Clay Faries
Associate
281.970.4545
faries@fyiplaw.com

Clay Faries

Clay graduated from Texas A&M University in 1987 with a Bachelor's degree in Chemical Engineering. Upon graduation, he joined Occidental Chemical as a process engineer in the chlorinated chemicals unit of the Deer Park plant. In 1989, Clay left Occidental and joined Himont USA as a process engineer in the Spheripol polypropylene unit of the Lake Charles plant. At Himont, Clay worked extensively in improving monomer logistics, catalyst and aluminum alkyl preparation/handling, bulk loop and gas phase reactor technology, monomer separation, catalyst deactivation, and material handling. Clay also interfaced with Marketing and R&D to develop new catalysts, co-catalysts and polyolefin products, and to document process improvements for dissemination to licensees.

In addition, Clay supported the three month start-up of a Spheripol polypropylene line for licensee Qilu Petrochemical Company in Shandong Province, China. Himont also sent Clay to the International School for the Advanced Studies in Polymer Science at the University of Ferrara in Italy. In 1992, Clay was promoted to operations supervisor over two Spheripol polypropylene lines, and for two years managed the production of homopolymer, random copolymer, impact copolymer, and low blush copolymer. In addition to supervising the day-to-day operation, he was responsible for implementing Process Safety Management including the development of operator training programs, change procedures, operating procedures, safe operating limits, and other process safety information.

In 1994, Clay joined Lyondell Petrochemical as a process development engineer supporting the Channelview olefins units and the Bayport polyolefins plant. His projects included evaluating polypropylene catalyst/process technologies for licensing, managing an on-going review of metallocene catalysts, supporting a polypropylene plant debottleneck, and scoping a research facility that included both an olefin lab unit for evaluating heavy feedstocks and a polypropylene pilot plant. Clay left Lyondell in 1995 and worked until 2002 in the engineering business with clients that included Fina (polypropylene), BP-Amoco (olefins, polyproylene, PAO), Roche (pharmaceutical), and PPG (pharmaceutical).

After twelve years of work experience in the petrochemical operations and engineering field, Clay enrolled in the University of Houston Law Center in 2000. During his time in law school, Clay served as an Associated Editor for the University of Houston Law Review, received the Lex Award in Property, and was inducted into the Order of the Barons. He was a finalist and the winner of best brief in the John Blakely-Butler moot court competition, and interned at the Texas Court of Appeals for the First District. In May of 2003, Clay graduated, magna cum laude, from the University of Houston Law Center earning his Doctorate of Jurisprudence (J.D.) degree. Shortly thereafter, Clay joined Fletcher Yoder as an associate attorney and was admitted to the State Bar of Texas.