Case Study: Marathon Petroleum Corporation achieves full refinery scheduling and 70% fewer operational changes with Aspen Technology’s Aspen Petroleum Scheduler™

Marathon Petroleum Corporation Upgrades Refineries to Full Refinery Scheduling with Aspen Petroleum Scheduler

Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC), a Fortune 500 refiner with a seven-plant network, needed a single “cradle-to-grave” barrel tracking system to serve as “one version of the truth” and eliminate fragile custom scheduling spreadsheets. To meet that challenge, MPC implemented Aspen Technology’s Aspen Petroleum Scheduler to build a full refinery scheduling model that tracks every barrel through units and tankage and supports multiple concurrent users.

Aspen Technology configured APS with streamlined interfaces, on-site super users and training so five to seven schedulers could use the model daily, replacing redundant data entry and improving reconciliation. The Aspen Technology solution removed spreadsheet mystery, optimized product schedules and exposed model gaps (including links to Aspen PIMS), enabling more stable operations — MPC cut the number of operational changes by 70% and has rolled out Aspen Petroleum Scheduler across its refineries.

Marathon Petroleum Corporation

Paul Parrick

Lead Support Refining - Operations Research