Name: Cold Creek Gas Plant Simulator Platform
Brand: Cold Creek

WHO IT'S FOR

Built for training departments that take operators seriously

Operator Onboarding

Bring new hires up to speed before they touch real boards. Walkthrough mode teaches the P&ID and DCS without risk to live operations.

Competency Testing

Run upset-recovery scenarios for annual competency. Compressor trips, H₂S releases, freeze-offs, column floods. Measure response time and decision quality.

Engineering Education

Power engineering programs and process control courses use Cold Creek for hands-on instrumentation, control loops, and shift economics without lab equipment.

CURRICULUM

Two facilities. Progressive complexity.

TIER 1

Stabilizer Plant

Foundation skills every operator needs.

Reboiler temperature and RVP control
Pig receiver operations
Hot oil system, compression, tanks
Truck loading and gauging

TIER 2

Cryogenic Gas Plant

Full 110 MMcfd cryogenic operations.

Turboexpander operations
Mol sieve dehydration
Amine treating (H₂S removal)
Demethanizer column control
Cold box, residue gas compression, mode switching

Walkthrough

Step-by-step guided lessons with P&ID overlays. No failure state. Build the mental model before responsibility.

Live Shift

Real-time operations with P&L tracking. Manage throughput, respond to upsets, hit shift targets.

WHAT'S INCLUDED

Realistic process behavior. Industry standards.

Real PID control loops with anti-windup and bumpless MAN/AUTO transfer

ISA-101 HMI color discipline. Color is for alarm state, not decoration.

DCS-style faceplates with PV, SP, OUT, and AUTO/MAN/CAS modes

Interactive P&ID with live tag bubbles and click-to-trend

Realistic upset scenarios: compressor trips, mol sieve breakthrough, expander surge

Real-time P&L tracking with revenue, penalties, and shift earnings

Post-shift debrief with performance analytics

Field notes and glossary with ISA terminology

Works on desktop, tablet, and mobile. No install required.

All progress in browser localStorage. No accounts, no PII required.

"I trained and signed off every new operator on a 3-train cryogenic plant before they were allowed to run a board. I was on site for three full plant startups and two compressor station startups, from construction through commissioning. I built and maintained TEG dehydration skids across the country. This exists because real, hands-on operator training almost doesn't exist anymore."

Josh Winter • 10 years cryogenic operations. Senior Operator. Startup & Commissioning. Operator Training & Sign-off.

HOW WE COMPARE

Built different from traditional OTS

Most operator training simulators were built for engineering departments, not training departments. Cold Creek inverts that.

Concern	Traditional OTS	Cold Creek
Deployment	On-prem install, dedicated VMs, IT engagement	Browser, no install, no signup
Build time	12 to 24 months, six-figure engineering services	90 days, fixed-fee custom plant builds
Built by	Process engineers and software vendors	A 10-year senior cryogenic operator who trained and signed off new hires, ran multiple plant startups, and built TEG skids across the USA
Evaluation path	Sales process, no hands-on access	Full access to the Stabilizer plant free. See real process behavior before any conversation
Reference scope	Engineering-grade digital twin (fidelity-first)	Operator-training-grade (decision-making first)

Cold Creek is not a process engineering tool. It exists for operator training, where decision-making practice matters more than first-principles model fidelity. For process design and control tuning, the major-vendor OTS platforms remain the right tool.

New to the terminology? See the operator glossary for plain-English definitions of the terms an operator hears on shift.

HOW IT'S BEING USED

Real training. Real operators.

New Operator Onboarding

Training departments use Walkthrough mode to build real P&ID and control understanding before new operators ever touch a live board.

Competency & Upset Practice

Experienced operators use Live Shift mode to practice pigging responses, hydrate events, column floods, and other scenarios that matter but don't happen every day.

Browser-based. No install. No accounts. Works on the computers your operators already have.

FOR YOUR FACILITY

Custom builds for your exact operation

We build custom versions of Cold Creek modeled directly on your facility's process, controls, and procedures.

Same engine. Same decision-making focus. Your P&IDs, your setpoints, your upsets.

Most custom builds are scoped and delivered in 60–90 days.

REGULATORY ALIGNMENT

How Cold Creek fits your OQ and PSM programs

Cold Creek is designed to complement two distinct regulatory training programs that govern gas processing operations in the United States:

Process Safety Management (OSHA 29 CFR 1910.119). PSM applies to facilities that handle one or more highly hazardous chemicals at or above the threshold quantities listed in 1910.119 Appendix A, including the 10,000 lb threshold for flammable liquids and gases in a single process. Where a gas processing facility falls within PSM coverage, Live Shift mode supports the Training element (1910.119(g)) and the Operating Procedures element (1910.119(f)) through scenario-based practice on alarm response, upset recognition, emergency isolation, and shift handover decision-making.
Operator Qualification (49 CFR Part 192 / Part 195). These rules govern pipeline operations: 192 for natural gas transmission and distribution, 195 for hazardous liquid pipelines. Cold Creek complements OQ programs for pipeline operations personnel who also perform or oversee alarm response, process upset recognition, and emergency isolation tasks in meter station or interconnect environments adjacent to covered pipeline segments.

Walkthrough mode supports the supervised practice that PSM operating procedures and OQ task plans commonly include during initial training and re-qualification.

Important: Cold Creek is a training tool. It is not a formal Operator Qualification or PSM qualifying program and does not produce compliant training records. View full regulatory notice and compliance details.

REQUEST A DEMO FOR YOUR TEAM

SECURITY & ACCESS

Where your data lives and who can see it

All simulator data stored in the user's own browser (localStorage). Never transmitted to any server.

No user accounts. No PII required to run the simulator.

Primary data processing occurs in the United States via Vercel infrastructure. TLS in transit for all page and form traffic.

Vercel holds SOC 2 Type II certification for its infrastructure. Winter Howlers operates on top of that platform.

Sub-processors: Vercel (hosting and analytics) and FormSubmit (contact form delivery only). No others.

Single sign-on integration is on the roadmap for enterprise customers and not currently available. Contact us for current authentication options.

Full security posture at gasplantsim.com/security. Data Processing Agreements available on request.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Winter Howlers' simulation parameters, control sequences, process values, and facility configurations are original works authored by Winter Howlers for educational use. They are not derived from, do not reproduce, and are not substantially similar to the proprietary operating procedures, process configurations, or facility-specific data of any specific operator, employer, or facility. Any resemblance to existing industrial systems is incidental and reflects the generic engineering principles common to midstream gas processing.

If you're responsible for training operators or building competency programs, let's talk.

I built this because the training I got when I started was inadequate. I know what actually moves the needle.

Request a demo

Tell us what you're trying to solve. Josh will reply directly, usually within one business day.

Built by someone who actually did the job

10 years as a senior operator on a 3-train cryogenic plant

Personally trained and signed off every new operator before they ran a board

On the ground for 3 full plant startups + 2 compressor station startups

Josh replies personally. Usually same business day.