Fluor provided engineering, procurement, and construction management to the Korean Oil Corporation for Korea's $16 million grassroots refinery in Ulsan.
Fluor guaranteed completion of the refinery within 16 months, and based on that guarantee, was awarded the contract.
Fluor's experience enabled it to anticipate most challenges, but Fluor faced additional obstacles unique to the Korean jobsite: poor roads leading to the site; no communications network; scarcity of lumber; and availability of sand and rock sources.
In addition, Fluor had to provide power for construction, establish security and fire protection services, furnish housing for U.S. expats, in effect, make the site self-sufficient. Fluor also had to recruit and train 1,200 Korean nationals.
Fluor established a liaison office in Seoul to manage in-country issues while engineering began in Fluor's California offices. Procurement was also handled in the California office.
Once construction managers were onsite, they faced more challenges when heavy rains caused delays in construction. The heavy rains continued throughout the spring and into the summer, but in August of that year, the weather improved and Fluor regained some of the time lost to the weather.
In September, with a peak construction workforce, minimal design changes, and cooperative vendors, the project was nearing 80 percent complete. Near the end of October, the project was 85 percent complete. On December 21 - 58 days earlier than the contract called for, Fluor turned over operation of the refinery to Korea Oil Corporation.