Uganda National Bureau of Standards-UNBS has unveiled a 5000-litre capacity prover tank, the largest in the region so far, to facilitate measurement of large volume liquids meant for trade. A prover tank is used for calibration of large-volume liquid flow meters, according to the Petroleum Equipment Institute.
The tank is generally mounted on mobile trailer unit that is pulled by a truck from one location to another as and where it is needed. It works by being filled with a common liquid, usually water that is emptied into an empty tanker.
If the tank being measured gets full before the Prover Tank is empty, then the dealer’s tank is deemed to be smaller than the expected volume. It will also be used to calibrate or mark the various levels of volumes of large containers, including train wagon fuel and fuel stations.
Boniface Kapere, the Principal Technician at UNBS, says the equipment mainly helps the receiver of the delivery since it will help confirm that the contents in the delivering tank is equal to the volumes stated by the supplier. He says the big size of the prover tank also speeds up the process of measuring, hence saving the business its time.
UNBS Acting Executive Director, David Livingston Ebiru urges suppliers or transporters to ensure that their containers are measured and certified before filling them with products to give confidence to their customers.
Recent reports by UNBS show that adulteration and tampering with the volumes supplied are done during transit. In many cases the drivers or the transporting companies often syphon the fuel from the tanks along the way and by the time the product is delivered, it is less than what was paid for.
The prover tank was made in Uganda by Uni Engineers and purchased by Intertek, a British measuring and certification company at US$ 45,000 (UGX165 million).
Dr Ebilu also expressed satisfaction that the Ugandan industry is continuously building capacity to manufacture equipment that has always been imported.
UNBS acquires 5000-litre prover tank for large volume liquids
By recruiting new laboratories, UNBS aims at increasing the speed and efficiency of testing and certifying products, which will in the end lead to faster business. Courtesy photo
