Beginnings – Fuel Firing Systems & FFS Refiners
Fuel Firing Systems CC was established in South Africa in February 1974 by Tony and Diane Hurter. At this time, it was believed that the world was running out of oil, so Tony decided to move on from his position of Sales Manager of International Combustion Africa Limited/Combustion Engineering, selling large steam boilers.
The mission was to produce alternative furnace fuels and the necessary innovative combustion equipment to fire these fuels. The novelty was in taking a variety of feedstocks and transforming them into “fit for purpose fuels” by developing and building bespoke plants and adapting the burners and ancillary equipment on the client’s premises. It is remarkable that this focus endured for the 38 years that the Hurter family were the majority shareholders.
The company morphed into FFS Refiners (Pty) Ltd., based in Durban, with six plants around the country. The alternative fuels were from diverse sources, such as industrial and refinery waste oily emulsions, marine Marpol waste oils, refinery heavy residues. A large source was waxy oils, coal tars and coal tar pitch from coal plants.
The unconventional, essential services that the company offered the generators of the waste products were immensely profitable. The growth of FFS Refiners was phenomenal, and all expansion was done entirely through internal cash generation. At one period, FFS Refiners were supplying more than 50% of the black furnace fuels in South Africa. The company developed all its own technologies for processing the diverse feedstocks and built all its own plants.
FFS Refiners celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024 and a great reflection of its success can be viewed below.
FFS International
In 2013, Tony sold the family’s controlling shareholding in FFS. As part of the deal, Tony launched FFS International (FFSI). In terms of the sale, FFSI retained the rights to use the FFS Refiners Intellectual Property up to 2013. FFSI purchased FFS Refiners 50% shareholding of Transpacific Refiners in NSW, a company producing recycle base lubricating oil. FFSI also purchased the 40% shareholding of Re: Group Limited, a waste hydrocarbon recycler in Kingston Upon Hull.
FFSI pioneered the development of Supercritical Purification of Used Lube Oil. The pilot plant for this was tested in Re: Group, and a prototype reactor was designed and built in 2015. We called this the Plugflow Reactor, which is a continuous high temperature and pressure process incorporating self-cleaning system. The commissioning of the Plugflow Reactor proceeded slowly but provided all the developments required to design and build a larger reactor for full scale ULO purification, or for use in similar applications.
2025 and forward
FFS International is moving with the times and altering its strategic direction. Over the years it has been exiting from its company ownership positions and was released from its last shareholding in 2021.
Now FFSI is primarily consulting with clients to implement and improve their industrial processes. The aim is impact. We will be the first to state if we cannot bring tangible value to a project, and given the push on efficiency and sustainability, industries and business need no-nonsense solutions and support to thrive in the industrial climate.
In addition, FFSI is looking to develop its own new R&D portfolio focussing on critical resources. Given the expertise, experience, and history, there is a long track record of refining end of life products in a pragmatic manner, and this is part of the focussed direction forward. Our initial project is the build of another pilot plug flow reactor for both supercritical and subcritical processing of various feedstocks. This will serve as a test platform for future projects.
Sadly, Tony passed away in October 2023 but in a fitting continuation of the family legacy, Tony’s grandson, Euan, has joined FFS International. This now gives a permanent presence in the UK, where Euan is based. He has previously been working with nickel and titanium superalloys and serving the aerospace industry. His focusses were on the development of metal processing and industrial cleaning. This experience diversifies the knowledge base of FFS International.
As we move into 2025, there is a lot in the pipeline to which we are very much looking forward. Please reach out with any projects or ideas you have and would like to discuss.
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