Vopak Terminals relies on ELINEX.

With three chemical terminals (Botlek, Chemiehaven and TTR) and one in Rotterdam Europoort (oil), Vopak Terminals pumps chemicals and oil around the clock on behalf of its clients.

About this project

To ensure that the lights never go out at the Botlek terminal, Vopak collaborates with Elinex for emergency power supply.

Vopak on ELINEX

Youssef is more than satisfied with ELINEX's service. "ELINEX is very flexible and always assists us in the right way. For instance, during an inspection, a problem was discovered with a battery; it was completely dead. However, there was an unacceptable delivery time for the same model from the manufacturer.

Start project?

ELINEX, due to the necessity to keep operations running, looked for a suitable alternative battery. They found and installed it immediately as a temporary solution. ELINEX maintains about 15 UPS systems of various brands at the Botlek terminal and performs everything 100% to our satisfaction."

About Vopak

With three chemical terminals (Botlek, Chemiehaven, and TTR) and one in Rotterdam Europoort (oil), Vopak Terminals pumps chemicals and oil 24/7 on behalf of its clients. Processes that for various reasons must not be interrupted or halted. To ensure the lights never go out at the Botlek terminal, Vopak collaborates with Elinex for emergency power supply. A conversation with Job Roeleveld, account manager at Elinex, and Youssef El Khadari, maintenance planner at Vopak, about the collaboration between both parties and the absolute necessity of reliable emergency power provisions.

Challenge

"In my role, I'm responsible for the E and I installations and the UPS systems at the terminals," Youssef begins the conversation. "Vopak operates its own tanks and pumps chemicals 24/7. They are critical locations where failures and downtimes must always be avoided. Not only does downtime cost time - and therefore money - as ships and wagons must wait, but it can also lead to unsafe situations. We need continuous oversight of the storage installations. For example, we monitor for potential overfilling or if valves are left open that should be closed."

The Solution

The evolution of emergency power supplies is continuous, explains Job. "The efficiency of backup systems is steadily improving. As an example: we supply systems to Vopak ranging from 8 kVA to 30 kVA. In 2007, an Eaton PW9355 system was delivered to Vopak with 90% efficiency. Today, a similar system can achieve efficiencies up to 96%. The sizes are shrinking, fewer batteries are needed, and efficiency is higher. We replaced the mentioned system with a new UPS solution."

Youssef adds, "When we opt for a replacement, we first get a quote. In this case, there were two options. The new Eaton 93PS wasn't the cheapest but, according to Elinex, it was the best for our situation. We fully trust Elinex's expertise in such situations." Job concludes, “we always aim to provide the most suitable solution for our customers. As we represent multiple brands, we can always offer the best emergency power solution.”