The British giant valve control manufacturer Sofis installed a valve management system for Oiltanking Malta to prevent misoperation of valves, which greatly controlled the operational and financial risks of Malta Oil Storage Company. Malta Oil Storage Company is a subsidiary of Oude Oil Storage Co., Ltd. It is the world's largest independent oil storage tank manufacturer.
Sofis' valve management system significantly reduces the operational and financial risks of Malta Oil Storage.
When the oil is loaded onto the tanker from a specific set of tanks, the piping connecting the tank and the tanker needs to be opened while the rest of the piping is closed. At this point, the distributed control system (DCS) notifies the key management system (KMS) which storage tanks are called, and then the key management system releases the keys in order to operate the manual valves required for the loading step. When the security key is used for valve operation, each valve will release the second key, which is then recovered by the key management system. Finally, the key management system informs the distributed control system that all valves are properly seated and that the latter ensures that the oil is automatically loaded.
Historical experience has shown that valves that incorrectly communicate valve operating instructions or accidental misoperation during storage tank operations place the actual valve operators at significant safety risks. Maltese oil storage company assessed the potential risks and costs of valve misoperation and hopes to find a tailor-made solution.
The oil storage company of Malta used the existing distributed control system together with the valve interlock and a set of key management system produced by Sofis, which greatly reduced the risk of valve misoperation. In addition, valve operators can now perform multiple valve operations at the same time, making valve switching more efficient.
“Every person in the oil and gas industry realizes that the wrong sequence of valve operations poses risks,†said David Muscat, Assistant Technical Manager of Malta Oil Storage Company. “I sincerely thank the entire Sofis team for their help. Sofis uses it very much. The great solution meets our requirements for safe valve operation and allows the project to be completed on time."
Sofis and British Hammer Introduction:
Sofis is a merger of Smith Fluid Controls (SFC) and Netherlocks of the Netherlands. Both of these British Hamco subsidiaries are leading manufacturers of valve safety operating equipment. Sofis integrates their expertise, service teams and partners and will continue to lead and develop the valve safety device market.
Sofis is a subsidiary of Halma in the United Kingdom and is part of Halma's Process Safety Division. Hammer is a transnational investment holding group in the security, medical, and environmental industries. It is a listed company on the London Stock Exchange and a constituent of the FTSE Index. The dividend increase for consecutive 38 years is >5%. The Group has nearly 50 subsidiaries and 6,000 employees. China's representative offices are located in Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Chengdu and Shenyang, and have R&D or production bases in Beijing, Shanghai, Wuxi, Shenzhen, and Baoding.
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