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TASI
Group Acquires Sierra Instruments
Wakefield,
MA (May 3, 2019) – As we projected in our last Flash Report, TASI Group
has indeed immediately followed its acquisition of Onicon with another
acquisition of similar significance. Flow
Research has learned today that TASI Group is also acquiring Sierra
Instruments of Monterrey, California. A
major player in flow measurement and control for over 40 years, Sierra
Instruments designs and manufactures fluid flow measurement and control
solutions for customers spanning global industries as diverse as scientific
research, oil & gas, energy management, semiconductor, clean energy,
aerospace, and biotech. This
pattern of doing acquisitions in pairs follows a pattern originally
established by Onicon.
TASI
Group Acquires Onicon
Wakefield,
MA (April 24, 2019) – Flow Research has learned from multiple sources
that yesterday, April 23, 2019, TASI Group acquired Onicon.
Though no official announcement of the acquisition has yet been made
apart from an internal memo, Flow Research has been able to confirm that
this acquisition has occurred. Terms
of the transaction are unknown at this time.
Brent
and WTI Crude Oil Set New Hights on the Same Day
The price of West Texas
Intermediate (WTI) crude oil closed at $63.11 per barrel Friday, April 5,
the highest closing price since November 5, 2018, when it closed at $63.12.
Brent crude oil also set a
record, settling at $70.34 per barrel on April 5, its first close over $70
per barrel in five months. Brent
oil typically trades $5 to $7 higher than WTI.
Prices are expected to stay in a similar price range for most of the
year.
What
Type of Signal Would You Recommend for Wide Range Measurements
GUEST BLOG byPaul Hock, Max Machinery, Inc.
We
are often asked to provide an analog output signal for a wide operating
range project. While we are happy to accommodate this request, there are
certain realities that must be considered.
Will
Oil Prices Rise?
The most
fundamental determinant of oil prices is supply and demand.
When the demand for oil exceeds supply, oil prices tend to rise, or
to remain high, on a relative basis. When
supply exceeds demand, however, oil prices tend to decline, or remain low,
on a relative basis. Of course, there are many other factors that influence the price of oil in addition to the balance of supply and demand.
OPEC
Meets and Stays Put; Oil Climbs Above $51/Barrel
June 9, 2016--The
Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) held its 169th
meeting in Vienna, Austria on June 2, 2016. The 13-member cartel declined to take any coordinated action on oil
production. This decision
follows an April 17 meeting in Doha, Qatar, that involved a 12-hour
marathon negotiating session in which the group also failed to reach
agreement on a production freeze or a production cut.
First
Meeting of the Flow Recalibration Working Group (FRWG) Held in San Antonio
on June 23, 2016
The
first meeting of the Flow Recalibration Working Group (FRWG) was held at
the North American Custody Transfer Measurement Conference in San Antonio,
Texas on June 23, 2016. In attendance were representatives of some of the
leading flowmeter manufacturers, along with members from some of the
leading flow calibration facilities worldwide, including CEESI and NMi
Euroloop. Several more companies joined the FRWG at the Conference. For a
statement of purpose and list of members, go to
www.frwg.org.
Flow Research
Establishes Flow Recalibration Working Group (FRWG)
Flow Research has established a new working group called the Flow
Recalibration Working Group (FRWG). The
purpose of this group is to arrive at a group of criteria that end-users
can employ to determine if their flowmeters need to be recalibrated.
This does not necessarily equate to a specific time interval.
Instead, the goal is to have some tests, programs, or criteria that can be
run to determine when a flowmeter needs to be recalibrated.
Coriolis Force or Coriolis
Effect?
One common example given to illustrate the Coriolis force is that of a
ball propelled through the air a long distance in a straight line from the
North Pole towards a target on the equator.
By the time the ball arrives at the equator, it will not land at its
apparent target, because the earth will have rotated sufficiently
underneath the moving ball so that it will land some distance away from the
perceived target on the equator. From
the perspective of the person standing where the ball is “thrown,” the
ball will appear to have curved.
Volume
X Reveals Flowmeter Market Trends
In 2013, new-technology
flowmeters accounted for 59 percent in the market.
This is quite a change from 2002, when traditional flowmeters edged
out new-technology flowmeters slightly.
By 2007, new-technology flowmeters had the edge.
Magnetic Flowmeters Now the Largest Market in terms of Revenues
Flow Research has just completed a study of the worldwide flowmeter market. One of our findings is that magnetic flowmeters generate more revenues worldwide than any other type of flowmeter.
What
is the difference between Coriolis and ultrasonic flowmeters?
Our research shows that
these are the two fastest growing flow technologies. But there are
important differences between the two.
The difference between thermal dispersion and calorimetric flowmeters
I believe I now see a difference between
the thermal dispersion and calorimetric flowmeters.
Calorimetric
and Thermal Musings
Is a calorimetric flowmeter a type of thermal flowmeter or
is it a distinct technology?
The History of Thermal Flowmeters
The history of
thermal flowmeters is fascinating. Thermal flowmeters were born on the West
Coast of the
United States
—the result of independent development by first two, then three separate
companies. One company was Fluid Components International (www.fluidcomponents.com),
which began by developing thermal flow switches that were used in the oil patch.
The switches detected the movement of oil in oil well pipes, but they didn’t
evolve into actual flowmeters until 1981.
Important Ultrasonic Conferences Sponsored by CEESI
One of the most
important events in the flowmeter world is the annual Colorado Engineering
Experiment Station, Inc. (CEESI) Ultrasonic Meter Workshop (USM).
The first of these events was held in
Clear Lake,
Iowa
in 2001 and drew 37 attendees. In
2013, the conference took place in July in
Denver,
Colorado
with more than 180 participants. The
purpose of the workshop is to bring together many of the leading decision makers
and theorists in the ultrasonic flowmeter community with end-users to discuss
key topics related to products and applications.
The World Outlook on Oil
Flow
Research has recently completed a six volume study of the world oil and oil flow
measurement markets. Here are some of our conclusions.
Part
1: Emerging Trends of Thermal Flowmeters
In this guest post, I’ll be comparing the Coriolis and Thermal flowmeter markets, an interesting undertaking when you consider some of the facts. Both technologies were introduced about the same time, in the mid-1970s. But the worldwide Coriolis meter market has grown to exceed $1 billion, while the Thermal flowmeter market is valued at less than 15 percent of that. Why the difference?
Part
2: Emerging Trends of Thermal Flowmeters
Last week in the first part of my
guest post, I shared some of the reasons why the Coriolis flow meter has
cornered such a large part of the flowmeter measurement market. Accuracy is the
main reason why this type of flowmeter has been so commonly used in industrial
applications up to this point. But this week I’ll provide some interesting
facts that might just change your mind about the effectiveness of thermal
flowmeters.
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