History
Need for a Shielded, Secure Enclosure.
In 1992, engineers from National Fuel Gas approached Pioneer Electric Supply to supply or develop an enclosure that would protect their SCADA, odorant, computer, and telemetric equipment from conditions that were disrupting use and measurement of natural gas being bought and sold. Common threats were animals, insects, reptiles, weather, lightning strikes and the resulting magnetic fields. Climate control within the enclosure was also needed to address the affects of the high temperatures and humidity in summer and the sub zero temperatures in winter.
Lightning, the greatest threat.
Of their concerns, lightning strikes posed the greatest risk to personnel and equipment. Many of the enclosures were in remote locations on pipelines, storage fields, meter stations, and compressor stations.
Pioneer designs and manufactures the first Shielded, Secure Enclosure.
Unable to locate an enclosure that would meet the requirements put forth by National Fuel Gas, Pioneer elected to design and manufacture their own enclosure. Utilizing the principle of the Faraday Cage, the shelter was constructed of heavy gauge aluminum sheeting welded to a box tubing frame, which was welded to an aluminum I-beam sub frame. The enclosures were insulated and equipped with a heating and cooling system.
The lightweight design of the enclosures made it easy to deploy to any location. The unique and user-friendly design of Pioneer’s shelters made them desirable for all sites involving electronic and computer equipment. The first unit was deployed in 1993 and remains in use today.
Pioneer Energy Products (Pepro) established.
Victor Garmong, President of newly formed Pioneer Energy Products, applied for a U.S. patent for his shielded enclosure design. The patent was issued in May 1998. December of 1998, Pepro designed, manufactured and delivered the first shelter for the public safety industry.
Testing verifies Shielding Effectiveness!
In May of 1999 Pepro had the shielded shelter tested by two independent testing laboratories; Lightning Technologies, Inc. of Pittsfield, MA and National Technical Systems of Boxborough, Massachusetts. The shelters were certified to have a shielding effectiveness rating of 80 dB’s in the E field and 60 dB’s in the H field.
Pepro continues as Industry Leader.
Pepro continues to engineer new products to meet the needs of the public utilities, public safety, US Forest Service, National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, Homeland Security, states, local governments, Motorola, and others requiring a secure enclosure for sensitive electronic, computer, and radio equipment.
Pepro’s product line has expanded beyond enclosures and shelters to mobile radio sites, antenna mounting brackets, antenna standoffs, Pan / Tilt Directional Antenna Mount, and antenna cable harnesses.