News
First Scottish Council Purchases Magno-flo Units
Friday, 26th February 2010
Renfrew Council are the first Scottish council to purchase an intial order for Magno-flo units. This order was placed on the strength of their successful trials, the report on these trials can be viewed on the Test Results page.
Council Success
Tuesday, 23rd February 2010
Three councils have now successfully completed extensive trials using the Magno-flo unit, proving without any doubt that magnetism, given the correct strength and proper positioning on the vehicle, can and does work. No council can ignore these facts. Magno-flo can help save the councils, not only on their fuel bills, but also on reducing harmful emissions which in turn may go towards reducing potential governmental penalties.
Council Test Report Summary
Tuesday, 23rd February 2010
Summary of the Results
Magno Truck
The results of the trial show the vehicles have an average 12% improved fuel efficiency on the vehicles fitted with a Magno Truck unit. Vehicle A & B are 480hp DAF Tractor units, pulling a rear discharge trailer
Vehicle A - MPG was 4.0MPGwithout the unit
Vehicle B - MPG was 4.48MPG with the unit – an increase in efficiency of 12%
Vehicle C - MPG was 4.0MPG without the unit
Vehicle D - MPG was 4.47MPG with the unit an increase in efficiency of 11.75%
When Magno Truck was used with a wind deflector the fuel efficiency increased even further due to the combined effect of the two products.
Vehicle E - with both wind breaker and unit MPG was 5.17 an increase in efficiency of 29%
Magno Flo
A Volkswagen LT46 was fitted with a Magno flo unit
From 1st January to 30th June without the unit 27.2 MPG
For the period from 1st July to 30th Oct with the unit 36.5 MPG
An increase in efficiency of 34%
Conclusion
The Magno Truck unit and the Magno Flo unit both have a positive effect on the fuel efficiency of the vehicles and therefore provides a considerable saving to the fuel costs for the council.
The council spend of fuel per year is £4.5million
The fleet consists of 250 HGV vehicles and approximately 1,500 cars and light commercial vehicles.
The average spend per month is £375,000, based on twenty-two working days per month, the savings would be £17,045.oo per day.
A 12% saving in fuel would save the council £540,000 per annum in fuel costs. This is the equivalent of £2,045.00 per day based on a five day week
The evidence of a higher fuel saving on the Volkswagen would increase the savings further
Editorial Published in Transport Engineering Feb, 2010
Tuesday, 23rd February 2010
Magnetic Fuel Intervention Trials in Detail
Contrary to received wisdom around fuel-saving interventions in general, and magnetic devices in particular, Carmarthen County Council is reporting remarkable success (Transport Engineer, Jan 2010, page 4)
This is worth exploring carefully, given the failure rate of so many trials to show statistically significant improvement.
Carmarthenshires trials, managed by fleet manager Andy Elkin, involved using Magno-flo and ran from January to June last year on 25 vehicles. Elkin cites Vauxhall Astra vans, Cireon Berlingo and Mercedes Sprinter 511 vans, Ford Transit 350 tippers and 280 panel vans, Vauxhall Vivaro panel vans, Dennis Eagle and Volvo refuse trucks and Mercedes Axors.
Looking first at the methodology, Elkin says the trial used mpg data direct from the councils own Triscan fuel management system (averaging to allow for driver issues, such as inaccurate odometer readings), compared against its monthly reports on vehicle and driver performance. He accepts similar vehicles could (and did) produce differing fuel performances - due to factors such as weather, type of route, terrain, driving and laods carried - but insists that the trials targeted vehicles used on the same routes and operated by the same drivers.
"All vehicles selected for the trials were fitted with the Magno-flo without the knowledge of the driver" explains Elkin, "In the case of one vehicle, a Dennis Eagle 26 tonne twin compaction refuse vehicle, we ran it with the unit for six weeks, took it off for anaother five weeks and then refitted it a second time. After the first six weeks, it showed a 12% improvement. That went back downhill when we took the unit off, and then rose again to 10.24% when we put it back again."
Interestingly, he also cites oil tests conducted by specialist, Motion, "Three 57 and 58 plate Dennis Egles were tested for total percent insolubles, and we found carbon build-up with the Magno-flo unit was half that of the vehicles without the unit."
Elkin concedes that Magnoflo- didn't work effectively on everything: "Astras and Berlingos were not brilliant at 0.5%." He beleives that one of the causes could be pressure through the pump, which "knocks out any effect the magnets can have on realigning the fuel molecules."
However, there is no denying his results on other vehicles - in particular Transit 350 tippers and Dennis Eagles. For the former, the trials showed a 10.01% gain, saving 103.5 litres per annum - meaning a payback of nine months on the unit's £65 for sub 7.5 tonners. For the Eagles, the figures were 10.32%, saving 1,485 litres and yielding a payback of just three and a half months against the units £355 cost for trucks.
International Timber Make Fuel Savings
Monday, 11th January 2010
International Timber at Grangemouth, have completed their successful fuel trials whereby they acheived a 14% fuel saving, as well as a large reduction in their emissions. Mr David Colvin, Fleet Manager, has ordered a further six vehicles to be fitted.
