In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent supply chain and labor shortages, the manufacturing industry faced a number of challenges in 2021. As a result, manufacturers have had to find creative ways to rapidly respond to customer demands while at the same time staying one step ahead of industry trends and the competition.

When you think of natural gas, you may envision something like your gas cooking range or the butane inside a lighter. Even with natural gas being a pivotal part of the U.S. energy sector, the consensus is that most Americans are not too sure what natural gas is or what it does. In this blog, we are going to break down this energy source and explain natural gas (NG), liquified natural gas (LNG), and natural gas liquids (NGLs). From its formation to its application, we’ve got you covered.

In industries where sanitary conditions are paramount, even the tiniest amount of bacteria can foul up entire operations. Compromised products, manufacturing downtime, and expensive cleanups are the unfortunate results. The dairy, food and beverage, pharmaceuticals, and personal care industries know this issue all too well.

Cam and groove couplings, also known as camlock fittings, cam levers, and cam couplings are a type of hose connection. This type of hose connection is popular because it is easy to quickly connect without the use of tools.

The U.S. 1970 Clean Air Act (CAA), amended in 1977 and 1990, legislated major reductions of atmospheric hydrocarbon pollution. Studies have shown that up to 95% of emissions from the transportation of petroleum could be contained for recycling. As a result, the petroleum industry began to seriously examine gasoline vapor emissions and controls. Although attempts have been made to develop top-loading vapor recovery systems, the advent of bottom-loading provided superior vapor recovery technology. Today, bottom-loading vapor recovery technology dominates and has been applied worldwide.

In the drive to improve workplace safety and lower operating costs, North American oil companies partnered with the transportation industry to develop the concept of bottom-loading petroleum tank trucks. Starting in the 1950s, the concept led to industry-wide adoption of a new tanker product: a valve that permitted both loading and unloading through a common valve located at the bottom of the tanker. This valve has a special nose design, which, along with a mating dry break coupler (on the terminal loading arm), allows for the fast, safe connection, and transfer of petroleum from the terminal to the tank truck.

Overfill prevention should be a top focus in liquid transfer applications. Obviously, the risks of an overfill vary considerably depending on the media, but any overfill costs money and effort to clean up, especially when nearby equipment is in danger of being damaged.

Loading arms improve safety and efficiency by allowing liquid cargos to be transferred into trucks, railcars, vessels and barges using an articulated pipe system. Rigid pipe loading arms are generally constructed of several pipes - or legs - which are linked together with swivel joints and supported by a counterbalance. Loading arms can also be constructed of a combination of pipe and lengths of flexible hose to improve flexibility and range of motion. Dixon manufactures loading arms in 2”, 3” and 4” sizes. Custom-engineered loading arms in other sizes and configurations are also available upon request.

So, what is an actuated valve? An actuator is a mechanism that controls the positioning of the valve mechanically versus manually. These actuators are critical for ensuring that process control is automated in a consistent manner.

Hose couplings are designed to keep connections secure. Under many circumstances, you wouldn’t want a hose to suddenly detach from its connection. But sometimes you do. And that’s where a breakaway coupling comes in.