Adlington powers up with Himoinsa LPG units

21 September 2022

A housebuilding site and a solar farm installation are successfully using Himoinsa generators which run on LPG, hired from Adlington. The two projects are also showing the operational and economic benefits that the technology can bring. 

Earlier this year, Chorley-based Adlington (formerly known as Adlington Welding Supplies) became the first hire company in the UK to operate a variety of Himoinsa LPG powered generators, supplied by Himoinsa Power Solutions, initially comprising 40kVA and 70kVA units. The company has 20 more on order, meaning that it offers the largest fleet of generators of this kind in the UK. 

To quickly recap, Himoinsa announced its LPG generator range a few years ago comprising 30, 40, 70 and 110kVA models. The liquid gas powering them is usually contained in large certified tanks located in the base of the machines giving 47, 35, 26 and 15 hours of operation before they need to be changed over. 

To make operation simpler for longer-term applications, Himoinsa recently entered into a partnership arrangement with the liquid gas supplier Flogas (introduced by Adlington) to provide tailored solutions for temporary and permanent power generation requirements, together with regular liquid gas supplies from Flogas. 

LPG gives levels of CO2 and particulate matter that are lower than diesel, emissions are less than with HVO and the carbon footprint is 20 per cent lower than gas oil. The fuel is also less expensive than diesel. 

It was for these reasons that Gary Clements, Nigel Turner and Gareth Macdonald, directors of Adlington, were immediately impressed by the concept when it was announced. 

“We knew our customers would be seeking an alternative that was not just sound from an environmental point of view, but which was also straightforward to operate and manage,” Gary told me. 

“There are also concerns that alternatives like HVO are more expensive and might cause direct or indirect deforestation as land is cleared to grow the crops that produce it, which must affect its carbon footprint.”

“The removal of the red diesel rebate for construction users and the rise in fuel costs were also important issues and the situation has been aggravated by the supply disruptions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. 

“We bought two LPG machines from Himoinsa and they went on hire immediately. A 40kVA model was supplied to the housebuilding site and a 70kVA generator went to the solar farm. Both are using them to power welfare cabins and site accommodation.” 

At each site, the LPG is stored in a 2000-litre tank with the pipework installation and connections being undertaken by Flogas. Adlington has also supplied the generators with a battery storage bank as part of the system for optimum operation. 

“Our customers are delighted,” said Gary. “They have a site solution that ticks all the environmental boxes, saves them money and the fuel is managed in a similar way to traditional diesel site setups. 

Flogas fills up the tank as required. A monitoring device on them automatically sends an order request and the machines are also monitored by Adlington’s telemetry service. This makes the management process similar to that of running a diesel-fuelled installation. 

Nigel Turner says that at one site the generator has only required eight fill-ups during the three months in which it has been running because of the efficiencies delivered by using the backup battery. It means that the generator runs only when necessary for peak loadings or to recharge. 

“Both our clients are saving considerably by using LPG instead of white diesel. We calculate so far that LPG is just 10 per cent more expensive than running a Stage IIIa diesel machine and is obviously considerably less than using a Stage V diesel unit. 

“Another plus is that there is no AdBlue tank to keep topped up or DPF (diesel particulate filter) to regenerate, which again keeps it simple for the operator,” said Nigel. 

For confined spaces where a piped liquid gas installation would be impractical, or for hire applications of short duration like a weekend event, the generators could be run off the internal canisters or external stillages with multiple gas bottles. 

Adlington, which is currently celebrating its fiftieth anniversary, will promote the concept at the London Build Expo at Olympia on November 16 and 17. 

The company also has 20 more Himoinsa LPG machines scheduled for delivery imminently and plans to invest further in the fleet in 2023.