Fuel-saving device maker targets truckers
Mario Toneguzzi
Calgary Herald, September 26, 2005
An Ontario-based company with international sales of a fuel-saving device is poised to enter the western Canadian market. The Tadger Group International, which claims its unique product attached to a vehicle's fuel line saves both on costs and emissions, has been selling the device in the United States, China, Europe, South Africa, and Mexico.
"We stayed predominantly in the early years in Ontario -- that was to build up case studies," said John Mogford, president of the Tadger Group International in Grimsby, Ont. "To date, we have over 60 client case studies. We did that for a credibility factor and now we're starting to expand.
"We're excited to be out West and expanding there."
The product is known as the Tadger. The company says it is a patented means to allow the fuel on any gas or diesel engine to burn more efficiently. It says besides fuel savings and reduced emissions, the device also extends the oil life in a vehicle. Mogford said the company has about 600 clients, from trucking firms to public transit systems, across the country. "When you think about it, emissions and fuel go hand in hand," said Mogford. "When we reduce people's emissions, now they're also getting the payback on the fuel savings."
There are many other fuel-saving devices in the marketplace. Earl Turcott, manager with the Miller Group -- a diversified company involved in construction road building, transit operations, and waste management -- based out of Markham, Ont., said it tested the Tadger on about six of its trucks. "The results looked good. We're pretty pleased with the results," said Turcott.
Asked whether his firm will now use the device, Turcott replied: "We're just working on that now. We haven't made any decisions yet."
Peter Chatoff, assistant manager of operations for York Region Transit, said buses there have also tested the gadget and decisions on its future use will be made in the near future.
"My gut feeling is that . . . all things being equal, if you're making better combustion you should be getting better economy," said Chatoff.
"We started it in late 2002 on a couple of vehicles. And we did some tests. . . . In Ontario, you have to do an emission test every year on a bus when you get your licence. We've just gotten some used buses in. They've passed to get their licences.
"We've had the unit on three or four buses on a limited test, but when we re-licence at Christmas time for the new year, we'll have a little more quantitative numbers. . . . Your older buses are your dirtiest buses. The best bang for your buck is to reduce the emissions of old buses, which people are more cognizant of. If we retire an old bus with the unit, you can always take it off."
The Tadger Group says the device generates a controlled turbulence (swirl) in the fuel which improves volatility and atomization by increasing the surface area of the fuel that is exposed to the oxygen in the air. "Simply stated, combustion efficiency is enhanced by more completely vapourizing and burning the fuel," states the company in a brochure about the product. "Usually fuel will collect, unburned and wasted, in places such as the cylinder walls, the interior of the intake manifold, and gaps between the piston and cylinder wall above the top piston ring. "This 'clean burn' effect also helps detergents in the oil and fuel remove and prevent carbon buildup, cut stack soot, black smoke and toxic emissions."
Joe Collins, who is representing the company here in Calgary, said the device is installed on a vehicle's fuel line. It costs $749 to be installed on a truck and $249 to be installed in a car.
"But if you look at the savings, the average payback is two months in a truck. In a car, it depends how many miles are driven. . . . Some of the savings are enormous," said Collins, who has been in discussions recently with two major trucking companies in Calgary and two organizations within Calgary.
source: http://www.tadgerfuelsaver.com/newsandtestimonials
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