American Refining Group Inc.’s Bradford refinery operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week — with almost no exceptions.

One concession to this constant stream of production is the maintenance shutdown known as turnaround, which all refineries must undergo. During turnaround, the refinery’s process units are taken off-line for optimization and in order to make any necessary repairs. ARG’s next maintenance shutdown begins this weekend.

A methodical procedure will be followed to safely bring down ARG’s process units and purge hydrocarbons from the system. During this process, the main refinery flare will be active; this is necessary to ensure the safety of everyone working here as well as our community.

Nearly all of ARG’s refinery personnel (approximately 200 employees) are involved in turnaround. More than 200 contractors will also support the effort, the planning and scheduling for which began in 2018.

“We conduct these major maintenance turnarounds approximately every 3 years to ensure the ongoing safe and reliable operation of our facility,” said Robin Augustine, ARG vice president of operations. “Because we operate around the clock, it requires a full process shutdown to accomplish this work.”

Bulk loading of gasoline and diesel fuel at Foster Brook as well as lubricant blending and packaging operations will continue during turnaround in order to serve customers without interruption.

Beyond increased vehicle traffic and some parking congestion around the refinery, the community should not be inconvenienced by the shutdown.

ARG President and Chief Operating Officer Jon Giberson said, “Our refinery is always active, but that is even more true during turnaround; a significant number of employees, contractors, trucks, ATVs and heavy equipment will be moving about the facility throughout much of each day.

“Our top priority, in light of the increased activity and manpower needed to accomplish this massive undertaking, is to bring another 100 percent safe turnaround to a close,” Giberson concluded.