AS A result of federal environmental regulations that took effect January 1, 2007, there are approximately 42 different exhaust configurations for straight trucks, which means that in many instances equipment mounting on some of them has become much more difficult.
The new emission systems underneath the chassis take up a majority of available space. However, hydraulic drive packages can solve problems, such as for those truck designs where it is impossible to have dual pumping systems, said Scott Jackson and Ted Ratcliff of Blackmer. They made a presentation at the New England Fuel Institute (NEFI) Business Conference June 12-13 in Boston.
They pointed out that as the trucks become more costly, owners are seeking ways for each vehicle to be more versatile. Tankwagons may be used for fleet fueling, home delivery, and/or high flow commercial accounts. Each application requires a different pump flow rate. Blackmer said that with hydraulic drive packages, it is easy to adjust the pump speed to match the required fuel delivery rate for that application.
Jackson and Ratcliff said that hydraulic drive packages allow the flexibility to mount pumps in various places on a truck, such as inside cabinets and on rear decks. Multiple pumps can be driven off one PTO/hydraulic pump and accessed with remote controls. In addition, there is no exposed rotating driveline.
Other flexible attributes include a hydraulic hose reel rewind and the capability to drive other base-mounted equipment. (The system must be sized to drive the most difficult pump application.)
Jackson and Ratcliff pointed out that the Blackmer Hydrive hydraulic cooler is the heart of a hydraulic system. It has a built-in relief valve and low temperature radiator bypass valve, spin-on oil filter, and high efficiency centrifugal fan.
Benefits include enhanced equipment speed control, slow start-up capabilities, and emergency shutdown. Safety is a factor because there are no exposed PTO shafts, no alignment troubles, and the emergency shutdown systems can easily be used with a hydraulic system.