Life and near-death for oilman in round - Downstream Magazine

Keeping tabs on your fuel assets
By Martyn Gent
WITH FUEL PRICES resuming their
relentless upward trend, ways of
combating theft by ever more
resourceful opportunists are back in
focus.
For thieves and fiddlers, large stocks of
fuel are a prime target for making a
quick buck.
For companies who hold fuel stocks, the
need to protect their assets is more
pressing than ever and nowadays it
takes more than a padlock and chain.
Physical deterrents such as high fences,
barriers, restricted access to fuelling
areas and advanced surveillance using
security cameras all play their part.
Indeed, one Cameron Forecourt
customer recently went for a ‘belt and
braces’ approach and asked the
company to install their storage inside
an almost impregnable sea container!
It’s at the point of storage and
dispensing that more subtle security can
be built in by using some of the latest
developments in fuelling technology.
Bunded or double-skinned tanks can
make it that much harder for
determined thieves.
Likewise, mechanical anti-siphon valves,
which detect unauthorised fuel flow in
the pipework and stop it off by creating
a vacuum are a useful addition. They
have the advantage of not requiring any
Tanks, storage & monitoring
Storage inside a sea container
electrical connections, allowing them to
be used at remote installations.
However, more sophisticated
installations now incorporate advanced
tank gauging – extremely accurate
‘electronic dipsticks’ – that not only
sense fuel being drawn, but also provide
an accurate check on the amount of fuel
delivered. And, if you know exactly how
much goes into a tank, it makes it easier
to detect deficiencies over a longer
period, such as when an employee sees
fit to award himself a regular ‘unofficial
bonus’.
In isolation, electronic gauging is
extremely effective at keeping an eye on
your stocks, providing leak detection
when installed in underground tanks.
Spill tray solves overfill problems
PUTTING YOURSELF in the delivery
driver’s shoes is a sure way of
developing products that solve those
practical, everyday problems, as
Envirostore UK has found.
“'We understand that when the driver is
filling the tank, this could be in the
middle of winter when light is not at its
best, or the tank may be difficult to
access,” says Envirostore’s UK sales
manager Richard Marsh. “This is why we
developed our unique inner spill tray,
which dramatically reduces the problem
if a driver overfills the tank.”
The tray fits around the fill point and
main inner lid area so that, if the driver
did accidentally overfill, up to nine
litres of fuel could be safely held
in the tray for safe draining
directly into the inner tank.
Draining here rather than into the
bund area avoids smell and an
expensive call-out for an engineer
to pump out the bund.
On tanks fitted with bund alarms,
the spilt fuel can also repeatedly
trigger the alarm, which is
annoying for the householder.
MORE INFORMATION
www.envirostoreuk.com
Linking to a computerised fuel
management system can make it more
effective still.
For most vehicle operating businesses
storing their own fuel, keeping a check
on mileage returns, deliveries, vehicle
and driver performance and fuel costs
are the domain of a fuel management
system.
But a sophisticated system such as
Cameron’s Eclipse or Nova web-based
fuel management system can also be a
round-the-clock security guard by
recognising fuelling outside working
hours, loss by leakage, use by
unauthorised personnel and outright
theft.
It is possible to detect changes in volume
and, if the pump hasn’t been used or is
tampered with, this creates an alarm
condition for either theft or leak. As the
system is always live, it can send a phone
message, text or email to nominated
employees, giving an instant warning
that something is amiss.
Martyn Gent is Sales and Marketing
Manager, for UK fuelling solutions
specialist Cameron Forecourt
MORE INFORMATION
www.cameron-forecourt.co.uk
Under the lid… Envirostore’s inner
spill tray
Downstream Winter 2010 27 www.downstreammagazine.co.uk