Scully Signal founder and son honoured as ‘Legends of the Industry’
New England Fuel Institute (NEFI) is a nationally recognised organisation of independent Oilheat, propane, biofuel, and motor fuel dealers and associated companies. As part of its annual energy industry EXPO, NEFI brought back its long-time tradition—the Legends of Oilheat Dinner ceremony this year. Francis P. Scully and Robert G. Scully were among the honourees for 2017. The father and son team were each granted the ‘Legend of Oilheat’ award posthumously.
The evening’s master of ceremonies, Dick Horan, former principal at Hughes Oil and a previous recipient of the Legend of Oilheat award, spoke of the contribution these Scully men made to the oil industry, and remarked that if it weren’t for their “brilliant engineering” and innovations they brought to the industry, “we might not be sitting here today.” As Horan said, “Distributing petroleum products was a dirty and unsafe business from the early 1900s until World War II. Francis Scully noticed this and determined to do something about it.”
With no safety regulations or equipment in place, the potential for overfills was a constant concern and delivery was very inefficient. Francis, an MIT engineering graduate who studied mechanical and civil engineering and hydraulics, patented the Ventalarm Signal, a whistling device inserted in the vent pipe—the first-ever oil spillage device. Francis earned dozens of patents for his innovative solutions, including tank gauges, the Unifil Tight Fill Connection System, Ball-valve delivery nozzles, and flow control systems, which were designed to work together as a complete delivery system to save time, money, and prevent spills.
With the advent of the electronics revolution in the late 1950s, Francis and other engineers applied the same efficiency and safety concepts to a new Scully patented concept called Dynacheck, a self-checking circuitry design that allowed for the safe and efficient transfer of petroleum and chemical products for vehicle loading, storage, and transport.
Dick said: “All were designed to move liquid products cleanly, safely, and cost effectively. Petroleum could now move from ships, railcars, and pipelines into storage terminals—then out to our trucks and finally into our customers’ tanks.”
Scully Signal’s Vice President Katrina Ohl, Robert’s daughter, accepted the award on behalf of the two Scully icons, noting that her father, who passed away in February this year, would have been “particularly pleased to know that his father was being honored as well.”
She added: “Our grandfather, father, and uncle were deeply committed to this industry and spoke often about the lasting friendships they had made in the industry. We would like to thank Scully’s employees and the many customers who believed in us and have supported us. We intend to continue innovating into the future.”
For more information www.scully.com
25th July 2017
