LABrithms

For decades, Testing Labs have helped customers around the world with their testing needs. However, many of the testing companies merely provided testing without spending time on innovations that benefited the entire supply chain of fuels. As the world around us made massive strides in terms of data, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, very little of that progress actually went toward helping the efficiency of supplier customer operations.

Until now.

In 2020, when the marine world was dealing with the advent of newly formulated fuels, the biggest challenge was to understand the stability of fuels. In particular, there were 2 constraints:

• The existing model of stability at that time, was Total Sediment Potential or TSP. The issue was that TSP measured only instantaneous stability and moreover, the TSP test took 24 hours to get results from. Our R&D team, took select lab data, and the beauty of mathematics, to create an algorithmic based solution (or Labrithm), that gave our clients correlated TSPs in just 4 hours. Our customers were now able to dramatically reduce their testing times and make faster decisions. What used to take days, now only took hours, and we became to be known as the 4 Hour TSP team!

• The bigger challenge that suppliers faced was that these new fuels were blended with relatively newer and unknown feedstocks. As a result, the big concern for our customers was not knowing how long the fuels, that they had blended, stayed stable until the fuels failed. Expensive claims and unhappy customers were not something they wanted to deal with. With most commercial contracts written for a 30 day window, it was critical that these fuels stayed stable for at least 30 days, if not more. Our V-TIC team, worked with our customers, and as we created hundreds of blends, we realized that there was a way to use Labrithms again and come up with a solution to determine long term stability of fuels, which in essence is the shelf life of these fuels. Labs did not know how to handle this. They asked the fuel suppliers to keep sending them samples at different time points. It often took labs 30 days of testing to realize if a fuel was stable or not. With our latest Long Term Stability Labrithm, we were able to give the results in just three to four days. Our team changed the game again and V-TIC’s customers continue to use this Long Term Stability Labrithm and are confident of facing far fewer claims with dramatically improved operational efficiencies.

We see algorithms around us in all aspects of our lives. From dating apps like Tinder, to sports betting, the use of math and algorithms is helping us make better and faster decisions. At V-TIC services, we believe in the power of data and analysis of that data using tools like algorithms and artificial intelligence. Today, this blending of tech with the latest in instruments, is also helping the V-TIC team attract some of the best talent. Our aim is to become the company that our customers can rely on to develop solutions for them.

In the last few years, our team has developed several algorithms for fuels and lubes while working with our customers as they deal with their toughest challenges. As our clients race towards embracing the fuels of the future, V-TIC is positioned as the leading lab today that is using the technology of the future to help our clients with their challenges of today. Our R&D team and lab teams spend countless hours learning and sharing these learnings with our clients, so that we work together, to help create a sustainable future.