Den Hartogh and Gardner Denver ready for the technical future

Den Hartogh and Gardner Denver has worked in partnership for more than thirty years, currently and over many decades we have together developed many technologies and systems for the loading and unloading of road tankers and tank containers.

Vehicles have become more efficient with lower CO2 emissions, container chassis have improved and unloading equipment such as pumps, compressors, and hydraulics have also become more efficient, environmentally friendly and safer. In order to further improve the skillsets of the Den Hartogh employees, not limited to drivers, Gardner Denver and Den Hartogh has developed and designed a number of “training discharge packages” for use in Den Hartogh training institutes.

The Den Hartogh Training Institute plays a significant role in educating and training drivers, but also in securing and sharing knowledge and experience acquired in the field of training so that this knowledge is retained in the organisation and disseminated to more employees within the Den Hartogh organisation globally.

The training units built and assembled in one of Gardner Denver’s workshops in the Netherlands are equipped with all of the unloading equipment Den Hartogh uses in day to day business. This ensures that when the drivers are being trained Den Hartogh is able to simulate practically all situations a driver could experience during his loading or unloading activities when operating a pump and/or compressor and/or hydraulic drive system. The three training units which are operational at Den Hartogh are used at various locations across Europe  whereby the design of the training set enables Den Hartogh to use it in any location required for training purposes. The training is therefore also used in a number of locations where both own and 3rd party suppliers are trained..

The Pan-European spread of Gardner Denver’s sales and service network with own workshops ensures that the  training units can always be serviced locally without the need of them having to be returned to The Netherlands which ensures maximum flexibility for Den Hartogh.   

The training units are equipped with unloading equipment including a stainless steel Gardner Denver STP rotary lobe pump. The STP pumps are able to load and unload chemicals like solvents, additives, resins and many other products which are transported by Den Hartogh. 

Additionally the Gardner Denver STP pump can be supplied in various configurations which allow the pump to be used in the liquid food sector for loading and unloading high viscous media like for example glucose and chocolate. 

The Den Hartogh pump system is equipped with two butterfly valves on both the pressure and suction line. With this configuration it is possible to simulate various different unloading circumstances at different pressures in order that the operator/driver learns how to respond in changing discharge conditions. Ultimately this simulation/training package can improve the control and safety of the unloading procedure.

The training units are also equipped with an oil free Gardner Denver GD150 compressor which is usually installed on Den Hartogh tractor units for unloading tank containers by compressed air. On the training units both the STP pump and GD150 compressor are hydraulically driven, generated by an electric/hydraulic power pack. The hydraulic drive system includes a Gardner Denver Hydrapack 3 oil cooler/control package which also includes hydraulic safety features.

The success of these training units is largely dependent on the skills of the training instructors. Therefore Den Hartogh uses local trainers in every location.. The principle here is ‘train the trainer’. Various trainers from different countries train the local drivers using the training set. After the various trainings the drivers are introduced to daily practice under supervision of the mentor drivers. By introducing this method, Den Hartogh is able to make sure the driver is well prepared and ready for his job.

These training units are excellent example of the close co-operation between Den Hartogh and Gardner Denver, it is also another example of Den Hartogh’s commitment to further improving the skills, knowledge and safety of their employees and by doing so, making sure everyone returns safely home after a day of hard work.