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Clesse Initiating Product Exchange for its Compact 100 Regulator

Clesse Industries says it is erring on the side of caution and initiating a product exchange for its automatic changeover regulator, the Compact 100.

Clesse Industries has initiated a product exchange for its Compact 100, the automatic changeover (ACO) regulator it launched last year to replace both its low and high-pressure non-OPSO models. The European regulator manufacturer has sold over 8,500 of the units in the UK.

Kaz Dziamarski, managing director of Clesse UK Ltd, said: “The new product represents Clesse’s future design evolution in cylinder ACO regulators, having many improvements over previous models, together with cutting edge design. Its reliability and ease of installation have been well received, as the product has been designed very much for the UK market, continuing the no compromise policy our customers want in lp gas products.”

Clesse has been monitoring feedback on the product in the field and on return and discovered that, in certain regions of the world and under certain weather conditions, the product could develop a leak from the changeover head.

“From our sales networks across the world, information is fed back to us using direct distribution and local market presence, and Clesse UK provides that unique link from customer to manufacturer in the UK. This gives us a very detailed picture of product use across different environmental conditions, installation practices and quality of the constituents that make up lpg.”

When ACO products were returned to Clesse from South America early this year, tests in the company’s French laboratories revealed a potential problem. The company undertook an investigation, simulating the conditions in which the problem arose. Modifications were then made to the product’s design to resolve the issue.

“Some product that had developed slight leakage from the changeover head of the regulator during hot weather was returned from localised regions in overseas markets,” said Kaz. “Whilst the new ACO regulator underwent extensive testing prior to launch through field trials and obligatory prescribed testing under EN13786 and BS3016, it did not highlight any potential problems.

“Rather than ignoring the issue, we have developed a repeatable aging test that we intend to use in similar products, and we intend to make the existing Compact 100 product even more robust. Additionally, Clesse will put this forward as a requirement in possible revisions of regulator design standards for the future.”

Although Clesse says the product has so far proved reliable in the UK, it has decided to err on the side of caution and initiate a product exchange.

“Our experience in other parts of the world suggests that there could be problems in the UK, particularly during the summer months,” said Kaz. “Our aim is to ensure that, as a responsible manufacturer, we negate any future product problems for Clesse customers to protect the brand, our reputation and our distributors’ credibility in offering the Clesse ACO as the best in the market.

“The encouraging news so far is that, to date, we have only seen a handful of leaking ACO valves, many fewer than originally anticipated. This reinforces the fact that, in the UK, good quality lpg and installation standards have contributed to minimising the incidences of product failure.

“Nevertheless, the exchange programme will proceed, ensuring our customers will not be inconvenienced in future years. We are using qualified engineers and installers throughout the country – it’s a major undertaking, but we feel that it’s worth doing.”

To identify and register affected products, telephone Clesse’s direct exchange information line on 01902 383237, email recall@clesse.co.uk or visit www.clesse.co.uk