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Liquefied Natural Gas compressor units to be installed at Safeway Supermarket depots throughout the UK

The LNG compressor units, supplied by Hamworthy Belliss and Morcom Industrial Division, will be used to refuel heavy goods vehicles forming part of a strategic 'green' initiative by Safeway to provide cleaner, more economic LNG fuel for its nationwide fleet of delivery vehicles, instead of traditional diesel.

Power Transmission Products was tasked with designing and manufacturing a transmission system that could safely and smoothly transmit power from a 322kW, six cylinder Perkins gas engine to a Hamworthy Belliss and Morcom 'Gastech' 1000 four cylinder radial compressor.

Safeway has calculated that each LNG compressor will serve approximately 100 delivery vehicles.

To achieve this level of service, each unit will be required to operate a demanding cycle of four starts per hour, 14 hours per day, 365 days a year - and any breakdown or even minor unserviceability could seriously compromise Safeway's massive logistics operation.

Long life, supreme reliability and no-compromise build standards were demanded by the compressor manufacturers for all drive system components and a major factor in  being awarded the contract.

The design calls for the Perkins engine to drive the compressor through a  Clutches and Couplings Hydrastart fluid coupling; Gears Hercules RP2-225 gearbox, and  Hi-Tec 12/3 DCB coupling complete with 1100 Series universal drive shaft.

The engine, fluid coupling, gearbox and forward half of the universal drive shaft are mounted to a sub-frame and housed in a 'safe-area' - while the rear half of the drive shaft, second rotational drive shaft and compressor are housed within a weatherproof compressor housing.

A feature of the drive system is the Hydrastart fluid drive coupling, which allows the engine to crank and accelerate to operating speed unloaded.

The fluid coupling permits the engine to develop maximum torque without stalling under load and promotes rapid acceleration to normal load speed.

When the engine has reached operating speed, the power transmitted through the fluid coupling causes a proportional and smooth increase in compressor speed, up to the point of its normal operating value.

The engine and compressor are further protected by the DCB drive coupling, which is bolted to the compressor.

The coupling provides intrinsically fail-safe operation, severe shock load protection and total control of resonant torsional vibration.

Providing speed reduction between engine and compressor is a Hercules RP2-225 reduction transmission gearbox.

RP Series helical reducers incorporate the highest quality hardened and ground gearing running on heavy duty bearings as standard.

Commenting on the project,  Hi-Tec Project Engineer  was able to find a cost-efficient, single source solution to an extremely demanding and complex application, while working through a single contact in the  organisation.

All  elements worked together closely to develop an application solution that was on time, on-spec and within budget.'.

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