When you think about it, the end of a year is really an arbitrary deadline. Really, on a granular level is there anything all that different between Dec. 31 and Jan. 1? What flipping the calendar from one year to the next does accomplish is to create a neat and easily recognizable line of delineation that allows for reflection of our progress over the previous 12 months.
In the case of OPW’s businesses, that has been quite a bit. So, let’s take a moment to highlight 2019’s accomplishments, all of which were designed as ways to protect people and the environment, while improving the business performance of our customers.
Now, Introducing…
The year featured a number of new product launches from OPW Retail Fueling, Fluid Transfer Solutions and Vehicle Wash Solutions that targeted an array of industries and applications, including:
- 14 Series Nozzles, OPW Retail Fueling: Engineered to deliver a cleaner fueling experience, the 14 Series family of fuel-dispensing nozzles features patented diesel-capture spout technology for diesel dispensing and free-draining, true dripless-spout technology for use with conventional gasoline. Three specific models were developed:
- 14E CARB ECO: This enhanced conventional (ECO) nozzle features an interlock that allows it to meet CARB standards for dripless operation, making it the industry’s first third-party and CARB-approved dripless conventional nozzle.
- 14C Diesel: Features a patented Diesel Capture Chamber that retrieves any diesel fuel that is still on the spout after the fueling process has been completed, making it the cleanest diesel nozzle available on the market today.
- 14BP Conventional Gasoline: The nozzle’s patented dripless-spout technology keeps gasoline from dripping on the driver’s hands, clothing and vehicle, along with the ground, to provide a cleaner, greener, safer and more satisfying fueling process.
- High-Flow Loop System™, OPW Retail Fueling: Building on the decade-long success of its prefabricated “plug-and-play” FlexWorks Loop System™ fueling system, OPW-RF developed a high-flow version targeted toward large truck stops and the increasingly popular “hybrid” convenience stores that offer both automobile fueling islands and trucks-only fueling lanes. The High-Flow Loop System takes the components of the original and “supersizes” them so they can deliver higher flow rates that result in shorter fueling for trucks equipped with high-capacity fuel tanks.
- Civacon’s CivaCommand™ Smart Tank System, OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions: Combines air controls, overfill prevention, ground verification, crossover prevention, product-retention prevention, security and historic usage data in a single system that is controlled through a durable easy-to-use touchscreen that interfaces wirelessly with all tank-truck/trailer components. This gives the driver complete control of all functions during the product loading/unloading process. If ground verification is not achieved at the loading rack, the CivaCommand will troubleshoot the error on-site, eliminating an expensive (in time and cost) trip to the maintenance bay.
- Belanger’s Cube® Wash, OPW Vehicle Wash Solutions: When OPW acquired Belanger, Inc., in early 2019, it acquired one of the premier names in soft-touch vehicle wash systems. The latest innovation from the Belanger label is the Cube® Wash, a three-brush, in-bay automatic rollover system that has been engineered for maximum performance and an improved customer experience. Featuring next-generation slow-spinning ShineMitt wash media, the Cube provides a gentler, quieter wash that reduces the perceived and actual risks of vehicle damage, while simultaneously delivering a cleaner vehicle.
Don’t Forget About Us!
In addition to the new-product lineup, several OPW brands brought new focus to some existing technologies, or improved their operation.
- Midland's Smart-Flow® Pressure Relief Valve (PRV), OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions: The Smart-Flow PRV’s lower flow rate minimizes product loss and environmental challenges during a railcar product-release incident while providing excellent durability in a pool fire. It meets all DOT 117/TC 117 design requirements for new tank-car builds and retrofits due to a compact profile (less than 9º) that prevents shearing during a rollover incident. Approved for use with all high-hazard flammable trains (HHFT) and high-hazard flammable unit trains (HHFUT).
- PDQ's Tandem Surfline, OPW Vehicle Wash Solutions: Combines the capabilities of the Tandem touch-free vehicle wash from OPW’s PDQ Manufacturing, Inc., with soft-touch wash media to create an open-bay wash system that is safe and inviting for drivers. No other soft-touch wash in the industry navigates around the vehicle as precisely, which ensures complete and optimal cleaning coverage for a wide array of vehicle types, including dually trucks.
- Engineered Systems' LYNX Bottom-Loading Coupler, OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions: The liquid-terminal and tank-truck industry’s best dry-break API technology, which is designed to handle surge pressures up to 500 psi. The innovative U-pin design allows the LYNX coupler to be disassembled for maintenance with only a screwdriver in just 30 seconds.
- Midland's A-210/A-212 Series Vacuum Relief Valves, OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions: Led by the historic increase in the amount of crude oil that is being shipped annually via railroad in the United States, the amount of hazardous materials that are riding the nation’s rails is at an all-time high. These VRVs have been designed to allow atmospheric air to enter and protect the tank car from collapse when there is a vacuum, making them ideal for use on railcars tasked with transporting hazardous commodities like crude oil and harsh chemicals. A no-step design eliminates improper cycling of the valve with a built-in debris screen preventing contaminants from entering the valve-seat area.
- OPW Engineered Systems StandardLine, ProLine and CustomLine Loading Arms, OPW Fluid Transfer Solutions: Realizing that no two terminal loading-arm systems are identical, OPW’s Engineered Systems reconfigured its loading-arm offering in 2019. The result is three new loading-arm delivery options that aim to improve delivery times and liquid-terminal functionality, resulting in greater uptime and more loads leaving the terminal more efficiently. The new loading arm options from OPW-ES are:
- StandardLine: Ready-made loading-arm components and systems that are designed to be delivered in 20 working days or less.
- ProLine: A range of loading-arm products with customizable options that can be delivered in 30 working days or less.
- CustomLine: Infinitely configurable loading-arm components that are engineered to meet the “you dream it, we make it” specifications of the end user.
In all, 2019 was quite a year of new innovations for OPW, and it looks forward to “Defining What’s Next” for the retail-fueling, fluid-handling and vehicle wash industries in 2020 and beyond.