4 Minutes With…Hans Keuken, CEO, Process Design Center

Tell us about your organization and it’s role in the Advanced Bioeconomy.

Process Design Center owns and applies PROSYN, the largest (petro)chemical process expert system in the world, to develop better & cheaper bio-based processes. Inventing new processes or improving state of the art processes for the leading companies is a challenging and rewarding job.

Tell us about your role and what you are focused on in the next 12 months.

As owner, founder and CEO of PDC, I have 4 major goals for the coming 12 months.

1. Getting EC support for our cheaper hydrous E15 gasoline (currently 160 gas stations in Netherlands) and implementation of the hydrous concept in countries like France, Belgium, Sweden, Brazil, USA and Philippines.
2. Recruiting innovative PhDs in chemical engineering to join our team.
3. Finding a partner in the US for PDC Process Design Center Inc. currently based in CA.
4. Enable our process expert system PROSYN to run in reverse. So finding applications for certain solutions instead of finding solutions for certain process tasks. This is useful to define markets for new innovative unit operations.

What do you feel are the most important milestones the industry must achieve in the next 5 years?

The coming 5 years we should drastically improve the economics of most of our new bio-based processes and products to become competitive and profitable

If you could snap your fingers and change one thing about the Advanced Bioeconomy, what would you change?

I hope that a large percentage of the current representatives of the Advanced Bioeconomy can become profitable (with or without help). This will automatically create the necessary interest to grow the Advanced Bioeconomy business.

Of all the reasons that influenced you to join the Advanced Bioeconomy industry, what single reason stands out for you as still being compelling and important to you?

The challenge to develop the new feasible processes.

You’ll be speaking at the next ABLCNext conference in San Francisco this November. What’s special about that week for you?

As process development organization the most important during the ABLCnext conference is to speak to existing and future partners to improve their process economics.

What was your undergraduate major in college, and where did you attend? Why did you choose that school and that pathway? 

As a kid I wanted to become an inventor and because physics to me seemed to be the ultimate challenge, I started studying theoretical Physics and Astronomy in Amsterdam. A little afraid for “the end of science” (ending up with a couple of nerds and pretty likely adding nothing to the knowledge domain of mankind), I moved to engineering.

Who do you consider your mentors?

People who inspired me are: Prof. Bodo Linnhoff (Pinch Technology), my former business partners Prof. Hans Simmrock and Prof. Gerhard Schembecker(structured conceptual process design with heuristic-neumeric systems – PROSYNå¨), Prof. Jim Douglas and his successors Prof. Mike Doherty and Prof. Mike Malone (UMass)

What’s the biggest lesson you ever learned during a period of adversity?

Do not wait for things to improve but ACT and do something else.

What hobbies do you pursue, away from your work in the industry? 

Every Sunday morning I try to ride my racebike and currently more and more with my youngest 12 year old son, who seems to got some talent from his grandfather.

My extreme catamaran sailing is replaced my more comfortable yachts.

What are 3 books you’d want to have with you, if you were stranded on a desert island?

In this situation I would prefer to write my own books instead reading stories of others. Better be a poet than a reader!

What books or articles are on your reading list right now, or you just completed and really enjoyed?

I am an omnivore and I really do not make an list.

What’s your favorite city or place to visit, for a holiday?

Havana last year was quite interesting. Normally I prefer something new. I haven’t been to New Orleans yet.