Why Your Choice of a Flow Meter Company Matters

Flow meters can be mission-critical components when they are part of complex, expensive infrastructures such as oil and gas refineries or food and beverage processing. All the more reason to take your time evaluating the flow meter company that designs and manufactures the flow meters you procure.

To be sure, investments in power generation systems and most other industrial applications are tied to quantifiable ROIs over specific time periods. In most process equipment infrastructures, flow meters can ensure equipment is operating at the most cost-efficient levels.

For instance, in the case of energy management, the ability to better monitor combustion air, fuel gas flow, and compressed air can help identify losses that over short periods of time can affect a plant’s profitability, says Process Instrumentation. “Purchased fuel and electricity consumption are areas where improvements in efficiency drop directly to a company’s bottom line. By monitoring the end-use location of fuel throughout a facility, as well as the consumption specifics for individual applications — predominately the boiler — can offer insight into potential areas for improvement.”

Meters can help operators answer questions like “is it cost-effective,” and “what’s my return on investment?” That’s why high-quality meters built by top manufacturers matter when you’re evaluating a flow meter company.

A Good Flow Meter Company Makes A Difference

Flow meters are precision instruments that must operate in rugged, hazardous environments. They must be as accurate as a Swiss watch but built to endure severe punishment from extreme temperatures, chemicals and other factors. At Turbine Inc., for example, our engineered flow meters are field tested to ensure their reliability, accuracy and repeatability. At the same time, our meters deliver industry-leading value.

Additionally, depending on the industry, flow meters must comply with numerous regulations and compliance guidelines. Some utilities, for example, may require meters to have NSF-61, NSF-372 approvals or ISO 9001 certification.

What’s more, when it comes to food manufacturing, “Food and beverage plant managers may have to meet the requirements of the Food & Drug Administration (FDA), European Union (EU) and other agencies. Applicable regulations may include cGMP, GFSI, ISO, HACCP, SQF, SID and others,” says Process Control & Automation.

Food grade turbine meters are commonly used in the critical phases of food and beverage processing that include wine making, dairy applications, brewery processes, and other applications where the ability to safely clean-in-place (CiP) and/or sterilize-in-place (SiP) the meter is required. These meters must be manufactured in state-of-the-art facilities where sterile conditions are the norm. Make sure your flow meter company conforms to the manufacturing standards of your industry.

Furthermore, a flow meter’s repeatability function is just as important as its accuracy and reliability. Combustion air flow measurement in a boiler, for example, can be mission critical. As reported by Process Instrumentation, “Too little air flow can result in incomplete combustion along with additional carbon monoxide or pollutants depending on the fuel being burned. On the other hand, too much air flow can cool the furnace and waste heat out of the stack. The repeatability of the air measurement is essential to obtaining the most efficient air-fuel ratio (AFR).”

Choose a Company that’s Focused on High Quality

The accuracy, reliability and repeatability of a system’s flow meter has a pivotal role in every application. Even more reason to work with a flow meter company with an established track record and long history of proven results.

Consider Turbines, Inc.— we’ve been around since 1975 designing and manufacturing a wide spectrum of turbine flow meters for oil and gas, and industrial applications. Our American-made products are supported by a professional and experienced staff that can assist you in finding the optimum measurement solution for your application.

Need a custom-engineered flow meter that’s accurate, reliable and repeatable? Let’s talk