Save time and money with COMS from FAFNIR

FAFNIR, the specialist for high-precision level measuring devices for the oil industry, is starting a new era in the field of oil separator management with COMS – the Continuous Oil-separator Monitoring System (COMS), which reduces the effort required to monitor oil separators at the filling station to a minimum and at the same time increases operational reliability.

In the last twelve months, more than 50 locations throughout Europe have recognised the value of this new innovation in fully automatic remote monitoring technology for oil separators from FAFNIR.

The introduction of COMS saves petrol station owners and operators valuable time and money, as the monthly visual checks that were previously necessary, in some cases also carried out by commissioned external companies, can be dispensed with.

A case for COMS

Oil or light liquid separators are mandatory at petrol stations today. For operators, this means increased expense, as each separator must be checked once a month in accordance with DIN 1999-100. Previously, manual checks were carried out to measure both the oil layer and the sludge level.

This process sometimes considerably disrupts business operations at the filling station, as certain areas may have to be closed off for manual visual inspection of the oil separator, which means that employees are tied up in time. All this is extremely time-consuming - valuable time that you could invest much better for your customers. In times of IoT, where automation is also indispensable in the petrol station sector, COMS is now the perfect solution for monitoring your oil separator!

René Albrecht, Managing Director of Fafnir GmbH: "We at Fafnir are pleased to present our COMS system to the market. As a German company we know how important the monitoring of the environment is especially for the German fuel trade, but also beyond. With the current 2-float technology your separator is monitored around the clock.“

Technical statement on COMS in relation to DIN 1999-100

In order to reduce the risk of environmental pollution, a monthly visual inspection of the oil separator is required by law and includes 5 necessary tests according to the DIN 1999-100 standard. COMS has been recognised by the Bavarian State Office for the Environment as a legitimate alternative to the monthly visual inspection as part of a technical statement.

Also, the Federal and State working group on Environmental protection (BLAK UmwS) considered COMS as a technical possibility to be installed in existing light liquid oil separators for measuring Sludge, Oil and water levels.

COMS works in the background and automates the complete process to comply with the legal requirements. An immediate alarm is triggered if problems are detected in any of the 5 areas, before any danger to the environment arises:

1. INLET INSPECTION: Due to the continuous measurement, COMS immediately detects and reports an existing malfunction.
2. COALESCENCE FILTER: COMS continuously monitors the permeability of the existing coalescence device.
3. OIL LAYER THICKNESS: COMS continuously measures the oil and water level and thus detects an excessive oil layer thickness or leakage of the separator.
4. SLUDGE LEVEL: COMS continuously measures the sludge level to prevent it from exceeding the maximum level.
5. OUTLET TESTING: Through continuous monitoring, accumulation (blockages), malfunctions or deviations are immediately detected and reported.

3 Components for 5 tasks

COMS consists of only three FAFNIR components that can be installed quickly and easily: The VISY Stick oil separator, the VISY sludge sensor and the VISY-Command Web.

VISY Command Web continuously monitors and displays the oil layer thickness, water and sludge height, generates alarms and stores data in a log file. The system also offers remote monitoring via desktop, tablet, mobile, etc. as well as automated e-mail notifications in case of alarms.

VISY-Stick Oil is a magneto strictive sensor with floats, that has been specially developed to measure the oil layer thickness in oil separators. The installed sensor is connected to the VISY-Command Web and continuously measures the current level.

VISY-Sludge/Sludge Sensor is an ultrasonic sensor for continuous measurement of the sludge level. Both sensors are made of stainless steel to ensure maximum durability and reliability.

ONE solution to protect your employees, the environment and your company

COMS protects you against several risks for your company: risks of leakages, risks to the health and safety of your employees and subcontractors, risks of fines or even criminal prosecution. For all these risks there is a solution with a one-time investment: COMS

Protect your employees: Manual recording of the levels in an oil separator represents a high risk of accidents and a potential danger for you and your staff. Automatic reading and recording via COMS reduce this risk to a minimum.

Protect the environment: Did you know that 1 litre of oil can contaminate 1,000,000 litres of drinking water? With COMS, oil layer thickness and sludge level are measured continuously and precisely. The safe and timely disposal of sludge and oil is planned as required before there is a risk of leakage or environmental damage.

Protect your revenues: With COMS your petrol station remains available without restrictions. Electronic and continuous measurement of the oil and sludge level in the oil separator avoids having to block off areas of the forecourt for visual inspection; this avoids loss of time and turnover. With up-to-date, reliable and accurate data that is always available, you can also prevent unexpected financial losses through fines or penalties for non-compliance.

For more information on how your petrol station can benefit from the latest COMS technology, please visit Fafnir.com, send us a request or call +49 40 39 82 070.

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