McCrometer’s Startup Service: An Overview

Sometimes, a meter installation isn’t as straightforward as we’d like it to be. Many flow monitoring projects can start out simple and evolve to be very complex, especially when the meter is meant to solve a challenging measurement issue.

To prevent potentially time-consuming and frustrating delays and issues, McCrometer offers a startup service. So, what does this service include, and should you book this service for your next meter project?

Let’s review.

What the Flow Meter Startup Service Includes

McCrometer’s startup service typically includes installation assistance, troubleshooting, and onsite training. We use the word “typically” because each instance is unique and quite custom; the attention to each service component varies depending on complexity, the number of meters, and other application factors.

In past cases, the service has taken only a couple of hours, but in more multifaceted installations the complete service has required multiple days to perform. Unaccounted flow disturbances, electrically dense environments with complicated grounding issues, and restrictions not previously disclosed can all contribute to a complex startup service.

Opting for the Startup Service

This service is ideal for customers new to metering as well as those familiar with metering – the service ultimately benefits those eager for a seamless experience.

Anticipating the startup service right from the start allows optimal planning and coordination resulting in a concise and simple startup process.

The McCrometer Technical Support Experience

The McCrometer technical support team has historically performed startup services for the oil and gas, industrial, and municipal industries. It’s been popular with orders for the FPI Mag®, the V-Cone®, and our full-bore mags.

Customers installing a singular propeller meter often don’t opt for the startup service, as mechanical meters are installed with minimal technical components and easy troubleshooting due to the straightforward nature of the measurement technology. However, customers who find themselves faced with installing larger quantities of propeller meters have scheduled the startup service and enjoyed the benefit of having a McCrometer representative on-hand to address the need for repairs, installer training and supervision, customer training, and more. While startup service isn’t as common for propeller meters as it is for mag meters and V-Cone, the McCrometer team has performed countless installations for propeller meters and having a McCrometer representative on-site will prevent installation delays and expedite any necessary troubleshooting.

A member of McCrometer’s technical support department installing an FPI Mag in a challenging environment.

Many industrial, oil and gas, and municipal customers, in our experience, have a large group of engineers and operators involved in the planning of the flow project, and choose McCrometer as the manufacturer to install the meter and get the project up and running to optimize personnel resources and overall timeline.

In fact, there have been instances where a customer has completed the meter install themselves and called technical support after the fact; over the phone support is helpful, but there’s nothing as helpful as the startup service up-front to save time, money and effort.

The Hidden Benefit of the Startup Service

While the installation and arrangement of the meters and converters is the forefront of the setup service itself, it’s also the expertise of the technical support team that is extremely beneficial if and when complications arise.

In a customer’s recent flow project, the expertise of a McCrometer technical support associate was the factor that contributed to the successful meter install and setup. In this FPI Mag installation, the meter was installed to measure water being pulled from a nearby river to a plant for processing. The meter wasn’t reading correctly, a problem detected by the technical support representative when he noticed a junction tank and multiple pumps feeding into that inlet building. Three pipes going out, one coming in – this caveat wasn’t noted during the initial meter setup, and thus was the catalyst for the accuracy error. Although this issue was resolved and the meter was reading accurately thereafter, if the startup service was utilized from the start, McCrometer technical support would have understood the customer application better and factored the junction tank into the overall project. A flow meter isn’t simply a measurement device, it’s an effective tool part of a customer’s larger operation.

In a separate application, McCrometer technical support spent two weeks providing troubleshooting over the phone to assist a customer experiencing a lack of meter readings from their newly installed FPI Mag. When the conversation turned to video chatting and a tour of the application site, it was clear to the technical support representative what the issue was. The customer was pumping water from a lake nearby their facility in Hawaii, and banana leaves (considered debris in the line) were getting wrapped around the FPI sensor, preventing the meter from reading flow. The support staff’s expert understanding of McCrometer products allowed him to immediately diagnose the issue and make a recommendation to install a screen upstream of the meter in order to remove potential debris in the line. This was a simple problem that technical support could see right away but the customer didn’t, due to their daily operations.

McCrometer Technical Support, Globally

McCrometer technical support and certified channel partners are trained in providing the utmost quality service, globally. Our associates not only have abundant product knowledge, they also have extensive experience performing startup services for a multitude of customers in the oil and gas, industrial, and municipal markets. Their experience is to your benefit!

To learn more about McCrometer’s technical support services, take a look at our service brochure or receive a quote on your flow project.

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