knowledge of making black and white/ monochrome images? as in expert? hahaha no way i am just a master tinkerer and just explore things for fun.
I have NIC old v2(dxo freeware) and use sometimes Silver efex because i like those presets. and if i am seeing something done by an other poster with NIC what i find interesting i try to find out if it’s also interesting for me. ( problem is remembering which preset/taste in which NIC app is for what to use… 
)
i have also filmpack 6 elite in which some interesting black and white tools are seated. and if you don’t have FPv6 elite (i think your wrote you would buy or did already can’t remember which it was.) you can start a trial of 30 day’s
it’s standalone and embedded. it could be interesting for your purposes.DxO FilmPack - La magie de la photographie argentique
instant 6 masks of color.
and
point is i like some presets inside silver efex which has characteristic as name.
( And i suppose they have a lookalike in Filmpack but the overload of film emulation named after the film means i have to know a name and type which has the right characteristics to find a look i like.
)So i almost never use the filmemulations. It would be easier to find things if they have filtering of characteristic of a film, sharp, soft, highdynamic, highcontrast , sepia etc.
Then it would be easier to find the one i seal for the image i have.
Peter
some fooling around stuff:
softer warmer look more sunny feeling
(Note i have edit the post for better reading what i ment to say.)