In 2023, Cargill began construction on a strategic capital investment at its soybean oil refinery in Sidney, Ohio. With the U.S. food supply chain under pressure and 2030 volume projections on the rise, the company needed to expand onsite storage to minimize shipping risks and maintain its role as a dependable supplier to major customers like Walmart, Costco and McDonald’s.
The project involved the installation of three large-capacity tanks:
- Soy RBD: 50 feet in diameter, 50 feet tall, with a 5.5-million-pound capacity
- Palm Crude: 50′ x 50′, also 5.5 million pounds
- Soy Crude: 60′ x 40′, with 6.3 million pounds of storage
Alongside the tanks, the team was tasked with underground rerouting, a new distillate loadout, piping, structural steel enhancements and electrical and instrumentation upgrades. With a budget of $30.9 million and a deadline of June 2026, the project was high stakes from day one.
Adding complexity, the refinery had to remain fully operational throughout construction.
“This is a live facility,” said Cargill construction supervisor Mara Horn. “We’re expanding, but we can’t shut anything down. That means the coordination has to be exact.”
While the Ohio tank project is a complex construction effort involving structural steel, electrical systems and live plant operations, Cargill’s success hinges on its ability to coordinate multiple disciplines across time zones and ensure timely execution in the field. Bluebeam serves as the core platform enabling that execution.
Used Across Every Drawing and Discipline
Cargill’s team uses Bluebeam to review, mark up and communicate across all core design types—mechanical, civil, electrical and instrumentation (E&I)—and tank fabrication. All P&IDs and associated engineered drawings pass through Bluebeam for markup, correction and distribution between engineers, operations leaders and construction crews.
“We use Bluebeam to share all drawings between the engineers, operations and construction team,” Horn said. “We mark up the drawings for all our P&IDs. … We use it as a secure way to communicate regarding the drawings.”
Horn noted that Bluebeam has been instrumental in identifying drawing errors early, improving drawing fidelity and keeping all collaborators aligned on changes in real time.
Essential for Site Planning and Safety Execution
Beyond technical drawings, Bluebeam is also used to manage comprehensive site logistics and safety layouts. These include:
- Parking areas and site facilities
- Traffic routing and delivery access
- Crane placement
- Safe walking paths and hazard zones
- Emergency egress routes
All logistics layouts are reviewed and updated in Bluebeam monthly—or more frequently as needed—and redistributed to the construction team and operations staff onsite.
“These get updated in Bluebeam throughout the entire project and sent out to the teams,” Horn explained. “It helps maintain our Cargill policy of zero harm across the board.”
For example, when plans changed to accommodate revised crane placements and additional underground rerouting, Bluebeam helped ensure that safety perimeters were adjusted and clearly communicated. Teams onsite could visualize the changes and prepare in advance, reducing daily briefing time and on-the-ground confusion.
Streamlining RFIs and Change Management in the Field
Construction is dynamic, and field conditions rarely match drawings perfectly. Bluebeam enables Cargill to quickly respond to discrepancies through a centralized markup and approval workflow.
Horn described a recent situation where her team discovered that pump base measurements in the field didn’t match the plan. Rather than halt work or wait for a new set of drawings via email, the team immediately submitted an RFI and shared revised versions in Bluebeam.
“We marked up the issues, proposed corrections and resolved it as a team right in Bluebeam,” she said. “It usually takes two quick revision rounds, then we release the new drawing. Because Bluebeam is live, it’s fast—we don’t lose time.”
Compared to older methods where paper-based markups or separate email threads might delay feedback by a day or more, Bluebeam enables a turnaround within hours—sometimes faster—and ensures every stakeholder has access to the latest approved version.
Field-Ready Access and Controlled Distribution
“Our teams access everything digitally. We use tablets in the field and laptops in the office. There’s no confusion about whether a change has been made—it’s all live.”
Mara Horn
Construction Supervisor
Cargill
Cargill equips its construction crews with tablets, enabling real-time digital access to all current drawings and markup sets directly in the field. Whether accessed on tablets or laptops, Bluebeam ensures that the latest versions are always on hand.
“Our teams access everything digitally,” Horn said. “We use tablets in the field and laptops in the office. There’s no confusion about whether a change has been made—it’s all live.”
Version control and session management are handled by both internal and third-party project controls teams. These teams support the opening and closing of Studio Sessions, Bluebeam’s real-time collaboration capability, feedback tracking and secure sharing of drawing revisions.
Horn added that while there are occasional requests for additional Bluebeam training, the platform has been widely adopted and integrated into daily workflows.
Leveraging Studio Sessions for Cross-Team Reviews
Cargill used Bluebeam Studio Sessions heavily during the project’s design phase, allowing internal and external stakeholders to collaborate in real time—even across locations and time zones.
Now in the construction phase, Studio Sessions are used on an as-needed basis, particularly when major design changes or markups require input from multiple stakeholders.
“We have project controls that manage the Sessions,” Horn said. “They help ensure that everything’s documented and shared with the right people. It’s one of the ways we stay aligned.”
Lessons for Capital Project Teams
Horn encourages other Cargill teams tackling similar capital projects to embrace Bluebeam early in the project lifecycle and establish clear workflows for communication and revision management.
“The real-time drawings and documents reduce errors and deliver fast efficiency for project success,” she said. “It really comes down to fast and secure communication. In design, it streamlines everything. In construction, it lets you turn drawing changes around without slowing down the job.”
She also recommends clearly defining who manages version control, how feedback will be submitted and approved, and when logistics updates need to be shared across teams—all areas where Bluebeam can act as a central nervous system.
Reinforcing Culture Through Communication
Even in a highly digital environment, Horn believes culture and team cohesion still matter. She takes pride in sharing project completion photos with crew members who rotated off site before the tanks were finalized.
“They come in and see their part and then move on to another project,” she said. “So, I like to send them photos: ‘Look what you did.’ It helps people feel connected to the result.”
She describes Bluebeam as an extension of that connection: a shared space where engineers, trades and leadership communicate in real time, solve problems together and stay accountable.
Looking Ahead
Cargill’s Ohio tank project represents more than an infrastructure upgrade. It’s a blueprint for how industrial construction can be executed efficiently, safely and collaboratively using digital tools. Bluebeam has helped unify teams across regions, streamline communication and keep construction aligned with business goals, all while enabling fast, accountable action in the field.
As Cargill prepares for future demand and continued growth, its success in Ohio shows that the right mix of technology and teamwork can drive resilient outcomes, even under complex, high-pressure conditions.
“From design through construction, Bluebeam keeps us moving,” Horn said. “It’s become an essential part of how we build.”