South Fork Instruments

Measurement Instrumentation & Analyzer Solutions Established supplier of measurement instrumentation, analyzers, and control products serving the Americas. Our cross-industry experience gives us a unique ability to identify, develop, and implement innovative measurement solutions. Flow Measurement Solutions Process Analytics Level Measurement Solutions Foam Measurement Solutions South Fork Instruments delivers advanced industrial control, measurement, and process analytics solutions for manufacturing processes across the Americas. We collaborate closely with manufacturing and research groups, offering unmatched technical expertise to help them develop and implement strong process control strategies and maximize efficiency of critical measurements in their operations. Our commitment to providing reliable solutions and steadfast support sets us apart, ensuring customer confidence from inquiry to operation. WHAT PROBLEMS DO WE HELP SOLVE? For twenty years, our success has been built on cultivating lasting business relationships with customers. With deep industry expertise, we excel in creating, implementing, and defining measurement solutions designed to tackle real-world manufacturing challenges. Drawing from our extensive background in industrial processes, we select, engineer, and supply instrumentation and analyzer solutions incorporating proven technologies. Renowned for reliability and minimal maintenance, our state-of-the-art instrumentation products consistently yield high-value results, playing a key role in enhancing plant control and quality improvements. Recently, an Oil and Gas midstream operator contacted South Fork Instruments for assistance at a natural gas processing facility in a large oil and gas producing field in the USA.  The plant accepts raw natural gas from the field and separates methane from other products in the gas stream while also removing unwanted impurities.  The methane is exported to a natural gas pipeline for distribution to consumers around the country while other products (butane, propane, etc.) are compressed into natural gas liquid (NGL) for transport to a refiner. Contaminants transported within the NGL stream were of particular concern as the refiner has very specific specifications on the purity of the liquids it receives.  NGL not meeting these specifications requires further processing at significant cost by the refinery before final products can be produced.  Refiners recoup such costs by levying heavy fines on the raw gas processors feeding NGL into the pipeline. The gas processor approached South Fork to find a way to better measure the quality of the NGL being sent to the pipeline. Their goal was to avoid paying the refiner to cleaning up poor quality product by preventing off spec material from reaching the export pipeline.  The measurement of NGL quality is not a trivial task. NGL to specification is an almost totally nearly clear liquid, while offspec NGL is very slightly colored, a difference almost imperceptible to the naked eye.For a successful measurement, the analyzer used must be extremely stable.  South Fork Instruments worked with the client to engineer a turnkey solution—a highly sensitive and very stable photometric analyzer installed in an explosion-proof housing with fiber optic connections to an optical cell monitoring the NGL stream. This custom packaging solution met the client’s measurement and certification needs while allowing real time monitoring of the NGL purity 24/7, at a cost significantly lower than that of typical industry solutions. The system paid for itself the first time offspec material was detected.