Liquip Victoria has a strong focus on supporting the local rail industry with its range of fuelling solutions.
Liquip Victoria has been delivering specialist petrochemical dispensing and storage systems for the rail industry for the past 60 years.
The company has been servicing the sector with fuel storage packages including fuel management, fuel loading arms and servicing the systems at each load-out point. It maintains a comprehensive servicing network with repairs, replacements, upgrades and calibration of the dispensing units available across the country.
Based in the suburb of Derrimut, just outside of Melbourne, Liquip balances the benefits of a locally run business with the experience of Liquip Equipment Parts, an international company with more than 50 years’ experience.
Fuel management system
Hayden Schulz is the business development manager at Liquip Victoria. He said the benefit of local, on-the-ground experience and access to some of the world’s best fuel transfer, storage and monitoring systems, made fuelling simple and efficient.
“Our main areas of growth have been focused around two sections – improved technology and efficiency,” he said.
“Fuel storage and fuel management has evolved in the past 10-15 years. The end user has moved away, in most cases, from manual recording on paper of any fuel transactions to engaging Fuel Management Systems (FMS) where the transaction is live and can be viewed remotely from anywhere.
“The FMS also reduces any errors in the records from the site through to administration. Less administration work is required, and efficiencies have been gained in the office due to the extensive reporting capabilities.”
Automatic tank gauging
Schulz said that fuel theft, misuse, and unaccounted for fuel is reduced by using FMS as every drop is monitored. Automatic Tank Gauging (ATG) has also been introduced to the industry to further support the management of the critical chemical.
“ATG has a number of benefits including monitoring the tank volume remotely,” he said. “This system removes the need for manual dipping of tanks which can be messy and has numerous potential safety issues. ATG has dramatically improved the safety in this area, also creating more efficient systems for scheduling of fuel drops.”
ATG can be integrated into the FMS systems, allowing for easy monitoring with live data for scheduling, thus reducing inefficiencies across a whole system.
“The FMS and ATG systems have removed the manual recording of systems, creating far less mistakes. ATG systems can send an email alert when the system is low, supporting customers during busy times in which a low-level tank or a missed fuel order is not noted,” Schulz said.
“The email alert can also be sent to fuel suppliers to streamline the ordering process and keep sufficient fuel in the bulk storage tanks.”
Schulz said that Liquip Victoria will work with its customers through drawings, consultation and on site, where required, to understand their individual requirements.
“Depending on what they require, we will advise on a package that utilises as much standard equipment so that spares and servicing is simplified,” he said.
“We utilise off-the-shelf components where possible, as opposed to having to order in from overseas, to minimise long lead times in the event of a failure or a breakdown.”
For larger packages requiring multiple tanks, Schulz said Liquip Victoria will use its engineering department to design a 3-Dimensional model of the entire storage package, giving customers a clearer picture of how it will work logistically.
“We have our own in-house engineering team that can quickly adapt to meet the challenges of supplying a system or solution to suit the customers unique requirements,” he said.
Working across Australia
Liquip Victoria has expanded its operations to service the diverse rail system operating across Australia. Whether it be in the harsh Australian outback or the inner city, managing director Jeff Borg said the company can tackle any challenge.
While supplying fuelling systems for a country the width and breadth of Australia can pose challenges, Borg said it is something the company takes in its stride.
“This distance produces challenges at times to get service completed in a timely fashion,” he said.
“The advantage of the Liquip Group is we have facilities in every state which allows us to better service the system nationally. Each Liquip group has its own service vehicles so we can attend service situations quickly or as scheduled by the customer.
“Having a national footprint provides continuity, a one stop shop and reduction in the number of companies the customer has to deal with at any given service interval. We usually have one central contact point who then manages which Liquip facility would be completing the service, pending the location.”
Liquip keeps important components for the rail industry, such as fuel nozzles, in stock at each location to ensure a fast turnaround for any work that may be needed.
“The team is trained in the different areas of the system to quickly expedite replacement parts, a solution or a service callout,” Schulz said. “The central single contact at Liquip makes the process of getting support easier and user friendly.”
The FMS also gives Liquip Victoria the ability to dial in remotely to review any issues or even provide training from off site to new team members.
High quality equipment
Liquip Victoria comes under the banner of Liquip International, an organisation committed to continual growth and research in the fuelling space.
The company recognises that its core strategic asset is its ability to innovate and rapidly develop new solutions within a changing world. Its investment in research and development and its rapid response to customer requirements differentiates its product solutions.
Schulz said that the packages are designed and built to Australian standards utilising the best of Liquip International’s technology and other Australian manufacturers such as SmartFill FMS.
The organisation understands the importance of a versatile system that can meet the needs of any challenge and the equipment represents that.
“We provide fuel storage packages to refuel local equipment with smaller nozzles to refuel smaller plant and vehicles,” Schulz said. “We are also providing pumping systems on tankers that refuel locomotives in remote locations or where an on-ground refuelling system is out of action.
“We service the tankers, calibrate them and ensure they meet the standards to ensure safe and efficient refuelling.
“Liquip Victoria is geared up to provide 24/7 support to customers fuel assets and provide a diverse range of equipment for any challenge at any location.”
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