AI plant performance in chemicals starts with one deceptively simple problem: turning plant data into decisions that actually change outcomes — and for most organizations, the bottleneck is not the technology. Lewis Sweet, General Manager Global Refining and Chemicals at Honeywell, brings to CIEX North America 2026 a perspective shaped by working at the intersection of industrial technology and chemical plant operations across some of the world’s most complex refining environments.
In this interview, he shares where AI is already moving hard metrics in plant operations, what is genuinely preventing organizations from scaling proven use cases across sites, and how the shift from volume growth to value creation is reshaping investment priorities in refining and chemicals. The answers are more direct — and more uncomfortable — than most transformation agendas tend to acknowledge.
CIEX: Without giving too much away, what is the core message of your session and what would you like delegates to remember?
Lewis Sweet, General Manager Global Refining and Chemicals, Honeywell
Lewis: The next wave of competitive advantage in chemicals won’t come from more innovation — it will come from better execution. What are the human and machine factors preventing us from closing the loop: using greater degrees of technology in an increasingly dynamic global economy? My message is simple — technology is not the bottleneck. We are.
The next wave of competitive advantage in chemicals won’t come from more innovation — it will come from better execution.
CIEX: What motivates you to join CIEX this year – and where are you most looking to learn from peers at this event?
Lewis: CIEX brings together senior leaders facing the same pressures — margin, sustainability, and complexity — creating a rare environment for practical, peer-level discussion. I’m most interested in how leaders are prioritizing investments and where digital initiatives are truly moving hard business metrics versus where impact is still limited.
CIEX: How has your approach to balancing volume growth and value creation evolved in recent years – and what’s one decision you’ve made here that would’ve been unthinkable three years ago?
Lewis: The focus has shifted from volume growth to value creation — getting more out of existing assets rather than adding new capacity. One clear change is the increase of low- and zero-capex digitization projects. Pay-for-performance and outcome-based models are more market-fluid than SaaS and incentivize all parties toward the right behaviors.
CIEX: Where is AI-enabled innovation already moving a hard business metric, and where is it still not delivering?
Lewis: AI is delivering in areas like process optimization and operator decision support, where it can directly influence performance. The challenge is not capability — it’s scaling. Many organizations have proven use cases, but embedding them consistently across operations using deterministic models scales at 1:1.
CIEX: Have we over-optimized for speed at the expense of resilience — or the other way around?
Lewis: Sustainability and economics are increasingly aligned, especially in areas like energy efficiency, where lower cost and lower emissions go hand in hand. The key is prioritizing initiatives that deliver both, while staying disciplined about where the trade-offs don’t yet justify the investment.
CIEX: Looking ahead, what factors and capabilities will define competitive advantage in the chemical industry over the next few years?
Lewis: Competitive advantage will come down to execution, adaptability, and integration — how well organizations deliver consistent performance, respond to change, and connect data to decision-making. Technology alone won’t differentiate; the ability to scale and operationalize it will.
Technology alone won’t differentiate; the ability to scale and operationalize it will.
Is Your Plant Closing the Loop Between AI and Measurable Performance?
If AI is delivering in pockets but not yet moving the needle at scale, you are not alone — and the gap is rarely where you expect it.
At CIEX North America 2026, Lewis Sweet of Honeywell brings a front-row perspective on what it actually takes to turn plant data into measurable operational performance in the session Closing the Loop: Turning AI Into Measurable Plant Performance.
CIEX is a forum where peers from 3M, Dow, Eastman Chemical, Honeywell, Huntsman, Albemarle, Momentive, Cabot, and Wanhua Chemical Group are working through the same challenge — openly and at a senior level.
September 9–10, 2026 | Indianapolis
Register for CIEX North America 2026 →
