Leighton O’Brien expands into Japanese market

Showa Kiki Kogyo helps Japanese service stations continuously monitor for fuel leaks using Leighton O’Brien’s SIRA

Showa Kiki Kogyo, a leading Japanese supplier and manufacturer of equipment for service stations, has obtained accreditation from the Japan Association for Safety of Hazardous Materials to use the Statistical Inventory Reconciliation Analysis (SIRA) solution developed by Leighton O’Brien as a continuous leak detection method for UST and underground piping in Japan. Showa Kiki Kogyo’s newly accredited offering helps protect Japanese service stations from potentially disastrous environmental hazards such as soil or ground water contamination and associated clean-up costs by using SIRA to ensure fewer fuel leaks go undetected.

The collaboration between Showa Kiki Kogyo and Leighton O’Brien commenced several years ago with both organisations following their vision of partnering to deliver innovative technology to assist Japanese petroleum companies reduce risk and drive greater cost savings and operational efficiencies. “This is a great example of how Australian technology can add value to Japanese businesses. I commend Leighton O’Brien for persevering to succeed in this sophisticated market,” said Leonie Muldoon, Senior Trade Commissioner of Austrade Japan.

80 percent of all leak incidents in USTs are a result of corrosion from underground piping rather than the tank itself. SIRA is a comprehensive and effective management tool which helps reduce the risk and cost of managing tank systems by detecting leaks not only from USTs, but also from fill piping, suction piping and dispensers. It can also detect water ingress, fuel theft and over dispensing in a timely manner. SIRA can monitor an individual tank system but also be used as an integral administrative tool to manage an entire network of tanks, empowering customers to proactively identify and address problems in their network in a timely manner.

“The cost savings that can be realised through proactive and early detection of fuel loss using SIRA are significant. If a dispenser with a sales volume of 100kL per month is over dispensing one percent, a 1kL fuel loss will occur per month,” said Showa Kiki Kogyo President Mr Shinsuke Maeshiba. “By managing inventories continuously with highly reliable analysis and detailed reporting provided by SIRA, over-dispensing, theft and/or leaks from a tank system can be detected early and large damage expenses associated with accumulated losses can be avoided.”

Showa Kiki Kogyo’s SIRA service includes daily recording of inventory data (delivery, sales, and inventory) of underground tanks storing hazardous materials and transmission of the data via Internet to Leighton O’Brien for comprehensive statistical analysis and reporting. The results of analysis will be issued regularly to each service station via Showa Kiki Kogyo and if an anomaly is detected, Showa Kiki Kogyo will initiate a loss investigation in a timely manner. In addition, Showa Kiki Kogyo, who is the number one supplier of high precision automatic tank gauges in the Japanese market, has combined the SIRA solution with its high precision ATG technology. This proprietary cutting edge technology enables an even more reliable result by double-checking for leaks, offering Japanese customers security and peace of mind for years to come.

“Showa Kiki Kogyo’s solution incorporates our industry-leading wetstock management algorithms which have been used by major oil companies around the world, including BP, Caltex, Chevron, Engen, 7-11 and Sheetz,” said Reed Leighton, CEO, Leighton O’Brien. “It is particularly effective for helping meet regulatory compliance requirements and we are excited about bringing this service to the Japanese market in collaboration with Showa Kiki Kogyo,” continued Mr Leighton.

“Service stations using SIRA can dispense with legal inspections, such as monthly inspections of UST and piping and the pressurizing test mandated every three years,” added Mr Maeshiba. “The solution is of particular value for service stations operating 24/7, that would previously have to stop their businesses for regulatory inspections.”

 About Showa Kiki Kogyo

Showa Kiki Kogyo (SKK) was established in 1961 as a specialist manufacturer of measurement control equipment and measurement management systems. It holds the top share of the Japanese market for high precision automatic tank gauges, which are accredited by the governing authority, Japan Fire and Disaster Management Agency. SKK is a trusted and long-standing technology partner for Japanese oil majors including the top ranked JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corporation. Its network of sales offices provides technology not only to service stations across Japan, but also to government agencies and offices and the automobile and electronics industries. SKK is also actively developing environmental protection devices such as fuel leakage detection and fuel vapour recovery devices.