Sean Goodhart

After completing his BEng degree in “Computer and Control Systems” at Coventry Polytechnic Sean took a research position at the Polytechnic and developed non-linear model adapting control algorithms working with industrial partners in process industries. The work led to Sean’s PhD “Industrial Applications of Self Tuning Control”.  At Coventry Sean supported the teaching of the undergraduate and masters control courses.

Moving to British Gas plc Sean worked on process control and optimization in upstream gas production, the storage and distribution network and with large industrial user applications (e.g. fired heaters and gas fired power generation).

Sean moved on to Cambridge Control Ltd and focussed on deploying advanced process control (APC). When AspenTech acquired CCL Sean added services management, business development and training roles to his repertoire.  During this period Sean was very active in the Institution of Electrical Engineers (now known as the Institution of Engineering and Technology) and chaired its professional group on automation.  He received the IEE’s Younger Engineers Achievement Medal in 1999.

Leaving Aspen with 5 colleagues Sean became one of the founding partners in the control services company Applied Manufacturing Technologies.  As VP of Technology for AMT Sean continued to grow his network of contacts through consulting and training.  Sean has worked extensively around the world in Europe, Scandinavia, North and South America, the Middle-East and Asia. 

In 2012 Sean joined BP Refining Technology & Engineering and worked to improve APC sustainability in refining (and often lending advice to chemicals and upstream) and to develop and deliver the Optimization Engineer School in the downstream academy.  His impact was recognised early, with a Downstream Technical Service Award for “silent running” coming at the end of 2012.

His network of APC users world-wide is strong, having served on the AspenTech advanced control and optimization world user group twice, once as its chairman.  Sean is a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology.  He enjoys mentoring and coaching and has helped many engineers achieve their chartered status in bp and other companies.  He was co-chair of the Partnership in Automation and Control Training, a UK process industries group who developed and supported a masters programme in automation.

With bp’s reinvent in 2020 he moved to the Innovation & Engineering team where, as Control & Automation Advisor, he was able to bring his experience more directly to bp’s production facilities and to its new businesses.  Training and sharing experience in deploying process improvements with basic and advanced controls formed the daily basis of Sean’s work in bp improving safe operations and delivering $millions in benefits.

Sean is now semi-retired, providing support to teaching at Coventry University and occasional business and process control consulting.