SEI recently visited the United States Marine Corps (USMC) Bogue Field to inspect its 20,000 USG Jungle King collapsible fuel bladder that has been in service for 18 months. The tank had been supplied to the USMC for evaluation purposes.

“We inspected our Jungle King tank and there were absolutely no concerns,” says Paul Reichard, division manager for SEI Industries Ltd. “The tank looks great and has out performed every other tank in the facility. They love it.”

In fact, the USMC says it’s the best tank they’ve ever used! With four tank pits at the USMC Bogue Field site, here’s how the Jungle King blew the competition away.

  • Pit 1 = one SEI Jungle King (18 months in service, no issues)
  • Pit 2 = two competitor mil-spec tanks, cycled through within 18 months.
  • Pit 3 = six competitor mil-spec tanks, cycled through within 18 months.
  • Pit 4 = two competitor mil-spec tanks, cycled through within 18 months.

Why evaluate the various bladders available? US military specs for collapsible fuel bladders require a 36-month service life but USMC directive TM 3835-OI/1B limits the total operational usage of collapsible tanks to 12-18 months due to reliability concerns, based on past problems. “We wanted to put their minds at ease and let them know they can continue to operate the tank as normal, effectively disregarding the directive.”

As proof of this, SEI does not start asking clients to send test strips for life expectancy testing until the tank has experienced 24 months of service life. Due to superior construction and proprietary fabrics, SEI fuel bladders have a 10-year life span and anything less than 24 months of service is simply not enough time for any concerns to arise.

For the past 30 years, SEI has supported remote commercial operations, emergency management agencies and military forces with a variety of equipment options – many of which are “world-first” in design.