Why is the Gall Thomson Marine Breakaway Coupling setting new Industry Standards?
2019 marks the fortieth anniversary of Gall Thomson’s launch of the innovative Flip-Flap Marine Breakaway Coupling (MBC). The device has since been in constant daily use in thousands of locations throughout the world in the toughest of marine conditions. Over a span of four decades, Gall Thomson’s MBC has proven time and again that its superb leak-proof design provides guaranteed reliability for every type of hose transfer system. Its unique, unrivalled performance has deservedly been hailed throughout the industry as a new standard of excellence.
Precision Engineering
In 1986, Gall Thomson’s MBC won the prestigious Queen’s Award for its outstanding technological achievement. The company’s philosophy of manufacturing a product of supreme quality using precision engineering techniques of the highest calibre remains unchanged. Only robust, high-quality materials that can withstand extreme pressures and environmental conditions are used within the MBC. The main forgings provide superior strength for the body while a certified titanium alloy of the highest grade is used for the break assembly. Every component in the interior is manufactured from high-quality stainless steel, chosen for its longevity, strength and resistance to corrosion. A final surface coating applied to the exterior ensures the unit is protected from the harshest corrosive threats.
Reliable Strength
The revolutionary design of Gall Thomson’s MBC was developed during the late nineteen-seventies from a series of experimental prototypes. Each was painstakingly tested to discover its limitations in withstanding the combined forces of torsional stress and the impact of gales. Gall Thomson’s definitive, award-winning design has since proven its reliability and strength against the powerful surges of internal pressures during a spillage and the external disturbances created by stormy seas and winds. Constant vibrations from pumping mechanisms, engines and the accumulated stress fatigue of daily use are readily absorbed thus avoiding any detrimental effect on either the unit’s structure or operational efficiency.
Streamlined Design
Yet for all its necessary robust strength, the Gall Thomson MBC is remarkably lightweight. Its compact, simplistic design exhibits the elegance of precision engineering and the professional skills of dedicated craftsmanship. The lack of weight in the streamlined casing has all but eliminated the need for additional buoyancy equipment. With a nominal bore ranging from 3″ to 24″, the diameter accuracy of the MBC allows it to fit neatly within surrounding hoses and flanges. The streamlined connection protects the hoses and the MBC unit from damaging each other. The use of High-quality materials, precision engineering and an accurate fit have demonstrated over the past four decades that each MBC unit is capable of a flawless performance with a longevity of almost twenty years.
Cost-Effective Maintenance
When operating in trouble-free conditions, the lack of internal moving parts allows the Gall Thomson MBC to remain in situ within the hose strings without any maintenance checks for several years. Depending on the conditions of its location, the unit only requires refurbishing every three to five years to ensure its continued reliability. Installation of the MBC couldn’t be any easier or more cost-effective. The unit is specifically designed to effortlessly bolt into position within the hose string. It’s a simplified technique that dispenses with the cost of hiring specialists to install the unit. The Gall Thomson MBC has further economic advantages. Its robust structure allows it to be repeatedly installed in new locations within a hose string and it can also be re-fitted following a breakout.
Versatility of Application
The Gall Thomson MBC has demonstrated throughout the last forty years its suitability for transferring an extensive range of hazardous fluids in complete safety. The unit successfully handles all grades of low viscosity fuels including diesel, gasoline, kerosene and LPG liquids. Low velocity fuels, hazardous chemicals, light crude oils and white oils with low flow rates can all be transferred with confidence. The versatile MBC is invaluable throughout the oil industry for product transfers and applications such as early well tests. The unit is the perfect choice for all types of hose transfer systems in a wide range of marine applications and terminals. These include Conventional Buoy Mooring (CBM), Single Point Mooring (SPM), pontoons, off-shore barges and certain FPSO and FSO usage.
100% Leak-Proof Safety
The superb performance of the Gall Thomson MBC within all forms of hose transfer systems has been evident in every single installation. Over four decades, the unit has flawlessly delivered totally safe, spill-proof parting points and transfers in a variety of applications. Its contribution to the conservation of the environment, the safety of personnel and the protection of equipment is immense. In transfers, disconnections, pressure surges and tanker breakouts the unit’s design has proven its worth. Its ingenious automatic closure device relies entirely on a self-generated operation that requires no external power source or intervention from personnel. The unit’s safety mechanism is activated by a pressure surge or stress increase on the breakstuds. As the coupling separates, an instantaneous reaction to the product flow flips over the valve’s flaps. If there’s an absence of product flow during a breakout, the flaps are operated by the energy of the internal torsion springs. In both instances the MBC provides 100% leak-proof safety.
Product Excellence
The Gall Thomson MBC has many additional features including double closure on either side of the parting point, pre-set calibration and variable controlled closure which is particularly useful in systems with a high load rate. The unit operates perfectly in all situations including linear overloads caused through tanker movements or adverse weather conditions. The superb performance of the unit since its introduction forty years ago speaks for itself. It’s acknowledged worldwide for its standard of excellence in providing complete safety during product transfer and the total prevention of pollution during breakouts. The Gall Thomson Flip-Flap MBC has proven it is the finest 100% leak-proof safety valve available for any hose transfer system.
