The Relevance of Custody Transfer Metering Across Industries:
How Accurate Flow Measurement Solves Real-World Challenges where accuracy is the key to make every drop count
The Broad Relevance of Custody Transfer Metering
Custody transfer metering is a critical process in industries that manage the transfer of bulk liquids and liquid hydrocarbons. Accurate metering ensures the correct volume of product is transferred, providing both parties with fair and transparent measurements. While custody transfer metering is most commonly associated with oil and petroleum, the technology is essential across many industries with high-value fluids, including chemical manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, food and beverage, water treatment, and even aviation fuel handling.
Understanding the diverse applications and benefits of advanced metering solutions for various industries can help businesses appreciate their versatility and importance. These range from the precise delivery of crude oil to guaranteeing the safety and accuracy of pharmaceutical ingredients.
Key terms to understand in the world of Custody Transfer Metering:
- Custody Transfer: involves the physical transfer/transportation of oil from one party to another
- Fiscal Metering: is the term used when the product transferred is subject to excise (duty)
- A high degree of accuracy is required by both the company delivering the material and the eventual recipient when transferring material.
- Flow meters used to perform Custody transfers are subject to mutual agreement between the parties involved. Standards can be designated to simplify the agreement.
- Flow meters and systems used to perform Fiscal metering are subject to local or national legislation.
- Accuracy for a measuring instrument is defined as “the closeness of agreement between the result of a measurement and a true value of the measurand”.
- Uncertainty of a measuring instrument is defined as a “Parameter, associated with the result of a measurement that characterises the dispersion of values that could reasonably be attributed to the measurand.”
If you haven’t yet read about the role of Honeywell Enraf SVP in custody transfer metering for high-accuracy applications or how M&T Turbine and Ultrasonic Flow Meters provide robust solutions for industrial flow measurement, check out our previous blogs on these topics.
Oil and Petroleum: Ensuring Accuracy in High-Volume Transactions
The oil and petroleum industry is the most well-known application of custody transfer metering. Large volumes of crude oil, liquid hydrocarbons, and refined products are regularly transferred between parties in this sector. Every year, 30 Billion Barrels of oil are produced globally. According to the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology, every drop of oil is metered on average 11 times between the oil well and the consumer. Precise measurement is crucial due to the high value of the products and the tight regulatory standards governing fuel transfers.
Honeywell Enraf SVP is an excellent example of a metering solution that ensures accuracy and accountability during custody transfer in the oil and petroleum industry. With an uncertainty margin of less than 0.02%, it helps mitigate risks associated with inaccurate flow measurement and ensures compliance with international standards like API and OIML.
The M&T Turbine Flow Meters are often used in offshore platforms and refineries, where they handle the challenges of measuring high-viscosity fluids and fluids with sediments. These meters are designed for harsh conditions, reducing wear and ensuring that accurate readings are maintained in every transfer.
Chemical Manufacturing: Managing Precise Chemical Additions and Transfers
In the chemical manufacturing industry, precise fluid measurement is necessary for everything from ingredient transfers to the accurate addition of chemicals during production. Custody transfer metering ensures the right amounts of chemicals are delivered, preventing waste and maintaining product consistency.
The M&T DFX Ultrasonic Flow Meters are ideal for measuring various liquids, including those with varying viscosities, and provide accurate readings even in turbulent flow conditions. These meters are also highly effective for handling chemicals that can corrode traditional flow meters, as their robust construction ensures longevity and consistent accuracy.
By implementing accurate metering solutions, chemical manufacturers can improve their productivity by reducing waste, preventing costly production errors, and ensuring the safe handling of chemicals.
Pharmaceuticals: Protecting the Integrity of High-Value Ingredients
In the pharmaceutical industry, custody transfer metering is crucial for accurately measuring active ingredients and other high-value substances, preventing wastage, and ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements.
M&T’s Turbine Flow Meters and Honeywell Enraf SVP are particularly useful in this industry. They ensure the correct quantities of ingredients are used in manufacturing processes. With a high degree of precision and traceability, these meters also help pharmaceutical companies meet stringent Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) and other regulatory standards.
In addition, the M&T DFX Ultrasonic Flow Meters also help pharmaceutical companies manage low-viscosity liquids while maintaining the integrity of the measured substances. Their non-invasive measurement technology ensures that ingredients are transferred without contamination, assisting pharmaceutical companies to preserve the quality and safety of their products.
Food and Beverage: Ensuring Consistency and Quality in Product Transfers
The food and beverage industry faces unique challenges regarding accurate metering. Whether transferring milk, juice, oils, or syrups, precise volume measurements are essential for maintaining product consistency and ensuring smooth production.
Honeywell Enraf SVP is ideal for measuring high-volume, high-value products with an emphasis on speed and accuracy. Consistency is vital in milk and dairy product manufacturing, and the Small Volume Prover ensures that exact amounts are transferred without loss or waste.
Similarly, M&T DFX Ultrasonic Flow Meters are often used in the beverage industry. They provide accurate measurements without the need for complex installations. Their ability to measure low-viscosity liquids without losing accuracy makes them invaluable for industries like juice production, where maintaining consistency in product volume is crucial.
Water Treatment: Measuring Chemicals and Ensuring Accurate Resource Distribution
In water treatment, custody transfer metering is crucial for monitoring the use of chemicals like chlorine, coagulants, and disinfectants. It ensures that water treatment processes run efficiently and within regulatory standards. Precise metering is also essential for distributing treated water, as inaccuracies could lead to financial losses or environmental issues.
The Honeywell Enraf SVP and M&T’s Turbine Flow Meters are both ideal for water utilities. They measure chemicals added to water systems and ensure proper billing for water consumption. These meters are rugged and durable, designed to function efficiently in challenging environments, making them well-suited for municipal water treatment plants.
Aviation: Accurate Fuel Measurement for Safety and Compliance
Aviation fuel handling is another industry that relies heavily on custody transfer metering to ensure accurate fuel delivery to aircraft. The correct quantity of fuel is crucial for aircraft safety, cost control, and regulatory compliance.
The M&T DFX Ultrasonic Flow Meters are used in aviation fuel management systems to accurately measure fuel flow, even in high volumes and varying flow conditions. Their high accuracy ensures that each transfer is precise, preventing fuel shortages or overages, which can lead to costly operational disruptions.
How Custody Transfer Metering Drives Efficiency Across Industries
As we’ve seen, custody transfer metering isn’t just about the oil and petroleum sector—it plays a crucial role in various industries, from chemical manufacturing to aviation fuel handling. Precise measurement is essential for ensuring accuracy, maintaining product integrity, and complying with industry regulations.
Honeywell Enraf SVP, M&T Turbine Flow Meters, and M&T DFX Ultrasonic Flow Meters are all advanced metering solutions that provide industries with the tools they need to optimise their operations, reduce waste, and improve productivity. Regardless of the industry, accurate custody transfer metering is critical to ensuring fair and transparent transactions while maintaining operational efficiency.
For more information on how these advanced metering solutions can benefit your industry, contact our sales team today for a consultation.