MechTronic News
Below you will find the latest news from MechTronic regarding our latest achievements and developments on our products and services for the road tanker market.
We are delighted to be confirmed as the exclusive UK distributor for the revolutionary new pilot operated pressure/vacuum vent valve, PV-80-E. Designed to last, protect the environment and save our customers money.
Reduced fleet costs
- A lifetime warranty and a fully serviceable design mean savings of up to 50% across the fleet.
Reduce leaks
- One dynamic seal caters for pressure, vacuum and rollover containment protected by 450-micron air filter. Drop tests show zero liquid dispersed from the tank.
Zero corrosion
- A state-of-the-art, electrically conductive composite body, fluorosilicone diaphragms, o-rings and stainless-steel components ensure zero corrosion.
No waste, no scrap
- The first truly green, fully serviceable valve. An Readmore
MechTronic's Managing Director, Martyn Wilkie spoke to Downstream magazine regarding how the wet line contamination guidelines affect the fuel industry.
The full article focuses on why these guidelines have been introduced, what the implications are for the industry and how MechTronic can help support fuel oil operatives in implementing these guidelines.
See you at the FPS Expo?
MechTronic will once again return to the FPS Expo in Liverpool on 18th-19th April. We will be showcasing our new manifold system plus we will also have OptiMate, MaxFlow and VisiLevel all available for demonstration on stand 74. It's always Readmore
MechTronic are delighted to be attending the FPS show, held at the Exhibition Centre, Liverpool on the 18th-19th April.
Our latest system OptiMate, continues to revolutionise the industry and is the leading the way in terms of fuel metering design and efficiency. OptiMate protects our customers against contamination with its unique self-draining manifold, automatic line change procedures and onboard overspill prevention. Drivers are also reporting quicker delivery times which leads to efficiency savings for our customers.
OptiMate is now operating in over 80 tankers, with repeat orders placed for 2018 delivery. With its class-leading turbine meter and Readmore
MechTronic are recruiting a Service Engineer to support our customers in the South and South East. Ideally you will be based in or around the Chelmsford area of Essex.
Reporting to the Service Co-ordinator you will be providing a professional and prompt service to MechTronic's customers. Working in a complex engineering environment the Service Engineer will be responsible for:
- Diagnosing electrical and mechanical faults on customer equipment
- Carrying out timely repairs
- Providing breakdown support
- Installing new equipment
- Servicing and maintenance of existing equipment
- Providing annual service and calibration of truck metering systems
- Maintaining customer relationships
- Provide real time data of work carried out and parts used via service software Readmore
HMRC have recently updated their guidelines regarding wet line changes as they seek to eliminate the £5million¹ that is lost each year in revenue through wet line contamination.
The industry code of practice was developed to provide guidance to fuel distributors on minimising the risk of cross-contamination when delivering mixed fuel loads.
HMRC state: "If procedures were properly adopted there would still be a possible co-mingling of oils due to manifold content, pump and meter turbulence. Industry estimate this could be between 5-25 litres if the product is changed, dependent on the metering system installed... To minimise the effect of Readmore
Throughout the summer months, MechTronic's team of cyclists have notched up over 300 miles of competitive cycle rides. A highlight was the 114-mile White Rose Classic ride on the 25th June however, they are now about to tackle Revolve24, which is on another level!
MechTronic, along with fellow Flomax group company members IFC Inflow, Anglo Nordic and Hytek, will enter three mixed teams in the Revolve24 endurance race at Brands Hatch. The race will be held on the 16th-17th September and our colleagues are cycling to raise money for St Clare Hospice, a charity which specialises in end Readmore
An industry first, OptiMate features a new self-draining manifold which further enhances a cleaner line change and protects fuel oil distributors against contamination. When performing a line change, OptiMate automatically empties the manifold before introducing the next product. Our self-draining manifold ensures that the manifold is fully cleared every time, leaving the driver free to continue with their next delivery without the threat of a possible contamination.
Protecting fuel loads against contamination
OptiMate incorporates a class-leading turbine meter that delivers on accuracy and repeatability. With an innovative design, OptiMate uses soft logic to automatically empty the manifold, purge lines Readmore
On Monday 1st May, Ben, Brad and Chris embarked upon their first cycle challenge for 2017 - the 100km Maserati Tour de Yorkshire.
The ride covers 1,974 metres of climbing and includes several testing ascents and descents through stunning landscapes. Riders take on a tough uphill section, leading to the Emley Moor transmitting station (whose tower is the tallest freestanding structure in the UK), pass by the Yorkshire Sculpture Park and make a triumphant descent to the finish at Fox Valley.
The team enjoyed some lovely sunshine and finished the ride in just under 4 hours - all their training over the Readmore
Downstream editor Chris Parker spoke with MechTronic's Managing Director, Martyn Wilkie, about how fuel contamination is affecting the industry and what can be done to combat the issue.
The article featured in the May 2017 spring edition and below is an extract from the article.
How is MechTronic helping in the fight against contamination?
As a market leader, MechTronic has engineered innovative products that help fuel oil distributors to not only increase productivity, but avoid contaminating their fuel loads.
Over the past ten years, the introduction of MaxFlow, and more recently, OptiMate has revolutionised the industry in the fight against contamination. Readmore
MechTronic are delighted to be attending the FPS show, held at the Exhibition Centre, Liverpool on the 10th-11th May.
We will be bringing new and innovative products to the show and after the success of OptiMate at last year's show and now with over 70 systems sold, MechTronic will demonstrate how this advanced metering system is revolutionising the industry. OptiMate's automatic line change function increases productivity and safeguards against any costly contamination. Featuring a class-leading turbine meter, OptiMate is simple to use and controlled by just three buttons.
MechTronic's new pro-control remote and manifold design will also be demonstrated Readmore
Hall Bros (Fuels) Limited is a family run fuel oil and lubricants distributor based in Bridlington, East Yorkshire with a second depot near York. They have been in operation since 1973 and supply fuel oils and lubricants to domestic, agricultural and commercial customers across the East Riding and North Yorkshire.
In March 2017, Hall Bros invested in both MechTronic's OptiMate and VisiLevel to support their business in the fight against contamination. By combining an electronic metering system with a gauging system, Hall Bros can safeguard their fuel loads against contamination, track their onboard product throughout their delivery schedules and ensure Readmore
...Wilton Transport - Congratulations!
Gary Branch, General Manager at Wilton Transport said: "This is a truly versatile and flexible vehicle and I'm really happy that it's a winner.
"Based on my design, a lot of work went into this Mini-Tankers vehicle, with considerable input from Tasca Tankers and MechTronic."
The tanker has been specifically tailored to suit the demands of their commercial and industrial customers. It can be used together or separately, with the ability to leave the trailer to act as a fuel pod at a customer's site.
This prime mover carries some 19,000 litres whilst the trailer has a capacity of 16,000 Readmore
We are delighted that OptiMate and Oil4Wales feature in this month's FPS Downstream. For convenience, we have repeated the article here for you and the Oil4Wales case study that appeared alongside the article can be viewed here.
Simple, efficient and contamination free - OptiMate delivers every time!
MechTronic was established by industry experts in 2004, its key focus is to increase operational efficiencies for fuel oil distributors through simple, easy to use tanker based fuel delivery and control systems.
In April 2016, at the FPS Show, MechTronic launched OptiMate, a highly innovative and efficient fuel metering system. This engineering Readmore
An independent fuel supplier, Oil4Wales is widely known as the national oil brand for Wales and provides a much-needed range of services throughout the region.
Oil4Wales and MechTronic have formed a strong relationship since the installation of MaxFlow (an electronic metering system) in 2011, Colin Owens, Owner of Oil4Wales states: "As time goes on, technology changes and we have now purchased four new systems to update out fleet. We were introduced to OptiMate and we are all excited about what it can offer.
Colin continued: "The automatic processes that OptiMate offers is delivering cost savings across our Readmore
This year instead of sending Christmas cards, MechTronic have donated £150 to the local Community Book Pledge on behalf of Leeds Women's Aid.
The Women's Aid is a local charity which provides community based support and emergency refuge accommodation for women and children who are affected by domestic abuse.
Our donation will ensure that these women are able to give their children a present on Christmas morning and the Centre will also receive several books for their library, ensuring that children benefit from the enjoyment that books offer all year round.
We would like to wish all our customers a Merry Readmore
Euro Fuels is an independent, family-owned business that is centrally based in Essex, providing home heating oil and commercial fuel to their customers across Essex and Hertfordshire.
Increased reliability with MaxFlow
MaxFlow is an electronic fuel metering control system that has been the benchmark in optimising space on the modern chassis. An industry first, MaxFlow consolidates all controls into one single cabinet and is both compact and reliable.
Euro Fuels first purchased a MaxFlow system in 2011, Nick MacDermott, Owner at Euro Fuels said: "Over the past five years, we have found that the system is easy to operate and Readmore
At MechTronic we hosted our own coffee morning in aid of Macmillan on Wednesday 28th September.
The bunting was out as our colleagues (and their partners) accepted the challenge to bake some tasty buns! We have to admit, a few of us did cheat as we brought in our shop made cakes to avoid the inevitable soggy bottom!
Those that did bake were entered into The Great MechTronic Bake Off. The baking was judged on overall presentation and taste; it was a close contest but the banana and sultana cake by Ryan (or rather as Ryan freely admitted, his wife Emma) Readmore
In the sixth of our series of articles that focus on our service engineers: We meet Will, our engineer for the South East!
William Wood joined MechTronic four years ago and is a well-practised engineer with experience in the electronics, rail, automotive and military sectors.
We asked Will what life was like at MechTronic: "I absolutely love it! The people are great and there is a real family feel, whether its management, people in the stores, workshop, or fellow service engineers, everyone works together towards a common aim. As a service engineer, I am for the most part self-reliant, but I know Readmore
Unfortunately, ten months of the year!
The volume of liquid fuel expands and contracts with changes in temperature. The process of fuel temperature compensation allows for a measured volume of fuel to be adjusted to the volume it would occupy if it were measured at 15°C. Selling temperature compensated fuel eliminates disparities caused by changes in volume due to temperature variations.
MechTronic's fuel temperature compensation equipment can be fitted to your existing system and will help reduce your stock losses. This is a simple retrofit and a very cost effective solution in reducing your stock overhead and could deliver an average Readmore
In the fifth of our series of articles that focus on our service engineers: We meet Owen, who along with Allan Russel supports our customers in Scotland.
Owen Blades joined MechTronic in August 2013 and is a highly skilled engineer who has previously served ten years with the RAF as an aircraft mechanical technician.
So what does a typical day look like for Owen: "It really depends on the job, each day is different. There can be some early starts as I can be driving from Glasgow to a customer site in Wick in the north or Penrith in the south and Readmore
On the 14th August, our colleagues tackled the York 100, a cycling route which pushed them to the limit - we are so pleased for them as they completed this phenomenal challenge in just 5 hours, 34 minutes and 52 seconds!
The 100-mile route covered some beautiful countryside including the Vale of York and the Yorkshire Wolds, plus the magnificent Castle Howard and the Howardian Hills (an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty).
Left to right: Phil, Brad, Chris and BenPutting in the miles
Throughout the year, the team have been building up to this challenge. As part of their training, the Readmore
In the fourth of our series of articles that focus on our service engineers: We meet Jason, who supports our customers in the Midlands.
Jason joined MechTronic in August 2012 and enjoys the satisfaction of a job well done, he said: "I love a challenge, every day is different and you never know what to expect. Some days, the hours are long due to the demands of breakdowns but I always aim to make repairs in good time and enjoy the satisfaction of getting it right first time plus it's always great to receive good feedback from the customer!"
What does Jason Readmore
In the third of our series of articles that focus on our service engineers: We meet Martin, who supports our customers in the South West
Martin Adam joined MechTronic in October 2013 after leaving the RAF as an Armourer working on the Tornado aircraft's. Martin said: "A typical day for me starts between 5:30am and 6:30am, it depends on how far I am travelling. I really enjoy seeing the UK's beautiful countryside and that every day is different too, some days I will have multiple customer visits and other days I will spend a full day with a customer to resolve Readmore
The Red Bull Romaniacs, is the world's toughest Hard Enduro Rally and MechTronic's service engineer Gareth Leonard and his team, Two Wheel Engineering decided to take on this extreme challenge.
Created in 2004, The Red Bull Romaniacs takes place every year and attracts riders from approximately 40 countries. The race is spread over five gruelling days (12-16th July) and leads competitors on some of the world's most beautiful Enduro trails in the region around Sibu, Romania (Southern Carpathian Mountains).
Gareth is well-versed in off-road enduro races and upon his return to the UK, Gareth said: "The breath-taking wilderness, the Romanian hospitality and Readmore
We are delighted to announce that Ben Wilkie, Lee Craven and Tony Hoodless from our manufacturing team have recently passed their NVQ diplomas!
MechTronic worked with Learning Innovation, who offer a range of work-based courses that develop key skills, knowledge and confidence. Ros Windsor was the team course administrator and provided a supportive and flexible approach to learning.
Investing in the futures of our colleagues
Each team member chose which diploma they wanted to undertake in order to suit both their own personal and business development needs.
Ben studied Level 2, Team Leading and said: "The programme was designed to help develop my skills Readmore
In the second of our series of articles that focus on our service engineers: We meet Allan, who supports our customers in Scotland
Allan Russel is a well-practised engineer with over 30 years's experience in marine/mechanical engineering. For the past two years, Allan was employed as a bosun on the seismic vessel MV Ramform Atlas. Prior to this he has worked as a HGV mechanic, a RNLI mechanic and a senior craftsman at the Royal Marines Condor in Arbroath.
Allan joined MechTronic in February 2016 and we asked him how he was settling in to his new role: "I'm really enjoying it, Readmore
MechTronic are recruiting a Service Engineer to support our customers in the north of England.
Reporting to the Service Manager you will be providing a professional and prompt service to MechTronic's customers. Working in a complex engineering environment the Service Engineer will be responsible for:
- Diagnosing electrical and mechanical faults on customer equipment
- Carrying out timely repairs
- Providing breakdown support
- Servicing and maintenance of existing equipment
- Installing new equipment
The position will involve travel across the north of England and salary is negotiable dependent upon experience.
In order to be considered for this position, a proven background is essential however, full training will be provided.
Benefits include a competitive Readmore
We have a team of regionally deployed service engineers who carry out infield service and repair work on your road tanker equipment. They are a dedicated bunch and we thought it was time to find out a little bit more about them and to see what is involved in a typical day.
In the first of our series of articles:
We meet Gareth, who provides support across Wales
Gareth Leonard has been with MechTronic for 18 months now, a keen rugby fan who for 15 years played semi-professional rugby at Bridgend RAF Combined Services and for Bedwas in the Welsh Premiership.
As a Readmore
After positive feedback from clients at seeing an active system at this year's FPS show in Liverpool. We have commissioned a new van and can now bring you live demonstrations of OptiMate, VisiLevel and StockSmart, right on your doorstep!
As you would expect from the UK's market leader, our product range is fully integrated and we are delighted to be able to demonstrate our offering in such a unique and hands-on manner. The integration of OptiMate, VisiLevel and StockSmart eliminates cross-contamination, ensures high speed delivery, driver safety and delivers product security.
Oil flow meters are delicate instruments and HMRC state that: "equipment must be properly maintained and calibrated in order to meet at all times the specified minimum accuracy requirements for the type of measurement to which it is applied." It is a requirement that records should be kept of maintenance and calibration work and it is generally recommended (although not law) that all metering systems are calibrated on a yearly basis to ensure that accuracy continues to be delivered.
Annual calibrations can avoid heavy stock losses for operators and with fluctuating oil prices, as little as a 1% loss of product Readmore
On Saturday 18th June, our colleagues took on their second cycle challenge this year, the Great Yorkshire Bike Ride. This 70-mile charity bike ride is in aid of a number of charities including Epilepsy UK, Yorkshire Cancer Research and Heart Research UK amongst other local charities.
The team set off from Wetherby as they cycled through some of Yorkshire's best countryside including the Howardian Hills and the Yorkshire Wolds, before heading to the coast and crossing the finishing line in Filey.
Luckily the rain held off but a strong north-easterly headwind made some aspects of the ride quite challenging. Speaking to Brad Readmore
On Sunday 1st May, our colleagues were up bright and early for the Maserati Tour de Yorkshire Ride. This 119km charity bike ride in aid of the RNLI, saw the team set off from Cleveland Way, Scarborough before finishing along the picturesque Scarborough seafront of the Royal Albert Drive.
Along the way, the team endured heavy rain and windy conditions but the sun did make an appearance as they cycled through the picturesque countryside. A particular highlight was the iconic Côte de Harwood Dale climb. Situated 13.4km into the ride, the Côte de Harwood Dale was a tough 1.3km climb, with Readmore
At this year's show we will display our ongoing dedication to providing cost-effective, high quality fuel oil discharge solutions. We visit this year’s show with our VisiLevel ATEX approved gauging system that incorporates a Smart Product Grade Identification (SPGI) feature and measures liquid levels in each compartment of the road tanker.
MaxFlow - Our metering control system that is compact and reliable system. It consolidates all the driver controls into a single cabinet and has become a benchmark in optimising the space available on a modern chassis.
StockSmart – Our bespoke vehicle tracking and data transfer system that can be tailored to each fuel oil Readmore
At MechTronic, we have a team of regionally deployed service engineers who carry out infield service and repair work on your road tanker equipment. We set our engineers a 24-hour targeted response time and continually log customer feedback in the aim to maintain the high quality of service we provide.
For Richard Griffiths, one of our service engineers who has been with MechTronic for seven years, a typical day will start at around 5 am. If we look at one particularly cold and wet day in December, Richard began with a trip to Stoddard’s fuel to enact a repair on one of their Readmore
We are delighted to announce that we have passed our ISO 9001:2008 audit without a single non-conformance this year, a fantastic and rewarding achievement for all at MechTronic. Working towards this standard ensures we provide the highest quality products and services for our customers all year round. It also means we can hold our status as an approved verifier allowing our service team to self-verify MechTronic metering systems.
As we come to the end of our ten-year anniversary, we look back at the most innovative products and ideas that have helped us to achieve our position as market leader within the UK, in our first decade of business.
2004 – SPGI, Smart Product Grade Indication: A revolutionary and still unique design to avoid contamination.
MechTronic launch the VisiFlow manifold with multiple site glasses for product and poppet position identification.2005 – MaxFlow mechanical metering makes its debut heralding the arrival of a new metering supplier to the industry.
2006 – MaxFlow electronic metering was launched as a simplified one cabinet approach Readmore
Here you will find our comprehensive product range for the road tanker market. From complete metering systems such as OptiMate, MaxFlow and VisiLevel, to our ancillary systems which include our vehicle tracking device StockSmart and AddFlow, our fuel additive injection system.
We have also listed our top selling components and spare parts for the road tanker market including; manhole covers, API caps, valves, seals, dip tubes, meters and many, many more!
If you wish to enquire about any of our products or about our 24-hour guaranteed support service, please contact us via email Readmore
