Merridale introduces Protect - a comprehensive inspection and calibration plan for depot fuelling equipment

Following a thorough review of the operational requirements for fleet management within the commercial sector, Merridale has introduced a new and improved, inspection and calibration service plan for depot fuelling facilities.

“Called Merridale Protect™, this new service has been designed to provide the information required by operators to complete their compliance documentation. This is important to complement insurance and risk management assessments,” explains sales director, Stephen Hannan.

“Accurate metering is crucial to all methods of fuel management which are, by definition, reliant on reliable data for stock control, security and management reports. Fuelling data can be used to measure driver and vehicle fuel usage performance with analysis by miles per gallon, kilometres per litre or litres per 100 kilometres, as required.

“In operation Protect customers will be attended by a fully trained Merridale engineer, who will complete the inspection and calibration, noting any obvious remedial requirements.”

“By having metering and measurement devices calibrated on a periodic basis, fleet operators can be confident that they are obtaining good quality management reports and statistics to use for comparing vehicle and driver fuel consumption and performance.

“To achieve good quality reports, the fuelling installation itself should be audited and calibrated on a periodic basis. With Merridale Protect we have put in place a more structured approach, based on the expertise and resources of our existing national service support network.”

Under the Protect plan, inspection would normally be carried out at least once per year. But for busy high-volume fuel installations, Merridale recommends customers consider a more frequent health check.

An important benefit to having these checks completed is that they contribute towards fulfilling the requirement of the Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations 2002 (DSEAR) to carry out a risk assessment for all fuelling installations.

Customers subscribing to Merridale Protect will receive a scheduled inspection and calibration visit, covering a designated range of fuelling equipment, including fuel pumps, fuel management system, tank gauges and even the storage tanks associated with the fuel installation.

This service covers all types of fuel storage tanks and the majority of fuel pumps used in the UK, as well as Merridale fuel management and tank management systems.

In operation Protect customers will be attended by a fully trained Merridale engineer, who will complete the inspection and calibration, noting any obvious remedial requirements. Where it is possible to address these requirements immediately, the fleet operator may choose to have this done at the time of inspection.
Others may require authorisation for additional rectification work.

After each inspection visit, the fleet operator will receive a fully documented report on each piece of equipment. This will also note, and cost where possible, any advisory work to be carried out. These Merridale Protect reports can then be used to assist managers and supervisors in preparing their own overall site risk assessments.

To enquire about Merridale Protect, or to receive a sample copy of the full scope of cover, please contact either the Merridale Sales or Service departments on 01902 350700.