Hycomp Performance Under Pressure™

Worry-Free Factory Startup Two key questions often come up during a capital equipment purchase. “How many other unforeseen expenses are there going to be?” and “How long will it take to be up and running?”

Hycomp Factory Startup eliminates these concerns and includes: an additional six months manufacturer warranty, efficient and worry-free startup, assurance that proper installation guidelines were followed and system training for end user technicians.

When Hycomp Factory Startup is purchased, you have our commitment that an experienced Hycomp technician will: a) Guide you through a correct installation process. b) Be on-site to perform a pre-start inspection and factory startup procedure, which includes: dynamic control checks, application tuning, and scope of supply validation.

Larry Smith, Plant Electrical Engineer at Gerdau Ameristeel commented recently on the help he received from Todd McGregor, Hycomp Service Manager, during a Hycomp Factory Startup. “Todd explained all the ins and outs of our Hycomp compressor to me and our technicians: from why the oil pressure starts out low, to how to drain the water out of the system to extend compressor life. His advice went beyond what we would regularly expect and this has made our system even more reliable.”

McGregor explained the three most common installation mistakes that he has seen when he goes out to provide Hycomp Factory Startup:

1. Foundation Construction. Reading and following the Hycomp Installation & Operation Manual, may seem like a simple task, but sometimes it’s the details of simple things that are overlooked. Reciprocating compressors can produce mild to moderate vibration. If improperly mounted to a foundation or if an improper foundation is used, problems can occur during operation. Hycomp technicians work closely with all of our factory startup clients to be sure that they have the best advice and we make ourselves available to answer any questions or problems they may have.

2. Lack of Inlet Cleanliness and Filtration. “It is very common to have debris issues if you have a lot of welded or even threaded piping in front of your compressor without proper filtration,” said McGregor.

3. Maintenance Access. When maintenance is needed, access to the compressor is essential. For example: hoists are necessary to remove the cylinder heads of our larger sized compressors and if adequate access has not been provided then future maintenance is more difficult. Hycomp works with all of our factory startup clients to ensure that the Installation & Operation instructions are understood and utilized.

Once your compressor is up and running as designed, Hycomp continues to provide tech support at no additional charge. We want you to feel like you can call Hycomp directly with any questions you may have. Anytime.

Commenting on technical support calls, McGregor said, “Our customers can call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week and 365 days a year. We will do our best to get them the answers they need so their Hycomp equipment is operating in a correct manner.”

Larry Smith, of Gerdau Ameristeel, commented further on the support he received from Hycomp after startup. “Most people are willing to help a customer until they get paid, then their interest to help tapers off. I have been in contact with Todd McGregor since the factory startup via email and over the phone and he has been very willing to provide additional technical support and advice.”

At Hycomp, our ability to respond to customer questions and concerns is very important to us. We want our customers to be satisfied with our product and our organization. We also have great distributors to help trouble-shoot and provide constant local support and we use all of these resources to effectively serve our distributors and customers.

Factory Testing At our Hycomp factory in Northern Utah, we test every compressor we manufacture to ensure that it performs as designed. Each compressor is tested for a minimum of four hours under application simulated conditions to ensure that the compressor startup is safe and reliable.

After successful completion of testing a Hycomp Performance Certificate is prepared by our Quality Department and shipped with the compressor. This documents that the compressor has met our stringent performance and quality standards, while listing out several of the key test parameters and requirements such as: gas being compressed, inlet and discharge pressures/temperatures, and flow.

Our testing involves actual run time. During the first two hours of testing, known as “the break-in period,” the compressor is run at a reduced load. This allows the piston rings to seat themselves against the cylinder walls and the rod gas packings to wear to an exact fit with the rod. The compressor is then brought up to the maximum design condition for two or more hours of run time.

To verify performance with end user requirements, each compressor is monitored by a data logger for the entire testing process. The data logger records measurements such as: inlet/interstage/discharge temp & pressure, flow rate, coolant temp, motor amp draw and oil pressure. System control functions of the compressor are also tested to ensure proper function and system response.

Hycomp Awarded Petrofac Contract Hycomp, Inc. has been awarded a compressor design, build, installation and service contract by Petrofac International LTD. Petrofac is one of the largest design, build and investment companies for oil & gas production projects in the Middle East with annual revenues of $3.3

Billion (USD) and a backlog approaching $8 Billion (USD). Hycomp will be supplying Petrofac, the primary contractor for the El Merk Central Processing Facility (CPF), with a nitrogen gas compressor system that will be used for fire suppression.

This Hycomp nitrogen gas compressor system will be boosting 80 psig of nitrogen up to 565 psig then delivering it into a nitrogen storage vessel. The high pressure nitrogen will then be discharged to the Hot Oil Fired Heater snuffing application in the event of a fire. Hycomp is also providing Petrofac with engineering services prior to installation and onsite technical support/services after installation.

Due to the severe weather conditions of the Algerian Sahara Desert, Hycomp is providing a 3-stage air cooled gas compressor specifically engineered to handle the sandy desert conditions and extreme temperatures of -5˚ to 60˚ Celsius (23˚ to 140˚ F). Coupled with these tough environmental conditions, the Hycomp Compressor must also meet ATEX certification and have explosion proof system packaging.

The El Merk CPF will be operated by Sonatrach and Anadarko on behalf of the El Merk partners: Sonatrach, Anadarko, Maersk Oil, Eni, ConocoPhillips and Talisman (Algeria) BV. The El Merk CPF is located in the 208 block of the Berkine Basin of Algeria (see image above), approximately 550 miles South East of Algiers, Algeria. Oil and gas from this development will be primarily exported to European markets.

Petrofac’s decision to utilize Hycomp for this large scale oil and gas project continues to solidify Hycomp as a leader in engineered solutions for oil free compressors. Hycomp is making a strong push in the oil & gas industry and proving very successful where safety and reliability are paramount.

Commenting on the award, Robert James, President and CEO of Hycomp Inc. said, “Petrofac is extremely careful with whom they do business. To be considered for this project we submitted to an extensive 3rd party audit of our quality management system. The fact that we were awarded the Petrofac project is a testament not only to the quality of our actual product, but to the quality and engineering processes that we have in place.”

What’s New On The Hycomp Website At Hycomp, we are pressing forward in the areas of distributor communication and engineering involvement, while keeping up our commitment to quality, reliability and safety. At Hycomp, we are pressing forward in the areas of distributor communication and engineering involvement, while keeping up our commitment to quality, reliability and safety. As such, our website has grown, meaning: we have some new pages and more new content than ever before.

So, visit hycompusa.com often as new content is continuously being added. We have added three new pages: Engineer To Engineer, Newsletter and Question & Answer. These new additions to our website offer interesting information about our approach to compressor manufacturing.

Engineer To Engineer
The Engineer to Engineer or “E2E” page explains the selling approach that has been proven to work best for our engineered solutions. The E2E Concept is: Hycomp engineers working directly with distributors and the end user’s engineers to provide the exact solution each application requires.

Newsletter
2010 marked the launch of our monthly Hycomp Newsletter Performance Under Pressure. As stated in the first issue (January 2010) these newsletters have been designed with our distributors and their clients in mind. We plan to utilize this monthly publication to inform and inspire.

Question & Answer
This new page is meant to give our distributors, OEMs and clients the information they want and need. If you would like to know more on a specific topic or product, need engineering advice or anything related to our company, please send us an email at: support@hycompusa.com and we will cover that subject on our website in the Question & Answer section and possibly in a future issue of the Hycomp Newsletter Performance under Pressure.

Literature
Near the end of 2009 we published a complete new series of Hycomp literature. We have created three new product brochures: Oil Free Air Compressors, Oil Free Air Boosters and Oil Free Gas Compressors. We have spent a great deal of time on these brochures to ensure that they are extremely useful and informative.

We have also added two new application specific cut sheets to the literature page: Water System Oil Free Air Compressors and PET Bottle Blowing Oil Free Air Boosters. We will be adding more cut sheets in the future and we would like to know if you have any ideas for an application specific cut sheet that you would find useful as a distributor or end user.

The Hycomp technical literature has also been completely updated. Hycomp is an engineering solutions provider and as such our technical literature is intended to provide detailed technical information to guide discussions and decisions about applications, options, and performance.

One very important addition to our literature page is the Hycomp Application Worksheet. This tool will prove very helpful to Hycomp distributors, as it pin points the exact information we need to know to quote a job. This electronic form can be filled out on your computer or printed out and completed manually.

Thank you for visiting hycompusa.com. Come back often to see what’s new. We invite you to experience the Hycomp difference.

Now that 2009 is in the rear-view-mirror, I thought I would share a few 2009 Hycomp achievements with our valued Distributors, Dealers, and other industry friends.

First off, we are very proud to announce that in the midst of a hard-hitting recession and a very difficult climate for capital equipment expenditures, our revenues grew for a fifth straight year. We give a lot of credit to our valued Distributors, Dealers, end users and employees for their great efforts.

During the course of the year, we had our share of difficulties as some of our key customers saw their businesses struggle. This gave us the opportunity to re-calibrate our Distributor/Dealer Network and to further diversify our business across more industries and applications. We developed completely new Distributor Literature Kits and Distributor Training Programs, which are already proving to be very valuable tools in capturing the situations that require our unique and individualized solutions.

Internally we focused on production efficiency and quality. Through stricter control on our manufacturing floor, we reduced our internal cost of goods, allowing us to keep our prices level during the wildly fluctuating raw materials markets of the past few years. I am also very proud that we improved our delivery performance by 4%, reducing lead-times to your customers.

As our quality department continues to grow, our overall warranty levels continue drop. Our total warranty claims were a record low 0.17% of total sales, meaning for every thousand dollars sold, we had less than two dollars in warranty costs. I can think of no better testimony to the craftsmanship of our employees than this.

We enter 2010 poised to have another record year. Organizationally, we are now better structured to support our Distributors and Dealers. We are already well ahead of pace to have a record month in January and we consider our outlook for this year to be very positive, despite the tough economic conditions that still prevail.

Thank you again for your diligent efforts and continued support of Hycomp. We look forward to working with you in 2010, and I personally wish you success in the coming year.

Robert James
President and CEO
Hycomp, Inc.

Hycomp Runs For Glory? The 188 Mile 2009 Ragnar Wasatch Back Relay

Click on image to enlarge.

So what do you get when you load two large vehicles with 2 drivers, 12 runners, and collectively run 188 miles (302.6 km) on next to no sleep? Two vans full of stinky, zombie-like crazy relay runners who are having an amazing time!

The Wasatch Back Relay Race follows a rigorous mountain course from Logan to Park City, Utah. The Hycomp “Performance Under Pressure” team managed to finish it all while dealing with less than two hours of sleep, rashes, blisters, dehydration, cramps and even a bum knee. This is the fifth year of the race, but only the first year that Hycomp has participated as a team. Twelve runners each run 3 legs that vary between 3 and 10 miles, passing a wrist baton to the next, while the other runners drive to the next exchange point in a van and wait.

Averaging just under a 6mph pace, the team finished in an unofficial time of 31:13:45. While not winning any awards, this places them at a respectable 305th out of 438 coed teams. While a total of 650 teams started the race, making it a race of 7,800 runners, only about 600 teams actually finished the grueling 187.9 mile run.

Everyone had a good time, and each group of 6 certainly developed stronger bonds of respect and friendship. Several runners were unable to complete their legs, but supportive teammates substituted for them before or after running their own legs. Many who participated have already agreed to run again next year – even some that initially said ‘no way’, but for whom the draw was too great and have since expressed a desire to do it again!

Click on following images to enlarge.

Team “Performance Under Pressure” Runners:

Hycomp’s Newest Piece Of Equipment: The ROMER INFINITE 2.0 Portable CMM

Click on image to enlarge.

The ROMER INFINITE 2.0 Portable Coordinate Measuring Machine (CMM) is Hycomp’s newest equipment addition. The Romer CMM has six joints of fully articulated movement to track and record measurements. This translates to an even higher level of Hycomp quality for our customers.

The flexibility and unlimited movement of the Romer combined with the integrated software and its portability makes this CMM accurate and efficient for quality inspection. Hycomp’s new Romer came equipped with multiple probe selections. An extended probe allows us to reach parts that may have been impossible to measure through previous conventional means.

“The Romer allows us to measure complex parts in a greatly simplified manner. Measurements that were often time consuming and difficult, are now fast and easy,” said Greg Steele, Quality Inspector. Steele, a new addition to Hycomp, has been working with CMM equipment for over three years and was excited to start using the new machine.

Quality inspection efficiency has dramatically increased with the ROMER INFINITE 2.0 CMM. For example: a cylinder head casting would usually take about 30 minutes for a single inspection using traditional equipment such as: calipers, a bore gauge and a height gauge. However, after just 20 minutes of programming, every subsequent cylinder head casting will only take 5 minutes. From a 30 minute process to only 5 minutes, there is really no comparison.

Click here for the journal article “Hycomp Takes Quality Personal and Mobile“

24th Annual AICD Meeting Association of Independent Compressor Distributors Santa Fe, New Mexico Hilton Buffalo Thunder Resort & Spa May 17-19, 2009

Ken Schiefer & Matt Logan will be representing Hycomp Inc. at the 2009 AICD meeting located in Santa Fe, New Mexico. “I thoroughly enjoy meeting with dealers face to face. Getting to know our dealers personally and understanding their needs allows me to help them solve their customer’s problems,” said Schiefer.

Hycomp specializes in oil free compression. Our engineers design oil free air compressors, air boosters and gas compressors to fit each application’s specific demands. Ken & Matt will demonstrate for dealers how they can blend Hycomp compressors into what they already offer their clients. This is great news for our dealers, because Hycomp products do not compete with the products they already sell, we simply provide dealers with more solutions to offer their customers. Hycomp Inc. can provide excellent solutions for the following situations:

• When you need compressed air above 150 psig - Hycomp Oil Free Air Compressors
• When plant air pressure is not enough - Hycomp Oil Free Air Boosters
• When you need to compress any gas other than air - Hycomp Oil Free Gas Compressors

To sell Hycomp, a dealer simply needs to find one of these three “Hycomp Situations” and then Call Hycomp. We work closely with our dealers to ensure customer satisfaction. Hycomp stands by its dealers with free continual technical support and service.

We hope to see you at the 2009 AICD meeting in beautiful Santa Fe, New Mexico!

“Every person we spoke to at the AICD meeting wanted to learn more about our Hycomp oil free compressors and boosters… and they all committed to our dealer training, that’s a 100% hit rate! The country’s current economic state is motivating sales people to hone their skills and sharpen their talents,” said Ken Schiefer, Dealer Sales Manager.

Schiefer reports that the companies Hycomp has already shared their dealer training presentation with were glad to learn how they could better serve their clients and increase their sales with Hycomp. Dealer training face to face or shorter internet webinars teach dealers where Hycomp fits into what they already sell without taking the place of their existing product lines. “Through an informative presentation, any dealer can learn where Hycomp fits into their organization. Dealers will see how they can utilize our engineered solutions to answer client’s application problems,” said Schiefer.

Schiefer enjoyed the warm reception they received at the AICD meeting. “It feels like we are now part of AICD compressor family,” said Schiefer, “People recognized me from last year, and were happy to meet our marketing guy, Matt Logan. The 2009 AICD meeting was a complete success for Hycomp, and we had a great time in Santa Fe.”

Click here to set up a dealer training webinar with Ken Schiefer

30th Annual ICDA Meeting International Compressor Distributor Association Point Verde Beach, Florida Marriott Sawgrass Golf Resort & Spa April 26 – 29, 2009

Ken Schiefer will be representing Hycomp Inc. at the 2009 ICDA meeting located in Point Verde Beach, Florida. “I thoroughly enjoy meeting with dealers face to face. Getting to know our dealers personally and understanding their needs allows me to help them solve their customer’s problems,” said Schiefer. Hycomp specializes in oil free compression. Our engineers design oil free air compressors, air boosters and gas compressors to fit each application’s specific demands.

Ken will demonstrate for dealers how they can blend Hycomp compressors into what they already offer their clients. This is great news for our dealers, because Hycomp products do not compete with the products they already sell, we simply provide dealers with more solutions to offer their customers. Hycomp Inc. can provide excellent solutions for the following situations:

• When you need compressed air above 150 psig - Hycomp Oil Free Air Compressors
• When plant air pressure is not enough - Hycomp Oil Free Air Boosters
• When you need to compress any gas other than air - Hycomp Oil Free Gas Compressors

To sell Hycomp, a dealer simply needs to find one of these three “Hycomp Situations” and then Call Hycomp. We work closely with our dealers to ensure customer satisfaction. Hycomp stands by its dealers with free continual technical support and service.

We hope to see you at the 2009 ICDA meeting in sunny Florida!

The ICDA meeting was a success for Hycomp. Ken Schiefer met and talked with many dealers that were very interested to hear about Hycomp. In these times of economic turmoil every sales opportunity is crucial and sales people understand the importance of being able to provide multiple options for their clients. More options for clients means more sales opportunities for the dealer, rather than having to refer customers elsewhere.

“I experienced an 85% commitment rate for our dealer training. People are not only excited to learn more about Hycomp, they are seeing the value in it too… and not just in dollars, but in building client relationships of trust and dependability,” said Schiefer. “They want their customers to know that when they need a solution for an application, their dealer can provide that solution directly.”

Dealer training face to face or shorter internet webinars teach dealers where Hycomp fits into what they already sell without taking the place of their existing product lines. “Our niche in the compressor market may be smaller, but we do what we do very well,” said Schiefer.

Ken also enjoyed the new Hycomp tradeshow setup: an expandable fabric backdrop and sturdy podium/case. Many people made comments to Ken about how “slick” it looked, and when he walked into the tradeshow and set up his entire booth in about 5 minutes, other vendors took notice. “I received many compliments on our podium / backdrop and was cheered on by other vendors when I set it up quickly and without any help.”

Hycomp loved the ICDA meeting and needless to say, so did Ken. “We’ll see you there next year!”

Click here to set up a dealer training webinar with Ken Schiefer