Projects
A blue hydrogen facility is under construction, so project and contractor activity continues alongside operations.
An advanced recycling facility at Baytown has operated since December 2022, with capacity to process 80 million pounds of plastic waste a year. ExxonMobil's complex there, founded in 1919, combines a refinery with chemical and ethylene units, and Chevron Phillips and Covestro also run large plants, so classified areas span process units, crackers and storage. If you are specifying an Ex-proof smartphone for Baytown, Texas (ExxonMobil Baytown complex), this page covers the markings, the approvals and the current certification status of the IS-04Z1.
Pre-launch · certification in progress · Launching Q4 2026
Short answer. The SAMS IS-04Z1 is the intrinsically safe smartphone covered here for Baytown, Texas (ExxonMobil Baytown complex): pre-launch, designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 (marking target Ex ib IIC T4), with certification in progress and no certificate issued.
Where things stand: the IS-04Z1 has not launched, and none of its four certification routes has produced a certificate yet. An operator's own vendor approval is a separate step. Certification status. Place facts reviewed October 2026.
| Check | What to look for | IS-04Z1 today |
|---|---|---|
| Ex marking | Group, category, protection concept, gas group, temperature class | II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4 (target) |
| Gas group | IIA, IIB or IIC matched to the area drawing | IIC (target) |
| Temperature class | T-class below the ignition temperature of the gas | T4, 135 °C (target) |
| Where it applies | Baytown, Texas (ExxonMobil Baytown complex): Refinery process units, Ethylene cracking units, Chemical plant units | Classified by the site operator |

An intrinsically safe Android smartphone designed for Zone 1 and Zone 21 hazardous areas in Baytown Refinery. It is pre-launch: IECEx, ATEX and NEC 500 certification is in progress ahead of the Q4 2026 launch.
The companies on site and the hazardous-area types a handset is likely to meet there.
A blue hydrogen facility is under construction, so project and contractor activity continues alongside operations.
The ExxonMobil refinery covers about 3,400 acres and is reported at 588,000 barrels of crude a day. It is the largest employer in the city.
A 2 billion dollar expansion started two new chemical lines in 2023: 400,000 tonnes per year of performance polymers and 350,000 tonnes per year of linear alpha olefins.
The complex has a workforce of about 7,000 people, and the 2023 expansion supported over 3,500 construction jobs and 200 permanent roles.
ExxonMobil is developing a large blue hydrogen facility at Baytown, adding a new type of process plant to the complex.
ExxonMobil's Baytown complex covers about 3,400 acres on the Houston Ship Channel, around 25 miles east of Houston, and includes a refinery, chemical plant, olefins plant, plastics plant and a global technology center.
“Ex-proof” is shorthand for equipment carrying an explosion-protection marking (the Ex mark) that matches the area it enters. The marking states the protection concept, gas or dust group and temperature class, and it must be backed by a certificate issued by a recognised body, so a phone described as Ex-proof should come with a certificate number you can check.
The IS-04Z1 is designed to carry the marking II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4. That is a target: certification is in progress, no certificate has been issued, and SAMS will publish the certificate numbers when they exist.
In Baytown, Texas (ExxonMobil Baytown complex). A marking check at an ethylene cracking site would assume hydrogen and ethylene may be present, so IIC marking is the conservative gas group. Hydrogen projects reinforce that. The operator's classification governs. The IS-04Z1 target marking is II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4, pending certification, and must be confirmed against it.
A short checklist for anyone writing or reviewing the specification, with the IS-04Z1 status against each point.
No. Nothing can be bought or taken into a classified area today: certification is in progress and launch is planned for Q4 2026. What is available now is the datasheet, the written certification schedule and evaluation units for safe-area use.
There is no list price yet. SAMS gives indicative pre-launch pricing in writing, against a stated quantity and site, and does not commit to a lead time before certification completes.
The marking target is II 2 G Ex ib IIC T4. It becomes a marking only when the certificate is issued; until then it is a design target.
Likely candidates are refinery process units, ethylene cracking units, chemical plant units, ship channel storage and docks. Which areas are classified, and to what zone, is set by the site operator's own area classification drawings.
Not exactly. Explosion proof is a broad everyday term; intrinsic safety is one protection concept, which limits energy so ignition cannot occur. Flameproof (Ex d) is a different concept that contains an explosion. The IS-04Z1 is intrinsically safe by design.
Expansions such as the 2023 chemical lines supported 3,500 construction jobs, so peak construction periods bring many contractors. Confirm schedules and induction requirements with the operator.
Process units, olefins and polymer plants, tank farms and loading areas have gas and dust hazards, with hydrogen areas needing IIC. Request the site classification drawings for exact zones.
ExxonMobil's complex, founded in 1919, combines a refinery with chemical and ethylene units, and Chevron Phillips and Covestro also run large plants nearby. Areas therefore range from process units to crackers and storage. Confirm which plant and area a task is in, and what the operator requires.
Other guides for Baytown Refinery, other places in United States, and the pages behind them.
Send the site, zone and gas group and roughly how many handsets. We reply by email with the datasheet and the certification schedule.
Tell us the zone, gas group and operator. We will send the datasheet and the certification schedule.