Electricity and Control August 2021

PLANT MAINTENANCE, TEST + MEASUREMENT : PRODUCTS + SERVICES

Alarm systems prevent tank overfill

If not monitored correctly, loss of containment from tanks or storage vessels can pose a serious safety risk to people and the environment. To address this risk, Burhani Engineers, the company installing overfill protection systems in Mombasa’s largest tank storage facility, sought reliable, high-level alarm instrumentation to help protect critical assets. Ian Loudon, International Sales and Marketing Manager at tank monitoring alarm specialist Omniflex, outlines how the right alarm system ensures safety in a tank facility. The UK’s Major Incident Investigation Board report on the Buncefield fire in 2005 concluded that insufficient or faulty critical safety equipment is often the root cause of tank overfill incidents. That report led to the creation of the international API 2350 standard for tank facilities, requiring audible alarming systems and data collection processes to be implemented for the continuous monitoring of overfill parameters. For an effective level of safety an independent high- level alarm system is needed over and above the normal gauging system, to provide protection against overfill incidents. Current automated systems For above-ground storage tanks, a key challenge for engineers is being able to respond to instrument failures adequately. Previously, operator response time has been cited as the cause for several high profile overfill incidents, including the Buncefield fire. Having the correct mission- critical alarm annunciators is the simplest and most effective solution to ensure quick responses to potentially dangerous overfill events. Even in a facility with a single tank, monitoring tank conditions using level gauges, control valves and stop/

An independent alarm system has been installed to protect the major fuel tank storage facility in Mombasa, Kenya against overfill and spillage. start pumps may not be sufficient without overfill alarms. However, in a large facility with multiple tanks, carrying out regular inspections can be very time consuming and the chance of human error increases. What’s more, if a level gauge is faulty and a manual inspection doesn’t pick this up, there is the risk of a potentially dangerous overfill event. Even in the best-case scenario, a clean-up operation for a small spillage could be unproductive and costly. If tank terminals don’t have audible alarms, measurement errors can go undetected. For Kenya’s main gas, oil and diesel storage facility, Burhani Engineers engaged Omniflex to provide a simple solution. The bottom line Traditionally, level limit alarms for a tank storage facility would be hardwired back to the control room to control pumping and tank discharge. This is all well and good until there is a system failure or human error preventing the transmission of alarm signals. By placing an independ­ ent limit alarm with a Hi and a HiHi alarm integrated into a SIL-certified annunciator panel in the field, alarms will overcomes these problems, and increases the safety of technicians working with energised equipment. Fluke Connect is a set of tools and a smart phone app that enables maintenance technicians to capture, securely store and share data with their teams from the field. They can view all temperature, mechanical, electrical and vibra­ tion measurements for each asset in one place. More than 20 Fluke tools connect wirelessly with the Fluke Connect app – the largest set of connected test tools available. Compatible tools include digital multimeters, infrared cameras, insulation testers, process meters and specific voltage, current and temperature models. Technicians can add a comprehensive set of measure­ ments and infrared images to Fluke Cloud™ storage from wherever they are working. The data is automatically stored, eliminating the need to write down measurements and letting others see what the technician sees from other locations. Team collaboration ShareLive™ video calls make team collaboration easy, allowing for technicians to share meas­ urements with other team members in real time and obtain

Connected test tools

Maintenance teams can make better, faster decisions when they have immediate access to historical records on the machinery to be maintained and are able to review measurements in real time with team members and super­ visors. However, historical data is often only accessible back in the office, and team members are seldom in the same place at the same time. The Fluke Connect™ system

More than 20 Fluke tools connect wirelessly with the Fluke Connect app.

26 Electricity + Control AUGUST 2021