Sorensen Systems Provides Oil Drilling Solution to Drilling Company in Cairo, Egypt

Mike Gardella, VP Engineering & Mfg
Sorensen Systems

The Qarun Petroleum Company Relied on Sorensen Systems to Fulfill Their Requirement to Pump Crude Oil from a Drill Site to a Storage Distribution Network.

Qarun Petroleum Company was required to pump the crude oil as part of their expansion of oil production in the deserts of Egypt. As part of their plan, they needed a new onshore eight by six inch telescopic pipeline, 27 miles long, to transport the oil from their Yomna Storage location to Karama Central Processing facilities in western Egypt.

Sorensen Systems designed, developed and manufactured four crude oil pumping stations needed to boost the oil through the pipelines by using an electric motor driven series of three pumps per oil station. Two of the pumps were required to meet the boost requirement and the third serves as a back-up during routine maintenance and unexpected downtime.

Each pump was a compact design allowing for reduced horse power electric motors. Mounting multiple pumps on a single platform increased the volume of the oil that can be transferred. The skids contained motorized screw pumps, lubrication systems, large diameter piping, electronic control cabinets and complete instrumentation.

Read more about this project or read about other featured projects at www.SorensenSystems.com.

Each completed skid was 40 feet long, which was determined as a design requirement to allow the completed pump assembly to fit perfectly into a standard dry-cargo shipping container

Fresh Water Now Flowing in Kingdom of Jordan Thanks to Sorensen Systems

Written by: Mike Gardella

VP Engineering & Manufacturing - Sorensen Systems

The capital city of Amman, Jordan, faced a crisis where 40 percent of its four million inhabitants only had running water from their taps one day a week. To address this critical shortage, the United States and the country of Jordan embarked on an ambitious development plan to convert the brackish water from three large “wadis” (streambeds) near the Dead Sea into fresh drinking water. The plan utilized reverse osmosis as part of a desalinization process to recover up to 85 percent of water put through its planned water treatment plant.

Power Units

Sorensen Systems was privileged to provide six complete hydraulic power operating systems, one each for six pumping stations in series, along the pipeline to lift the treated water from the desalination plant to the National Park Pump Station site in southern Amman. Today, approximately 700,000 people, about one third of the water distributed in the Greater Amman area receive water directly from this system. The project delivers 100,000 cubic meters of water each day to the city, a distance of 25 miles.

The power units designed and built for the project provide the system with a nominal 2,000 psi self-contained, pressurized hydraulic fluid system capable of simultaneously operating the valves at the specified speeds against the specified operating head requirements. In addition, the hydraulic fluid system was designed to automatically, simultaneously and immediately close the valves upon a loss of main electrical power or emergency shut down condition.

Reverse Osmosis

The project is referred to by names of the three “wadis” in the region, Ma’in, Zara Springs, and Mujib. The brackish water available from these streambeds will be subjected to a reverse osmosis (RO) desalination process, which is being increasingly used around the world as an efficient, reliable and cost-effective technology. The RO process uses the osmosis phenomenon, i.e., osmotic pressure difference between the saltwater and the pure water to remove salts from the water. To gain the effect required, there is a need for energy to operate the pumps that raise the pressure applied to feedwater. According to Mike Gardella, a 25 mile transmission pipeline conveys the potable water to Amman through six pumping stations with a total head of about 1,300 m.

An important part of the design requirement was providing the system with dual automatically alternating pumps. The pumps were arranged so that in the event of failure of one pump to generate its rated flow and pressure, the other pump will automatically start. The two pumps don’t run simultaneously. Another design specification called for all necessary controls, transformers, and components to cause the valves to perform the specified functions and operations, requiring only a single 400 volt, 3-Phase, 50 Hz electrical connection.

In addition to the needed potable water, the project had other benefits for the people of Amman. The project will reduce the over pumping of groundwater aquifers, to allow them to recover their full storage capacity as a reserve against future shortages. Also it will release water currently being pumped to Amman from other cities, in order to promote development in the outlying cities.

Partnerships Promote Both Effectiveness and Customer Satisfaction

Written by: Mike Gardella

VP Engineering & Manufacturing - Sorensen Systems


When a representative of a leading New England based aerospace company contacted us, an exciting new opportunity emerged that challenged the engineering and manufacturing capabilities of Sorensen Systems. The company was seeking a turn-key testing solution for qualifying the integrity of avionic pumps, which are used to provide cooling to vital electronic systems in high altitude aircraft. With a spike in orders for cooling systems and a robust forecast for future demand, the company had an immediate need to upgrade its pump testing systems to meet production goals. After meeting with the customer’s project engineers to discuss the overall requirements, it was determined the testing systems require specialized software to be programmed in the data acquisition equipment to the individual control system components that create the extreme environmental conditions. Recognizing the delivery time line, the need for specialized data acquisition, and electronic controls expertise we were pleased to work collaboratively with an established controls company with whom we had worked with successfully in the past.

1.  Creating a joint effort to reduce inefficiencies and delays: Partnering with a well-known instrument and testing controls manufacturer, Sorensen Systems helped design and build specialized testing equipment for a cooling pump installation destined for high altitude aircraft applications. In the critical aerospace engineering environment, especially with sophisticated components such as this, it is not sufficient to test sample batches of manufactured parts. Rather, every single part must receive a full test to certify its fitness for use in the aerospace application. The partnering company’s expertise of automated testing, data acquisition, and electronic control systems meshed seamlessly with our systems engineering, product component selection, fabrication/assembly and final testing capabilities. From the beginning, this was a true partnership, with “one face” to the customer. The aerospace pump manufacturer was pleased with the arrangement and with the degree of expertise that all parties brought to the table. As with most projects of this magnitude, there were a number of face to face meetings, which included the following: quote review, engineered system design, product verification, planned step by step test sequencing, purchase order placement, timeline delivery meetings, on site fabrication inspections, and final testing. With all three parties present at each event, all communications were direct so decisions could be made rapidly.

2.   Integrating two sums to equal a greater whole: The test stand included the controls company’s LabVIEW software and electronic data acquisition modules, which were integrated into a structural aluminum frame. Sorensen System engineers designed the pneumatic and fluid circuitry for the sophisticated system used to create the varying flight conditions. We selected the components, designed and fabricated the assembly, connected the fluid lines, and wire integrated the electronic components, to the data acquisition modules.

3.   Rigorous testing meets customer’s requirements: When the fabrication process was completed, final witness testing and acceptance was performed first at our facility in Northborough MA, and then again at the unit was retested on-site to the satisfaction of the pump manufacturer. The customer was delighted with the degree of thoroughness exhibited throughout the entire process from the first meeting through final on-site test acceptance.

4.   Customer satisfaction is always the goal: Most importantly, the customer’s satisfaction with design, fabrication, and the testing process was reinforced by the finished product’s successful results: the new test stand increased production by 25 percent, reinforced quality verification, and occupied 33 percent less floor space than the old method. In every way, the product created a positive impact on the customer’s bottom line. The validation for a job well done came when this customer relied on us for another challenging turn-key solution.

This project and others can be found on SorensenEngineered.com

Going Green with Hydraulic System Design

Written by: Mike Gardella

VP Engineering & Manufacturing - Sorensen Systems


In today’s conservation conscious environment there is an ongoing desire to be as efficient as possible when either upgrading or installing new hydraulic equipment.  The challenge is to balance the price of “going green” with the business objective of controlling project cost.  Although there are many technologies and design techniques available to reduce energy consumption, not all of them may make sense as they relate to a company’s overriding need to control cost.  THG Corporation has made great strides in offering its air utility customers the opportunity to take advantage of both reduced power consumption and rebate opportunities offered by power companies to help satisfy both these goals.  THG has now added this service to its hydraulic power system offering.

The Challenge: How to conduct a proper hydraulic system analysis/audit of your application and assure you of a cost-effective system design.

The Myth: A system sales person can make a quick “walk-through” and offer good advice.

The Requirement: To conduct a useful hydraulic audit the skills of a trained hydraulic system engineer are required. There are many technologies and potential rebate opportunities available and it takes both skill and experience to strike the right balance between cost and system features.  In an actual case in point, THG was presented the opportunity to quote a new project requiring substantial flow and pressure requirements.  The overall system operating parameters were as follows:

• Average horse power requirement for the
  system was 500 horse power

• Peak horse power required for short
  durations was 1,000 horse power

Engineering analysis revealed several potential design paths.  Excluding the brute force approach of providing five 200 horse power motors and conducting a “root mean squared” calculation to optimize motor size, the following paths, with their associated implementation cost and power consumption, were determined:

Factoring in potential power company rebates resulted in the following:

The final numbers showed that the 100 horse power option with VFD drives resulted in the best combination of lower operation cost and return on investment.  This is especially significant given the fact that the power company rebate for the 100 horse power VFD option nearly matched the differential of providing a 200 horse power system with soft starters.  Finally, it is also important to note that although the accumulator option clearly resulted in a lower yearly cost savings, the peculiarities of the rebate program resulted in this option qualifying for no rebate. This emphasizes that, not only is a solid background in hydraulic design a perquisite for success in this market approach, an in depth understanding of power rebate program(s) is also required.

THG Offering:  At THG we have the trained personnel, the right equipment and appropriate industry experience to conduct a thorough design analysis or an on-site audit of your system. We will examine supply, demand, distribution and control and provide the roadmap from which you can plot your best course of action.

THG Corporation is the parent company of The Hope Group, Sorensen Systems, and Hope Air Systems. Read more about us at www.THGCorporation.com.

Variety is the Spice of Success

Written by: Mike Gardella

VP Engineering & Manufacturing - Sorensen Systems

In the past several years I have been involved with a wide variety of projects
such as:

1)      Driving a 10 ton piston at 4000 gallons a minute and 5000 psi for an energy storage system

2)      Controlling the position of 48 inch bore-cylinder to ± 3 µ

3)      Designing and developing rack and pinion system driven by hydraulics in an 800°F environment

4)      Designing and developing a motor yacht GPS positioning system

5)      Providing engineering services for a client to supply an oil pumping system in Venezuela

6)      Nitrogen generators

When I look at that list, I have to admit I didn’t know that’s where a lot of my effort would be spent. Ten years ago the primary business in New England hydraulics was machine tool, injection molding, paper mills, and heavy industry. Today those industries no longer exist nearly to the extent they once did.

Today, we are focusing on marine/mobile, military/homeland security, life sciences, power generation, and alternate energy. These customers require a whole new level of engineering and technical support for us – and them - to be successful.

Over the years Sorensen Systems has had to adapt to changing industries both in New England and abroad. The key to adapting to these changes is to ensure you have a strong engineering staff that’s capable of thinking outside the box and willing to take on new and varying projects. The first reaction out of an engineer upon receiving a project that’s never been done before should be one of excitement and a drive to figure it out. I’m convinced that’s the attitude we have developed here.

Many companies segregate their engineering staff into specialized fields, for example, structures, controls, fluids, etc. Sorensen System’s key attribute in selecting engineers is flexibility. Regardless of whether we’re hiring a hydraulic project engineer or a controls engineer, that person will eventually be cross-trained to perform all aspects of a project. This goes against the practice of what is typically followed by engineering companies. But by cross-training our engineering staff the project engineer obtains the ability to see the whole picture of a project and how best to integrate all aspects of a project to meet the customer’s requirements. This also allows the project engineer to be a single point of contact for the customer, allowing him or her to support that customer with any issue or question they might have.

Admittedly this requires a much bigger investment in personnel training to bring the project engineer to this level. But once that level of training is achieved it makes the investment worth it by allowing Sorensen Systems to seamlessly service its customers in a wide variety of projects. I believe that variety, as in the spice of life, is also the spice of successful engineering.

'Micro Hydro' Can Be Real Big for Consumers

Written by: Riccardo Ricci
Project Manager - Sorensen Systems

Don’t let the word “micro” fool you. In the world of modern power generation, micro is a big word. More and more opportunities are arising for government, industry and even individual homeowners to enter the world of “Micro Hydro.”

Recently, we completed an installation of a micro hydro plant for the MWRA at its Loring Road facility in Weston, MA. The storage facility there is part of the massive reservoir and distribution system that brings water from the Quabbin and Wachusett reservoirs to Boston and other eastern Massachusetts communities. The plant that we installed was designed to take advantage of potential energy that already existed but was not being tapped.

As water flows as a result of gravity from west to east, there is a need to reduce the pressure. A series of pressure reducing valves handles that assignment. But, it was determined that instead of just reducing the water pressure, it could be proactively used to spin a turbine and thus create electricity as a by-product of its energy.

This plant will generate 1.2 million kWh per year, which will power the storage facility and create enough excess electricity that it can be sold back to the public utility. That’s great for the environment, and especially great for the taxpayer. The consumer gets an efficient source of electricity through use of a renewable energy source (water) and then gets to pay less for electricity because the same water creates its own electric power. There’s nothing “micro’ about that. That’s what I call real big for consumers.

You can read more about the Hydroelectric Plant we designed and built for the MWRA on our website. In future blog reports I will tell you about other projects we have completed.

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Energy Policy Tied to Electricity

Written by: Mike Gardella
Engineering Manager - Sorensen Systems


A recent article on the US Dept. of Energy website discussed the importance of electricity to the economic and environmental future of the United States. With more than 50 percent of the electricity in the country coming from coal-fired power plants, it’s hard to imagine that this fuel will soon be discarded. The low cost of coal right now is what keeps it at the forefront of energy policy questions. No one wants to pay too much for electricity.

There are several ways to go here, such as removing some of the environmental objections to the use of coal in current or future power plants. If new technologies are successful in eliminating sulfur, nitrogen and mercury pollutants released when coal is burned, there may be hope to keep it as a continuing participant in the fossil fuel energy world. Further research is underway to increase coal-plant efficiencies and it is predicted that it could double in efficiency in the next 10-15 years. If that’s true, again the future for coal looks brighter.

Even though coal is king right now, natural gas is the fastest growing source of fuel for thermal power plants. As much as 90 percent of future power plant construction in the planning and discussion stage is based on the use of natural gas. Even the so-called “distributed power generators”, which are mini-power plants are destined to be powered by natural gas. The gas-fired turbines in today’s modern power plant is what most of the future looks like, particularly for regions such as New England.

And finally, there is a role to play for new technologies for storage of energy and transmission of energy that will contribute to energy efficiency of the electric industry. Whether its superconducting materials or compressed air storage, there are technologies about to be released that will have a positive impact on your electric rates.

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