At EPS, we provide comprehensive engineering and consulting services tailored to the needs of the manufacturing and industrial facilities sector. With our deep technical expertise and industry insights, we help clients optimize operations, improve performance, and achieve their strategic objectives across a wide range of manufacturing processes.
OSHA Compliance: Ensuring adherence to occupational safety and health standards.
Process Safety Management (PSM): Implementing systems to manage hazards associated with processing activities.
Risk Management
Business Continuity Planning: Preparing for disruptions to minimize operational impact.
Insurance Risk Assessments: Evaluating risks for insurance purposes.
Why Choose EPS for Manufacturing and Industrial Facilities?
Technical Excellence and Industry Experience
Our team brings decades of experience and deep knowledge across various manufacturing sectors.
Multidisciplinary Expertise: Mechanical, electrical, chemical, and industrial engineering.
Certified Professionals: Licensed engineers and accredited experts with hands-on industry experience.
Cutting-Edge Methodologies: Applying the latest tools, technologies, and best practices.
Customized Solutions for Your Unique Challenges
We understand that every facility and operation is unique. Our services are tailored to meet your specific needs.
Client-Centered Approach: Collaborating closely to understand your objectives and constraints.
Innovative Problem Solving: Developing creative solutions for complex challenges.
Strategic Insights: Providing actionable recommendations to drive efficiency and growth.
Proven Track Record of Success
EPS has a history of delivering successful outcomes for clients across the manufacturing industry.
Extensive Project Portfolio: Experience in a wide range of manufacturing and industrial projects.
Satisfied Clients: Numerous testimonials attesting to our effectiveness and professionalism.
Industry Recognition: Trusted by leading manufacturing corporations worldwide.
Representative Engagements
A selection of EPS engagements across engineering, forensics, and valuation.
Forensic Investigation Identifies Benzene Contamination Source in Major Consumer Product Manufacturing
Challenge
A major manufacturing facility experienced benzene contamination in its major aerosol consumer products, risking public safety and its brand reputation.
Solution
EPS was engaged to lead a multidisciplinary team in investigating the carcinogenic contamination and, within three weeks, determined its origin and manufacturing-process causes and identified effective changes to the quality-assurance procedures.
Result
Production was halted, affected products were recalled, and corrective and preventive manufacturing practices were implemented to prevent future contamination and ensure compliance with consumer safety expectations.
Engineering Design, Project Management, and Construction Expertise
Challenge
A major engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) firm faced extensive design changes while building a state-of-the-art nitrocellulose munitions manufacturing facility for the Department of Defense (DoD), leading to significant project delays and approximately $180 million in disputed costs.
Solution
EPS conducted a comprehensive technical review of the multi-year project's design elements, including process, mechanical, electrical, structural, civil, and safety systems, and performed a detailed cost engineering analysis. Through this extensive evaluation, EPS identified significant latent design defects and project management errors and then quantified the resulting scope changes.
Result
EPS's thorough analysis of the engineering design and project management supported effective dispute resolution, enabling the construction firm to present a strong defense in a contractual disagreement over project delays and cost escalation.
Technical Investigation and Financial Appraisal of Equipment Failure and Facility Shutdown
Challenge
A steel mill facility experienced chronic materials handling and operational issues, including a catastrophic collapse and shutdown during a severe snowstorm.
Solution
EPS conducted a thorough engineering and equipment maintenance assessment, including site inspections and an appraisal of the equipment and blast furnace operations.
Result
The evaluation determined negligible damages to the client, a controls and equipment supplier, providing a clear quantification of risks for the resolution of the dispute through impartial engineering and appraisal analysis.
Oxygen-Enriched Technology Explosion at Steel Mill
Challenge
A steel production facility experienced a catastrophic explosion involving oxygen-enrichment technology, resulting in the tragic deaths of two workers and serious injuries to another.
Solution
EPS conducted a forensic investigation detailing the failed components and performed an effective root cause analysis of the metallurgy and operating conditions, determining the origins and causes of the workers’ injuries and deaths.
Result
The technology provider and associated defendants provided compensation to the estates of the deceased workers and to the injured worker.
Explosion Blast Wave Determination for Injured Houston Neighborhood
Challenge
In 2020, an explosion at an industrial facility resulted in fatalities and damaged more than 1,000 properties across Houston-area neighborhoods.
Solution
EPS, leveraging its leading forensic methodologies, including advanced computational fluid dynamics (CFD), quantified the effects of the explosion, including blast wave propagation through the neighborhoods.
Result
Immediately after the analysis was presented, EPS clients obtained a settlement of $52 million, plus undisclosed amounts, covering injuries and property damage for approximately 2,200 claimants.
Ammonium Nitrate Truck Explosion Analysis
Challenge
A catastrophic explosion occurred during the transport of ammonium nitrate in Arkansas, resulting in the death of the truck driver and widespread property damage. The event raised critical concerns about material compatibility and adherence to safety standards.
Solution
EPS conducted a thorough forensic investigation, analyzing transport materials and ignition sources and ensuring adherence to regulatory standards. The team identified that ammonium nitrate was transported in a partially lined aluminum trailer, a chemically incompatible material that sensitized the explosive reaction.
Result
EPS's expert analysis clarified the root cause of the explosion incident, highlighted failures in safety compliance, and provided improved transport protocols, contributing to the litigation outcome.
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What Clients Say
John is the smartest guy in the room and he pairs that intellect with an approachable demeanor and a keen feel for the intricacies of complex litigation that is extremely rare in a consultant/expert at his level. With his multi-disciplinary expertise, he is constantly looking for new angles and seems to deliver every time.
— Leading Litigator, National Law Firm
EPS made it a point to ask us what we wanted, what we did, and how they could help us – not, ‘This is it, this is how we are doing it; take it or leave it.’ They were just really interested in giving us a custom package for whatever we wanted done.
— Tom Gardner, Leading Metals Recycler
EPS has for more than 20 years effectively provided mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, civil, and structural engineering, as well as project development and construction management, to increase our manufacturing site's competitiveness. The cost of EPS engineering is well justified in setting direction and providing project savings.
— John McKinley, Plant Manager, US Petrochemical Producer
They can help with project research and analysis, providing clients with options and how they stack up against one another — equipment-wise and energy use-wise — and help conclude which option is best.
— Pat Simms, Global VP, Renewable Chemicals and Biofuels Developer
EPS is the benchmark on which I will measure engineering firms in the future.
— Kurt Brickley, Port of San Diego
John and his team are amazing. They took one of the most scientifically complicated cases I’ve ever been involved in and truly figured out what happened. That was hard enough to do, but perhaps where they really shined was in explaining that science — first to me so that I could effectively question witnesses, and then in deposition — in a way and at a level that those of us who are not engineers could understand and follow.
— Rip Andrews, Partner at Marsh, Rickard & Bryan
John Williams is an expert in the field. He not only renovated the business, but he changed the flow of the product for the company in terms of minimizing distances from raw materials to production to warehousing to shipping. Nobody within the company was thinking that way.
— Ron Halik, International Bioprocessing and Chemicals Corporation
Attention to detail, thorough understanding of engineering and its nuances.
— Kurt Brickley, Port of San Diego
Project management, estimating skills, engineering, and design are all real core strengths of EPS…EPS’s comprehensive energy analysis for coal-fired versus gas-fired steam production, which approached the complexities of our plant’s utility and process systems, is one significant example. The project incorporated operating, maintenance, energy alternatives, risks, and future costs and presented a comprehensive financial assessment to our management in clear and concise language.
— Steve Saunders, Engineering Manager, US Petrochemical Producer
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Industries We Serve
Metals and Materials Processing
Pharmaceutical and Bioprocessing
Consumer Goods Manufacturing
Paper and Pulp
Plastics and Rubber Products
Food and Beverage Processing
Our Services Include
Process Engineering and Optimization
Process Design and Simulation
Lean Manufacturing Implementation
Automation and Control Systems Integration
Facility Design and Project Management
Facility Planning and Layout Design
Construction Management
Retrofit and Modernization
Quality and Compliance
Quality Management Systems
Regulatory Compliance Assistance
Certification Support (ISO, FDA, etc.)
Energy Management and Sustainability
Energy Audits and Assessments
Sustainability Strategy Development
Renewable Energy Integration
Health, Safety, and Environmental Services
Safety Program Development
Environmental Compliance and Permitting
Risk Assessment and Mitigation
Training and Development
Professional Development Courses
Customized Training Programs
Workshops and Seminars on Manufacturing Topics
About Dr. John A. Williams
A Leader in Manufacturing and Industrial Engineering
Dr. John A. Williams, PE, ASA, MBA, CFEI, AIChE Fellow, is the founder and General Manager of EPS. With over 40 years of operations, engineering, and construction experience, Dr. Williams is a recognized expert in the engineering analysis and financial appraisal of energy, power, and manufacturing technologies.
Dr. Williams offers a unique synergy of engineering knowledge and business acumen that extends from concept to completion. He has developed and instructed courses for the American Institute of Chemical Engineers and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, consistently drawing professionals from Fortune 100 companies.
Credentials
Accredited Senior Appraiser (ASA) by the American Society of Appraisers in Machinery & Technical Specialties: Energy, Environmental, and Manufacturing Technologies.
Certified Fire and Explosion Investigator (CFEI) by the National Association of Fire Investigators.
Fellow of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE Fellow).
PhD in Chemical and Fuels Engineering from the University of Utah
