[Sponsored Report] Hyundai Oilbank’s new mobile lab hits the road

Hyundai Oilbank has developed a mobile lab to help gas stations check the quality of their petroleum products. [HYUNDAI OILBANK]

Petroleum quality control at gas stations is more difficult than you might think.

As petroleum products are stored in a liquid state, it is difficult for them to be visually inspected, except for by color. As the winter approaches, gas stations are put on emergency alert. Refineries produce winter petroleum products separately because of Korea’s cold climate — if petroleum products produced in the summer are sold in the winter, they will likely freeze and stop working.

In order to accurately inspect the quality of petroleum products, various kinds of inspection equipment is used. Gas stations have to take into account the octane number, viscosity and flash point of the petroleum products that they are selling.

The process isn’t cheap, with equipment costs easily running into the tens of millions of won. This burden is especially difficult to shoulder this year as gas stations are struggling with rising oil prices and an oversaturated market.

In order to ensure that the quality of quality control doesn’t take a hit, government agencies and refineries need to take the lead. However, the quality inspection of the Korea Petroleum Authority and refineries currently in operation is not sufficient to meet the expectations of gas station operators.

To solve these problems, Hyundai Oilbank has developed a mobile lab with a total of nine petroleum product analysis devices. The mobile lab, which is a modified one-ton truck, is loaded with quality control experts to collect samples at gas stations and analyze the products. The test results are made available to the operator of the gas station within 30 minutes.

Quality control experts consult with the gas station operators to check quality management activities and suggest ways to mitigate risks. They also provide the latest information on petroleum product quality regulations, such as the Petroleum Business Act and the Measures Act.

Hyundai Oilbank is creating a new paradigm for mutual benefit by enhancing the satisfaction of gas station operators with innovative quality control through mobile labs.

“Operators are satisfied with the immediate result,” said a Hyundai Oilbank official. “We plan to expand the mobile lab service to three times a year at all Hyundai Oilbank gas stations.”

By Kim Ha-eun [kim.haeun@joongang.co.kr]