Tremcar recently developed a new A-train tank trailer with an innovative rear manway through a collaboration with Idaho Milk Transport, a food grade liquid bulk transporter in Burley ID.
“This latest joint effort with our client, Idaho Milk Transport, has the same objective as all our other innovations: Greater safety and efficiency,” the company said. “The total ground-level operation of these units is much more secure for operators and plant workers alike. No longer having to climb on a tank has obvious safety benefits, but it also saves time for the transporter. As we all know, time is money.”
The Canadian tank trailer manufacturer also recently introduced a new side manhole milk tanker developed alongside Agri-Mark; and Tremcar teamed with GTI and Piper Systems to build a farm pickup tanker with an integrated Piper Automatic Milk Metering System in a specially designed sanitary rear cabinet.
Tremcar’s latest innovation features sanitary, insulated stainless-steel cabinets that house certified 3A Alpha-Laval manholes at the rear ends of the A-train’s lead and pull units. The cabinets also house clean-in-place (CIP) system piping for complete cleaning and draining after the unit is emptied. The CIP consists of a 4-inch valve connected to five spray balls (three inside each unit and two more in the vent lines).
A QMI port is installed on the ground-level manhole cover for pulling samples before unloading product. The units also are equipped with a Luminite dual-probe alarm level indicator. The system runs on either 12 volts from the tractor or a battery on the tank for complete autonomy. The two Luminite probes are inside the center of each tank and pre-set with an alarm that sounds when the product reaches the probes.
The lead unit also is equipped with a 3-inch ACME thread with a cap on the driver’s side, and a 2-inch thread with cap on the curb side, connecting the lead to the pup when loading the milk. A sanitary plunger valve located at the front of the pup connects to the outlet fitting inside the lead cabinet, enabling simultaneous loading and unloading of both units.
“A lot of time and field work was dedicated to identify and understand the needs of our milk transporters.” said Daniel Tremblay, president of Tremcar. “We want our technical engineers to understand the employees’ working realities and find solutions to facilitate their job. The end results must be representative of what the customer needs.”
The first iteration of the side manway was on a single FPU trailer, Tremcar said. The company then adapted the design for use on the rear end of an A-train to meet Idaho Milk Transport’s needs, with its engineering team readjusting the ground-level technology for the unique tank configuration. The structure of the tank bumper was tailored for installation of a pintle hook to handle the extra weight of a pup trailer.
Tremcar said the “cutting-edge innovation” in its new A-train tank trailer with rear manway, and its other recently developed trailers, required the participation of many different players, including the milk transportation companies who trusted them.
“There are also many hours of consulting, examination and discussion taken to work in concert with state regulatory representatives,” the company said. “This is done to ensure that every aspect of sanitary regulations is respected on these leading-edge tankers as they evolve and are introduced into various markets.
“We would like to sincerely thank state sanitary regulatory commissions for their support throughout this process. In particular, the state of New York has been at the forefront in recognizing the value of our ground-level technology. We are still working hard with New York state at being recognized 3A. In the end, both transporters and milk facilities win. Safety and efficiency are the trademark of the ground-level system.
“Time-saving reduces operations costs, an important factor in the transport of all goods—but especially when hauling milk.”