• Permatank
• Composite Tank
• Double Wall steel

Forgeweld Underground Storage Tanks

Safeguarding our Precious Resources for Generations to Come

At Forgeweld, we have an unrivalled wealth of experience and technical expertise when it comes to Underground Storage Tanks (UST's). We've been producing top quality UST's for over thirty years and our excellence in technical innovation and service has ensured that we have become the leading tank manufacturer in Africa.

In recent years, our reputation for providing the best tanks which money can buy has spread across the globe. Exporting our UST's to countries outside the Republic of South Africa now constitutes a major part of our production output. Our export market includes Africa, the Indian Ocean Islands, the Middle East, Asia and Australia.

Unrivalled Experience and Technical Expertise

Over the years, we have been intricately involved in the development of environmentally friendly tank technology, along with the petroleum industry, the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS), the Petroleum Equipment Institute (PEI), the Steel Tank Institute of America (STI) and the American standards authority Underwriters Laboratory (UL). We are accredited by and affiliated to the SABS, STI, PEI and the UL, allowing us to display their certification marks. Working with these prestigious organisations ensures that we keep abreast of all the latest developments and practices associated with tank technology and the safe underground storage of petrochemicals. Our manufacturing facilities are routinely inspected by them to ensure that our techniques and products are up to scratch.  

Environmental Concern

Before the 1980's underground storage systems the world over were largely single-wall steel constructions which were given minimal external protective treatment - nothing but a thin layer of paint - before being buried. The underground environment is both electrically alive and moist, two variables necessary for the electrochemical proces of corrosion to occur. Invariably, the steel walls of these early single-wall tanks corroded, resulting in dangerous petrochemicals leaking into the surrounding soil, contaminating it and precious ground water.

Growing concern for our environment in the 1980's prompted the public, legislative authorities and the petrochemical industry itself to call for safer products which would protect the Earth's resources. Major research conducted worldwide has since resulted in substantial and significant changes to the design and technology of USTs.

Forgeweld has taken environmental concern to heart. Our dedicated team of professionals make sure that they keep up to speed with the very latest in environmental protection, securing licensing deals with renowned international organisations, such as the Steel Tank Institute of America, who offer the best in tank technology.

We manufacture three different types of cost-effective, environmentally friendly UST's:

• The Forgeweld Composite Tank - this was developed to provide superior corrosion protection to the external surface of a steel tank. A 2.5mm coating of isopthalic resin, reinforced with chopped fibreglass, is applied to the entire external surface of the tank. This coating cures to form a hard, abrasion-resistant membrane which provides highly effective protection against mechanical damage, corrosive liquids and soils and stray electrical currents.

• The Permatank® ("Jacketed") Tank - In the 1980's, authorities in the United States and Europe enacted new legislation pertaining to UST's  which was designed to protect our environment. This legislation required UST's to possess secondary containment to prevent tank content release into surrounding soil and ground water. The Permatank® Corporation of America developed the Permatank® ("Jacketed" UST), a double-wall tank consisting of a steel primary tank enclosed within an outer tank of corrosion resistant Fibreglass-Reinforced Polyester Resin (hence the term secondary containment). There is an interstice between the steel inner walls and the outer coating of FRP which is continually monitored for product leakage.

• Forgeweld Double-wall Steel Tank - This extremely durable product consists of an inner steel tank contained within an outer urethane or composite-coated steel tank, with an interstice between the two which is continually monitored for product leakage. This product is manufactured according to European Union CEN norms.

Forgeweld Permatanks® are manufactured by Forgeweld under licence from STI. STI exercises an international quality control programme which conducts random, unannounced visits to all their licensees' manufacturing facilities. In addition, our products are certified by the renowned United States standards authority, the Underwriters Laboratory. UL carries out regular audits of our operations to ensure the quality of our workmanship.