With one of the first principles of quality management being customer focus; understanding customers and seeking to meet their requirements, Mabanaft carries out a regular customer survey. The survey helps to understand exactly what customers value, including just what drives their decision to use a particular fuel wholesaler. This year Mabanaft achieved a record response and is very pleased by the feedback received. The company has yet again out-performed previous survey ratings, with scores remaining consistently high, in particular on aspects of service that customers rate as being of most importance. “The feedback we receive helps us ensure that high standards are being met and maintained and that we continue to deliver on our customers’ requirements,” said Mabanaft’s marketing manager Martin Cook. “We also find that it opens up communications, allowing customers to suggest ways of further improving our services which can even help us to gain a competitive edge over our competition.” View results highlights here http://www.ie-marketing.co.uk/mabanaft/survey-infographic-2015.pdf and read the full report in the October issue of Fuel Oil News. For more information please contact the Mabanaft sales team on 0207 802 3300.  www.mabaLIVE.co.uk

The Humber refinery – Phillips 66 hopes to run similar events at its other terminals in the future In late August, 40 haulier drivers and scheduling staff attended a Drivers’ Day event run by Phillips 66 at the company’s Immingham Pipeline Centre (IPC). The aim of the event was to say thank you to all the drivers for their business, tell them about latest developments and also to ask for any suggestions on how the terminal could be improved. Invitations were extended to all retail, wholesale and specialty group customers that pull from IPC. The idea for the event originated from a best practice that Ryan Ebright, specialty & business development manager, brought over from America. “IPC is a key terminal for us and drivers play an important role in its success,” said Ryan.  “We wanted to recognise this by holding an event to thank them for their ongoing commitment.” A wide range of breakfast and lunch options were laid on from 5am through to 3pm by a team of staff from Phillips 66.  As well as enjoying a hearty breakfast or lunch before hitting the road, attending drivers received JET and Phillips branded 66 giveaways and were automatically entered into a prize draw to win one of five AA winter car kits.   www.phillips66.co.uk

Joanne Freeman (Brainwave), Sally Darlington (Essar Oil UK), Anthony La Mola (Brainwave) and Matthew James, with son Dylan, daughter Megan and wife Vicky A significant safety milestone at the Essar Oil Uk Stanlow refinery has resulted in a £3000 donation to the Brainwave charity’s north west centre in Warrington. Stanlow achieved five million hours without a lost time injury and through its Let’s Give programme, which links charitable giving to safety, made the contribution to Brainwave. Brainwave works with children with a range of conditions, including cerebral palsy, genetic conditions, Down’s syndrome, autism and developmental delay. Matthew James, Stanlow’s operations maintenance co-ordinator who nominated the charity said:  “After becoming frustrated and disappointed in the help available, having to constantly push and chase for services for our son Dylan, who has a severe global development delay, we stumbled upon Brainwave who were a breath of fresh air.  We have been with Brainwave for three years now and Dylan has gone from strength to strength.” Brainwave’s community fundraising manager Joanne Freeman was delighted to receive the funds from Essar, sending ‘a huge thanks to all the team.’www.essar.com

Brobot Petroleum, which operates 23 filling stations, has successfully appealed via the First Tier Tax Tribunal against HMRC’s imposition of unreasonable conditions to obtain an excise duty Deferment Account Number: Oil Products. The case was prepared and presented by Alan Powell for Alan Powell Associates Ltd, a specialist excise duties consultancy. “The case confirms that petrol retailers are entitled to defer excise duty on fuel delivered to them from bonded terminals with nil security,” explained Powell.  Furthermore – and the crux of this matter – HMRC must grant such approval where the need to defer duty on fuel is demonstrated by the retailer.” Powell explains that deferring the duty on fuel provides a number of significant benefits, which include (In this case):

Allan Davison operations director says Hoyer is pleased to award Goodyear this business – a company that has ‘built a reputation for improving the efficiency of fleets Hoyer has chosen Goodyear as its new tyre and service provider following a competitive pan-European bidding process. Following re-tendering their business to four premium manufacturers, Goodyear was selected after meeting Hoyer’s safety service and efficiency requirements. As a result the logistics provider will move away from its previous premium manufacturer, Michelin after 18 years. Hoyer will now fit its 400 units and 780 trailers in the UK as well as another 4,000 trucks and trailers across Europe with KMax, FuelMax and Goodyear retreaded products. “Goodyear has built a reputation for improving the efficiency of fleets and we are pleased to award them our business,” said Allan Davison, operations director of Hoyer Petrolog. “The nature of our operation sees us transport hazardous materials day-in-day-out, therefore we need a product that is safe and reliable while delivering efficiency savings. We found this, tried and tested, in Goodyear’s KMax tyre.” The Hoyer Group will also take advantage of Goodyear´s TruckForce tyre management programme, roadside assistance and FleetOnlineSolutions. Allan Davison continues: “TruckForce are experts in their field.  They catch issues, take preventative measures and solve problems to keep downtime to a minimum. The TruckForce infrastructure enables us to get the optimum performance and maximum  life out of our tyres. When you put this all together this package will increase our efficiency as well as reducing our carbon footprint.” Marc Preedy, Goodyear commercial director said: “This is another proud moment for Goodyear which continues the substantial growth we have seen in our business over the last 18 months. The new partnership with the Hoyer Group shows that our integrated package offers real tangible value to our customers.”www.goodyear.comwww.hoyer-group.com

Greenergy’s new intake of apprentices Four teenagers have taken their first steps into the world of work by securing apprenticeships at Greenergy on Teesside. “The young people we recruit today will be our future leaders, running our fuel terminals and manufacturing facilities in the years to come,” said Chris Platt, Greenergy North Tees terminal manager. “We employ more than 100 skilled workers on Teesside alone, so there is plenty of scope for young people to train with us to gain the experience they need to develop their careers. “As a company we take an active role in encouraging students to continue to study science, technology, engineering and maths because we know how important it is for our everyday operations. By encouraging the next generation of engineers we are building the foundation for a successful future both for the apprentices themselves and our operations.” This year’s apprentices have already completed a City and Guilds Level 2 Diploma in Process Operations. Over the next two years they will combine a Level 3 programme of study with hands-on experience, spending most of their time on-site putting theory into practice with their mentors and building the experience they need for their technical qualifications. Dave Thompson, partnerships manager at TTE Technical Training Group, said: “It’s great to have sponsors like Greenergy who understand the value and importance of apprenticeships. The potential for apprenticeships to lead not only to rewarding careers, but to exciting senior roles at fantastic companies, should never be overlooked when considering options post-16. Forward thinking businesses like Greenergy recognise this and help to create opportunities for young people.” Maddie Byrne from Redcar and Tom Wallace from Guisborough are now both apprentice process technicians and Tom Berry an apprentice mechanical fitter, all three are based at Greenergy’s biodiesel manufacturing plant at Seal Sands. This follows the successful completion of past apprenticeships resulting in permanent roles for Peter Lindley and Elliot Longmore, who are now part of the engineering team at the site.  In addition Cameron Walker from Stockton has started his process technician apprenticeship at the Greenergy North Tees Fuel Terminal, also at Seal Sands.www.greenergy.com

Russell Best, HSE advisor at Phillips 66 receives the award from RoSPA’s Jocelyn McNulty Phillips 66 has been awarded the prestigious RoSPA Gold Award for Occupational Health and Safety for the third time. The RoSPA award win comes on the back of a number of other recent safety performance achievements for Phillips 66 including completing 5,000 days without an employee injury and 1,000 days without a contractor injury.Cross Contractor industry initiative In late 2013, Phillips 66 established a new Cross Contractor industry initiative with its haulage contractors when new contracts had been awarded. Phillips 66 works closely with its contractors, encouraging them to collaborate with their competitors, share contractual best practice and safety knowledge and deliver road safety innovation. The overall aim of the collaborative initiative was to reduce road accidents to below 0.9 per 1 million km travelled. From the early quarterly Cross Contractor safety meetings, two key areas were identified to help deliver safety improvements. These were Slow Speed Manoeuvring (SSM) Elimination – addressing the potential risks associated when loaded tankers manoeuvre onto or off a filling station even at very low speeds – and Human Factors – addressing the potential risks associated with employees making mistakes by not following procedures or putting training into action.Working closely with hauliers Phillips 66 has since worked closely with its hauliers to develop two initiatives to address these areas and 20 different actions are now in various stages of completion. Actions include additional classroom and practical training, unannounced safety observations of drivers, the use of ‘sacrificial’ cones at vulnerable points around tankers when manoeuvring, forward-facing video cameras and a GOAL (Get Out And Look) initiative whereby contractors’ drivers are encouraged to inspect manoeuvring areas at ground level rather than from the tanker cab. The results of these initiatives speak for themselves with significant improvements in slow speed manoeuvring incidents and general road safety during 2014. Statistical analysis shows that in 2014 Phillips 66 tankers undertook 84,850 journeys, with a total journey distance of 8.346 million km.  There was one road accident in 2014 where the Phillips 66 haulier was judged to be at fault. A review of Slow Speed Manoeuvring (SSM) incidents shows a significant reduction in reported cases. SSM occurrences within the confines of a site, terminal or parking area have decreased from 13 reports in 2013, to seven in 2014 – an all-time low. Russell Best, HSE advisor at Phillips 66, comments: “As a growing energy manufacturing company delivering 1.6 billion litres of fuel annually, safety flows through our entire operation and is one of our core values: Safety, Honour and Commitment. Our goal is to achieve a zero incident safety record. Our Cross Contractor initiative – and the various activities that have stemmed from it – has been a resounding success and is something that we are all committed to continuing. We believe this is the only such Cross Contractor example in the industry and everyone involved is reaping the benefits from this collaborative approach.” Phillips 66 is now working on future safety performance plans, which include developing a ‘Perfect Delivery’ training film, introducing a ‘Driver Tiredness’ presentation, applying rear advisory signage to the rear of tanker barrels and undertaking a review of all 2015 risk assessments. Phillips 66 was also presented with its third Gold Award for the Management of Occupational Road Risk (MORR).www.phillips66.co.uk

After the latest Sutherland Tables revealed that the cost of oil had fallen for the fourth successive quarter, the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers is urging consumers to buy now. Since July 2014, oil prices have fallen by approximately 34-35% for both existing and newer properties in the UK and by approximately 29% for dwellings in the Republic of Ireland. Compared to the 4-year average, the cost of home heating using oil is now around 39-41% lower for all property types in the UK and around 27% lower for newer and existing buildings in the Republic of Ireland. “Oil prices have tumbled once more, making oil heating the cheapest form of home heating regardless of location, type of property and whether you use a conventional or condensing boiler,” said Mark Askew, FPS chief executive “This really is fantastic news for those living in the 1.5 million UK homes using oil heating, as they’re once again the clear winners when it comes to home energy.  To maximise on savings, we’re encouraging consumers to buy their oil heating supplies for the winter while the sun shines and both prices and demand are low. “The average cost to heat a 3-bedroom home in England and Wales using an oil condensing boiler is £857 per annum compared to £1556 for an LPG condensing boiler.  It is even cheaper than mains gas too which comes out at £1069 per year and if you use electricity to heat your home the average cost for a 3-bedroomed house in England & Wales is £1491.” Consumers are encouraged to visit www.oilsave.org.uk which features many tips for cutting energy costs as well as advice for boosting the efficiency of existing heating systems.

Nick Goodwin besides Standard Fuel Oil’s new Alpeco bottom loading skid. Having fitted Alpeco equipment on two new tankers last year, Standard Fuel Oils chose the same company to supply and install a new 3-arm bottom loading skid at its Merseyside depot in Knowsley Following the commissioning of the new trucks, Alpeco was asked to quote for the supply and installation of a 3-arm bottom loading skid,” said Adrian Baskott. “With the depot’s existing loading bay being an aged top loading construction, the key goals that Standard wanted to achieve were improved safety and efficiency.  As the new trucks were being equipped for bottom loading it made sense to realise the benefits of safer, faster loading.  We won the order, designing and building the skid at our Aylesbury premises within agreed timescales.” The skid is equipped with Liquid Controls M25 mechanical flow meters capable of loading rates up to 1100 litres per minute with all of the necessary safety features needed to provide a safe, reliable and economic solution when loading road tankers. Installation was carried out by Alpeco’s sub contractor STK who kept operational disruption to a minimum by keeping the existing top loading bay operational whilst the new skid was being installed and commissioned. The 2014 tankers feature Alpeco’s 5 compartment BLVR and Actiman manifold system and Alpeco MF800 bulk metering system with TE550 electronic register and metered uplift facility. Standard also has a further two new tankers on order. Both will be fitted with Alpeco equipment including the new TRUCK III electronic register with inventory and cross over prevention software.In the September issue of Fuel Oil News, Nick Goodwin talks about the company’s development since its inception in 2011.www.standardfueloils.co.uk www.alpecoltd.com

The Turners/GreenChem fleet now consists of 10 tankers, three of which (above) are totally branded as GreenChem vehicles Turners (Soham) has recently taken delivery of new units and trailers for its exclusive contract with GreenChem. The Turners/GreenChem fleet now consists of 10 tankers, three of which are totally branded as GreenChem vehicles. Although GreenChem does use other haulage companies to deliver bulk AdBlue to its telemetry managed AdBlue tanks, Turners operate the lion’s share of the fleet. Vehicles are located throughout the UK optimising the logistics and collections from any one of the eight AdBlue manufacturing locations which GreenChem employs. “GreenChem has been working in a symbiotic relationship with Turners for over five years, supplying over a one million litres a year to Turners’ operational locations,” said GreenChem’s  managing director, Chris Haynes. “Over this period, our working relationship has blossomed with both companies growing rapidly to maintain the demand for bulk AdBlue. A typical trip for a driver will involve up to ten individual drops per trip with an average of four trips undertaken each week. Each tanker can load a maximum of 26,000 litres due to the weight of AdBlue which at 1.09 kg/litre is 30% heavier than diesel. “Working with Turners has helped GreenChem deliver its promise. Turners know the haulage industry and are keen to ensure  vehicles are reliable and that drivers are happy in their work. A driver’s attitude is so important in this type of multi-drop operation as they’re GreenChem’s eyes and ears. We actively encourage their feedback with drivers encouraged to ring me at anytime,” said Chris.www.greenchem-adblue.comwww.turners-distribution.com

The Rix Tiger, part of the Rix Sea Shuttle fleet which helped J.R. Rix and Sons grow profit by a third in 2014 J.R. Rix and Sons saw net profits increase by a third in 2014, fuelled by significant growth in its shipping business.  Rix purchased 17 new tankers last year with more in the pipeline for later this year The Hull group, which includes domestic, commercial and marine fuel distribution, and shipping, among its core operations, saw profits increase from £3.3m in 2013 to £4.4m last year. Group turnover fell from £490m in 2013 to £453m, despite an increase in the overall volume of fuel sold by the company in the year to December 31st, 2014, as a result of the fall in oil prices. Rory Clarke, managing director Rix Petroleum and director of J.R. Rix and Sons, said profit had been bolstered by Rix Shipping, which increased turnover from £3.8m to £6.8m and returned a profit of £2m. Rix Sea Shuttle, the part of Rix Shipping which supplies crew transfer vessels to the windfarm sector, won a number of contracts at home and abroad, as activity in Europe’s renewable energy industry stepped up. Earlier this year Rix Sea Shuttle announced the order of a fifth crew transfer vessel as demand across the offshore windfarm industry continues to grow. The company will take delivery of the 27.4 metre ship, made by French company Piriou, in April, 2016.

Total UK Limited has been prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive and subsequently fined £1.4 million plus £35,000 in costs for a breach of COMAH regulations and the Health and Safety at Work Act. The case was heard at Hull Crown Court at the end of July. The prosecution arose following a fire which occurred over five years ago at Total’s Lindsey Oil Refinery on 29th June 2010. In an external statement, the company said: Total UK Limited deeply regrets the accident in 2010 and wishes to repeat its profound sorrow and regret to the family, friends and colleagues of Mr Robert Greenacre, a colleague working for a maintenance contractor, who died during the incident at the Lindsey Oil Refinery site. Total has worked closely with the Health and Safety Executive during their investigation into the circumstances surrounding the accident and have fully cooperated to provide them with all the necessary information. Following findings from the investigation, immediate improvements were made including a re-design of piping, the implementation of revised systems and procedures and the provision of additional training to prevent such an accident occurring in the future. We remain committed to ensuring the safety of our employees and contractors and we are continuously reviewing our Safety, Health and Environmental risk management practices and procedures across the whole of our operations. www.total.co.uk    

Hydrodec – fully engaged in the planning, permitting and financing process for its oil re-refinery The Hydrodec Group has announced plans to develop a facility to re-refine used lubricant oils into high quality base oils. The company, which already operates re-refineries in Canton, Ohio and New South Wales, has chosen Peel Port’s new Port Wirral site at Eastham on Merseyside. The site has the advantage of excellent transport connections by road, rail and water along the River Mersey and Manchester Ship Canal and will enable Hydrodec to tap into the established petrochemicals expertise in the region. “Hydrodec is focused on developing the UK’s first purpose built used lubricant oil-refinery producing the highest quality base oils,” said Hydrodec chief executive Ian Smale. “We’re currently fully engaged in the planning, permitting and financing process for the project.” Subject to planning permission, the new re-refinery is set to create up to 40 jobs and apprenticeship opportunities, and will support further jobs during the construction phases of the facility. Construction is anticipated to commence in 2016 and will take approximately 18 months to complete. Peel Ports is currently embarking on ambitious growth plans in the North West, having created Port Salford, the new £125m multi-modal logistics hub on the Manchester Ship Canal, the company is also investing £300m to create the UK’s most centrally located deep water container terminal, known as Liverpool2. The Port of Liverpool currently handles 40% of all the UK’s transatlantic trade.www.hydrodec.com

Pleased to work with Sustrans in developing this training course, the FTA is delighted at the uptake to date. Last week saw a new lorry driver course launched in Belfast with the aim of reducing cyclist casualties on roads. The Safe Urban Driving initiative to improve the safety of cyclists on roads is a joint venture between the Freight Transport Association (FTA) and walking and cycling charity Sustrans in partnership with Cycle Training UK.  It is funded by the Public Health Agency and Belfast Strategic Partnership.

Following a second year as official fuel partner to the Silverstone Classic, JET is looking forward to partnering the event again in 2016 JET put over 70 customers at the heart of all the racing action when they joined the company at the Silverstone Classic in late July; JET has been the festival’s official fuel partner for two years running. “The event was an ideal opportunity for us to thank our customers for their ongoing loyalty, said Mary Wolf, deputy managing director at Phillips 66 UK & Ireland Marketing. “As a brand building exercise, Silverstone Classic is a fantastic way to reach a vast number of car and driving enthusiasts,” said brand communications manager, Anne Day. This year the JET Village Green and Fun Fair attracted high visitor numbers thanks to a wide range of children’s rides and activities, a climbing wall, chill out zones, food and drink options, a hugely popular six track Scalextric challenge and a Formula One simulator. Visitors to JET’s area of the festival also had the chance to take part in two Q&A sessions with the fuel brand’s 2015 ambassador, racing driver Nicolas Hamilton, brother of Lewis Hamilton. Nicolas lives with cerebral palsy and is the first disabled competitor to participate in the Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship (BTCC). Nicolas was happy to sign autographs and be pictured alongside his own car, an Audi S3 NGTC with AmD Tuning. “The typical British weather could have put a dampener on the event but thankfully the JET Hub was under cover and provided much-needed shelter for visitors,” added Mary. “And, for those willing to brave getting caught in a shower, our 50+ team of JET staff volunteers handed out over 3,500 JET ponchos! Feedback from members of the public who visited the JET Village Green and Hub was very positive and we’re already looking forward to continuing our role as official fuel partner of Silverstone Classic 2016.”www.phillips66.co.uk/EN/jetbrand

Visit knowledge.energyinst.org/collections/shale-gas for more information. The Energy Institute has published A Guide to Shale Gas; FREE to download it addresses the technological, environmental and legal aspects of exploiting this energy source. The UK government has promised to support the safe deployment of shale gas as part of the UK’s energy policy, but fracking applications have been rejected by local councils. There has been vigorous debate about the potential benefits and risks of developing shale gas in the UK. Produced independently and based on sound science, this 20-page document –  knowledge.energyinst.org/collections/shale-gas – aims to bring scientific and technical accuracy to the debate and to help readers expand their knowledge of the subject. It explains in factual terms how shale gas is extracted, its impact on the environment and its potential role in meeting future UK energy needs. Louise Kingham OBE FEI, Chief Executive, Energy Institute, says, “Our Energy Barometer survey among energy professionals has highlighted the need for the energy industry to improve its communication with the public. “Shale gas is a clear priority among the areas that require greater explanation, with the survey showing it as the single most poorly communicated topic on the energy spectrum. With this publication, we want to promote better understanding between the sector and wider society; to present facts from an independent perspective and to help people make informed decisions on energy matters.” A guide to shale gas explains what it is and where it comes from – as well as its potential impacts and legal framework. It has been developed from an extensive review and analysis of existing literature and contributions by over 75 subject specialists – including professionally qualified EI fellows and members from relevant backgrounds and experience. It has also been subjected to a robust peer review process prior to publication. The guide is available to download free of charge. Hard copies are also available at £10 each (bulk discounts are available for community groups, organisations and academia).

Shale fracking and its potential impact on bulk liquid storage in the UK will be among the topics at the annual conference of the Tank Storage Association (TSA). The next annual one-day event takes place on Thursday 15th October at the E.On Lounge of the Ricoh Arena, Coventry.   Check out the full conference programme and the list of exhibitors at www.tankstorage-event.org.uk. The TSA’s conference and exhibition has a proven track record of successfully bringing together people who care about safe and effective bulk liquid storage operations. To register for this event go to www.tankstorage-event.org.uk/delegate-registration/