Prowalco Tatsuno has been acknowledged as Supplier of the Year for 2018 by Franklin Fueling Systems of the US, a global leader of complete fuelling systems. This is the second consecutive year Prowalco Tatsuno has been acknowledged by Franklin, having clinched New Business Partner in 2017.

Its products include fuel management systems, dispensing systems, submersible pumping systems, service station hardware, pipe and containment, transport systems, wire management, and complete system solutions for diesel exhaust fluid.

Barend Bekker, Senior Project Manager at Prowalco Tatsuno, explains that a team from Franklin made a whistle-stop tour of its South African distributors at the end of May, during which the yearly awards were presented.

The Supplier of the Year for 2018 award was presented to Bekker on behalf of the UPP Department at Prowalco Tatsuno by high-level Franklin representatives. These were Peter Van Der Gaag, Vice President of Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), and Neil Dumery, Territory Manager for Central Africa and the French Islands.

Prowalco Tatsuno has been a key distributor for Franklin in the African region for three years to date, gradually extending the US company’s footprint on the continent during this period, and transforming it into a well-known brand for the major local oil companies.

“The award is an important recognition of our preeminent status as one of Franklin’s leading distributors in the African market. This is a prestigious achievement not only for our UPP Department, but for the company as a whole,” Bekker comments.

The Prowalco UPP project team can deliver a complete package of UPP pipework, manhole chambers, dispenser containment, submersible pumps and smart fuel stock and environmental monitoring systems all designed around exact customer needs and delivered in one shipment, ready for installation. “We also test equipment on-site, and provide sign-off once installation has been completed,” Bekker adds.

Prowalco Tatsuno, which has a Level 1 B-BBEE rating, was established in 1960. The company has the lion’s share of both the fuel-pump and dispenser supply and maintenance market in South Africa. It also specialises in facility maintenance, with longstanding contracts with leading players.

It forms part of the larger Bud Group, with Tatsuno acquiring a 3% stake in Prowalco in January 2018. Tatsuno is a Japanese manufacturer of fuel dispensers and other solutions for retail commercial fuelling customers globally.