On congested gas-field drilling pads, less is often more for oilfield services contractors like Keystone Gas Solutions LLC. So when owner Bob McKeown found he could service customers with one machine – a PACS 1000 vacuum system, made by Elastec/American Marine – instead of two, the decision was a no-brainer.
The versatile PACS unit (PACS stands for Portable Air Conveyance Vacuum Systems) provides McKeown with a mini-vacuum truck-like unit that can generate up to 424 cfm of vacuum power, plus a hydraulic pressure washer that produces 3 1/2 gpm at 1,200 psi. Sure, the debris-tank capacity is 1,000 gallons — well below what a full-size vacuum truck can hold — but it’s more maneuverable than a large vac truck in the restricted, congested workspaces in which Keystone crews often work, and the tank is large enough to handle most of the jobs performed by the company, based in Perryopolis, Pa.
“We tow it with a dually Chevrolet pickup truck,” McKeown explains. “It’s very compact [about 18 1/2 feet long and 6,000 pounds] and has everything we need in just one unit. It provides us with a lot more flexibility, and since it’s not as large as a vacuum truck, it’s easy to maneuver in tight spaces.
“We looked at other units and have used other [similar] equipment on locations, but most of them didn’t have a pressure washer,” he continues. “So by having one on a vacuum unit, we don’t have to bring along an extra truck, which saves us all kinds of time and aggravation, not to mention fuel.
“Plus, when you bring along two pieces of equipment, you basically have to bring along diesel power for vacuum and diesel power for pressure washing, plus you have to haul water separately,” he adds. “The PACS unit has its own 135-gallon freshwater saddle tank.”
McKeown established Keystone three years ago. The company rents and sells gas-field equipment and provides roustabout services. It also provides services such as pumping, filtering and transferring water and sludge. The company serves customers within about a 200-mile radius of Perryopolis in the Marcellus Shale play.
The company owns five PACS 1000 units. Each unit features a 25 hp diesel engine; a water-cooled Jurop vane pump; a 36-inch-diameter rear door; a 45-degree tilt bed; a tandem-axle trailer (16,000 pounds gross vehicle weight limit); and a 6-inch discharge valve.
McKeown generally uses the unit to vacuum up water and mud on drilling sites; spills of all kinds; and transferring liquids and sludge from, say, a pit or tank to a storage pit.
The multitasking unit also saves McKeown time by dramatically reducing the amount of equipment setup and breakdown time. It also reduces the risk of injury because no one has to lift and carry a pressure washer separately. “So you save about an hour of setup time, and you don’t have to worry about injuries that can occur when employees carry something heavy,” he notes. “We can set it up in half an hour and be ready to work. If we used two separate units, it would probably take about an hour and a half to set things up.”
That may not sound like a huge advantage, but over the course of a year, the time savings add up. As McKeown puts it: “You’re either winning or losing, and everyone is looking for an advantage. Everyone is looking for savings and ways to do things more efficiently.”
McKeown also lauds the PACS 1000 for its reliability, a critical factor in the fast-paced world of gas and oilfield services where downtime can cost customers tens of thousands of dollars per hour in lost production. He says the units are real workhorses that perform well, often in difficult environments and terrain. In fact, he’s so pleased with the units that he’s considering ordering a couple more this year.
“The reality is they provide a lot of uptime … they work,” he says. “Time is money, every day.
“Losing business is always a distinct possibility in this industry,” he continues. “It’s an extremely competitive environment. There’s always someone ready to take your place. But if you do a great job, provide good service and don’t make mistakes, you’ll stay there … you’ve got to be perfect. Someone’s always chomping on your heels.”
