qualifications of grades A*-C which must consist of Mathematics, English, BB in double award Science or C in single award Science.

Skills

All these employees have different roles but they all must be hard working, they must be a team worker and have good communicating skills. Brunner Mond allows employees to gain more qualifications while working for them but to do this efficiently employees must be good learners for maximum effect. Employees must also be punctually, reliable, responsible and hands-on.

Brunner Mond’s Expectations

Brunner Mond expects all employees to be able to communicate clearly to one-another both written and verbally while showing a good basic level of secondary education which all applicants and employees are required to General Certificates of Secondary Education. Brunner Mond offers their employees to elaborate on their skills giving them the opportunity to learn new aspects; this requires employees to be willing to learn on the job. Brunner Mond also expects employees to be enthusiastic, committed to achieving goals and proud to be successful collectively as a business; the whole constitution of Brunner Mond is based upon consultation, communication, involvement and the responsibility to make a decision and act upon it.

Positive Environment Impacts

Brunner Mond’s Soda Ash and Sodium Bicarbonate are used in aqua and gas emission treatment; it is also used to treat waste water and water suitable to consume. Brunner Mond’s products are used to neutralise and to buffer solutions to control the pH.

Negative Environment Impacts

Brunner Mond’s waste affects many aspects of our environment, it affects our water and air and also creating noise pollution and energy waste. Some waste chemicals pollute nearby waters such as streams and rivers these chemicals consist of chloride effluent, Ammonia, solids and organics.

The chemicals can pollute water but they also pollute the air, Ammonia, hydrogen sulphide which is toxic, Carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide and particulates of dust are all emitted into the air causing the environment a lot of damage; the environment is also polluted by noise from the machinery.

Environmental Control

Legally, Brunner Mond is only permitted to operate if they keep within the safe amount of emissions, if these laws are broken the Pollution Prevention and Control as part of the Environmental Agency can suspend all operations immediately; also the company’s individuals can be fined or indeed sent to prison, to avoid imprisonment and fines the PPC can enforce improvements. All of Brunner Mond’s emissions must be put on a public record which any individual can see.