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Feb 1, 2008 12:00 PM

Alamo City Truck Service Inc in San Antonio, Texas, is easy to spot when driving along East Houston Street — it's the six acre, 18-bay facility busy serving customer vehicles that include tank trailers, tank trucks, recreational vehicles, school buses, and coaches.

“We are customer oriented and big enough for a variety of jobs,” says Ron Fey, Alamo City general manager. “But we're also capable of handling those small specific jobs that come in. Our goal is to provide services for those drive-up requests and get the driver back on the road — as well as for the customer who needs extensive work done on a vehicle in our facility.”

The shop holds a Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors “R” stamp and provides services for the tank truck industry that include external and internal visual inspections, lining inspections, and tests for leakage, pressure, vapor recovery, and thickness. Other services include bottom loading conversion, major barrel repair, tank changeouts, tank degassing, and custom fabrication.

“We are knowledgeable about tanks,” says Fey. “We consider that one of our specialties.”

Tank bays

On any given day, the six bays serving tanks, and the same number used for tractors, are a beehive of activity with the staff of 25 mechanics. The shop is open 8 am until 8 pm Monday through Friday, but mechanics are on call 24/7 for emergencies.

“We have three road service trucks that range as far as 100 miles from here,” Fey says. “We also provide preventive maintenance inspections and all repairs needed at San Antonio customers' terminals.”

The company typically serves cargo tank operators in a 100-mile radius of San Antonio, but it's not unusual for customers to come from greater distances. The majority of the tank trailer/tank truck work is prompted by the petroleum sector. “We do a lot of work on overfill protection equipment,” Fey notes. “A small percentage of our business is related to repairs that are the result of inspections required by the Department of Transportation inspections.”

The shop also handles other types of vehicles such as those used to haul chemicals and foodgrade products. The company provides services for both liquid tank trailers and dry bulkers.

“We are seeing an increasing number of requests for repairs to tank trailers that have rolled over,” Fey says. “And, we have a growing demand for repairs to older tank trailers because of the backlog in new equipment orders. Another service we see growing is the installation of Garnet Instruments systems used for product monitoring and overfill protection. Carriers, especially those hauling crude oil, are using them to insure they aren't overweight.”