Fueltek case study · Local authorities
Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council
A complete depot replacement built around control, visibility and resilience.
The Davyfield Road depot was operating ageing fuel infrastructure dating back more than three decades. Fueltek was selected to replace the storage and management arrangement while keeping disruption to normal council activity to a minimum.
Sector context image
Project approach
From operational problem to working system.
At Davyfield Road, the replacement brought separate diesel and gas-oil facilities into one managed arrangement while addressing ageing storage and control equipment.
Replace ageing infrastructure without disrupting the depot
- Older storage and management equipment had become difficult to support and the existing bunding required improvement.
- Diesel and gas oil were stored in separate areas, making mixed-fuel vehicle and plant movements less efficient.
- The council needed clearer accountability for authorised users, vehicle mileage and fuel usage.
Bring storage, dispensing and monitoring into one controlled system
- Removed the previous tanks and introduced a 60,000-litre dual-compartment storage arrangement: 50,000 litres for diesel and 10,000 litres for gas oil.
- Installed two FT4000 fuel management units with controlled Datatag access and mileage capture for diesel transactions.
- Added TankWatch monitoring and connected reporting so stock, deliveries and transactions could be reviewed more consistently.
Project in context
The brief, explained in more detail.
The project brought together the equipment and operating processes described below. Explore how the installation worked and the considerations for a similar system at your site.
Replace the infrastructure. Keep the depot working.
The council’s Davyfield Road depot needed to replace fuel infrastructure dating back more than three decades. Ageing equipment and bunding were part of the problem, but the existing layout also placed diesel and gas oil in separate areas. The replacement therefore had to address the way vehicles and plant moved through the depot as well as the condition of the equipment.
Fueltek introduced a 60,000-litre dual-compartment tank, with 50,000 litres for diesel and 10,000 litres for gas oil. Two FT4000 units provided managed access, with 169 authorised tags across the two products and mileage capture for diesel transactions. TankWatch added a separate view of the stored fuel.
Bringing the fuels into one managed location connected the physical replacement with a clearer information trail. Authorised dispensing records and tank information supported review of who used the fuel, which vehicle was involved and what remained in storage. The project had to achieve that change while limiting disruption to normal council activity.
System architecture
How the Fueltek layers worked together.
A fuel-management project normally has several distinct jobs to do: physically store or dispense product, decide who is allowed to use it, measure what is held in storage, and turn activity into information that managers can review. The cards below show the roles of the systems connected with this case study.
FT4000
Authorised dispensing and transaction control
The FT4000 is the control layer at the fuelling point. It can be used to authorise dispensing, associate a transaction with an approved user or vehicle and create a structured transaction record instead of leaving the pump as an isolated piece of equipment. Where the project configuration captures additional fields such as mileage or identification data, those details can sit alongside the quantity dispensed so later reporting has operational context.
Explore FT4000 →TankWatch
Independent tank-level and stock monitoring
TankWatch measures what is physically held in the storage tank using tank probes and a local control layer. That gives the operator information such as current stock, available capacity, deliveries, stock movements and throughputs. It complements pump transaction data because it answers a different question: the pump records what the system says was dispensed, while tank monitoring measures what is actually happening in storage.
Explore TankWatch →Fuel storage tanks
Bulk storage selected around the site requirement
The tank is the physical starting point of an onsite fuel system. Capacity, product type, compartment arrangement and installation layout should be selected around delivery frequency, peak demand, vehicle movements and the space available. In Fueltek case-study projects the storage element is often designed together with dispensing and monitoring so that the tank is not treated as a separate asset with no connection to the management system.
Explore Fuel storage tanks →Project workflow
A depot replacement with connected records.
The project combined replacement storage, controlled fuel dispensing and tank monitoring at Davyfield Road.
Replace the storage arrangement
The previous tanks were removed and a 60,000-litre dual-compartment tank introduced, with separate capacity for diesel and gas oil.
Control authorised fuel issue
Two FT4000 units provided controlled Datatag access, with 169 authorised tags across the two products.
Capture the diesel vehicle record
Mileage capture for diesel transactions helped connect the fuel issue with the vehicle information required by the council.
Add tank visibility
TankWatch added information about stored fuel and deliveries alongside the dispensing records.
Review the operation
The new arrangement gave the council a clearer record of who dispensed fuel, which vehicle was involved and what remained in storage.
Planning a similar project
What should be defined before specification.
The case-study equipment should not be copied blindly. A new installation needs to be sized and configured around the actual operation. These are the main questions We need to understand before choosing the appropriate hardware and software.
Fuel & storage
Which products are stored? What is the expected daily usage, peak usage, delivery frequency and reserve requirement? These answers influence tank capacity and whether multiple compartments are appropriate.
Vehicles & dispensing
Vehicle type, fill-point position, desired flow rate, hose reach and simultaneous fuelling demand determine the practical pump, hose and nozzle arrangement.
Access & accountability
Define whether authorisation should be tied to a driver, vehicle, department, contractor or another operational identity, and what information needs to be captured with each transaction.
Tank visibility
Decide what the site needs to know about physical stock: current level, ullage, deliveries, movement, alarms and how that information should be reconciled with pump transactions.
Reporting & users
Identify who needs reports, whether the organisation is single-site or multi-site, which managers need local or central access and what exceptions should be easy to investigate.
Installation & handover
Existing equipment, electrical and data connections, vehicle movements, groundwork, commissioning windows, staff training and any fixed go-live date all affect the delivery plan.
Apply the learning
What to take into your own project.
For a similar council depot, review the fuel layout and departmental reporting together. A replacement tank alone does not define how drivers, vehicles and plant will be identified, or how the resulting records will support resource management.
Read the project outcome →Case-study FAQ
Project detail and specification questions.
These answers separate the recorded facts of this case study from the decisions that would need to be made for a new installation.
What was the main issue this local authorities project needed to solve?
Replace ageing infrastructure without disrupting the depot. Older storage and management equipment had become difficult to support and the existing bunding required improvement. Diesel and gas oil were stored in separate areas, making mixed-fuel vehicle and plant movements less efficient.
Which Fueltek systems are connected with this case study?
This project brought together FT4000, TankWatch and Fuel storage tanks. Each system has a distinct role in fuel control, storage, monitoring or reporting.
Why use both pump records and tank monitoring where both are installed?
They measure different parts of the operation. Managed dispensing records the authorised transaction at the pump, while tank monitoring measures physical stock and movements in storage. Reviewing both gives the operator more context than either source on its own.
Would a new project use exactly the same specification?
Not automatically. A similar project should be specified around fuel type, storage capacity, peak dispensing demand, hose reach, user and vehicle access, communications, reporting requirements, installation constraints and any existing equipment that is suitable to retain.
What should be defined before a site survey or quotation?
Useful starting information includes the products to be stored, approximate daily and peak usage, current tank and pump details, vehicle types, required flow rate, number of users or vehicles, preferred access method, reporting expectations, communications available at the site and any installation or handover deadline.
Project outcome
What changed.
The new arrangement consolidated the two fuels into one managed location and created a clearer record of who dispensed fuel, which vehicle was involved and what remained in storage.
Relevant Fueltek systems
Explore the technology used.
Equipment is specified around the site, fuels, users, reporting requirements and existing infrastructure. The links below show the closest current Fueltek product areas connected with this project.
Plan your own system
Have a similar operational challenge?
Fueltek can review your tanks, pumps, vehicles, users, reporting requirements and existing equipment before recommending the most practical route forward.
Customer feedback
“As a local authority we have to be accountable”
Transport Manager, Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council
Customer feedback from this installation.
