Introduction

This chapter relates to process economics from a processing point of view. It concerns the input from the engineering department to the whole package necessary for the process engineer to ensure a profitable operation. The starting point for the chapter is as follows: how much will it cost to produce x tonnes per year of a product you have nurtured through to successful pilot-scale operation and how much money is it possible to make should the process be scaled-up to industrial operation? This may sound a tall order, but it isn't. You will find that it is remarkably simple to obtain a reasonable estimate of the economic feasibility of your, and any other, process, once you know which tools to use. And what processes are we talking about? Interestingly, the process itself is not that important. To illustrate the economics behind a process, we could have picked any. So if the chapter does not deal with a process you do not recognise immediately, please do not despair. We are dealing with principles, and economic principles are not process specific.

Let us take a product we can all relate to. Gemferlin is a healthcare product. It is used in the treatment of obesity. What it does and what sort of compound it is, is none of our concern. For us, it is sufficient to know that our laboratory people have demonstrated it can be produced safely and the relevant approval documents are all in order.