The TF Warren Group

The TF Warren Group is dedicated to being the only provider its customers need in the industries they serve. “We are an innovation driven company that provides our customers with a single source solution for storage, structural products and corrosion protection,” says Terry Warren, president and CEO of the TF Warren Group. “We are committed to be the safest, most cost-effective, reliable and customer-focused supplier in the markets we serve.”

With operations that serve the Western Hemisphere, the TF Warren Group of companies work in terminals, pipeline and refining, minerals and mining, chemical processing and municipal markets. They provide greenfield turnkey terminal services including terminal design, tank engineering, procurement, fabrication and construction. The group also provides shop and field application services for protective coatings, rubber linings, and roll coverings.

TF Warren Group‘s origins date back to 1971, when Warren founded his first company, Warren Steeple Jacks, in Canada. Over time, Warren started to see a need for improved corrosion-control products, and his company began applying specialty protective coatings. Rubber lining and polymer services closely followed. These services are today provided by two sibling companies, Brant Corrosion Control and Brant Industrial Roll.

Warren began adding steel repair, fabrication and plate processing to his business in the early 1980s. In 1983, he founded Blastco, a specialist in field painting of water towers, aboveground storage tanks, bridges and other structures in Ontario, Canada. Six years later, Warren founded Blastech, a custom industrial coating contractor, after noting the effects of environmental regulation and the increasing costs of field surface preparation and coating applications, he says.

“Blastech’s environmentally controlled, 75,000-square-foot facility, situated on 10 acres, was one of the first of its kind in Canada,” Warren notes. The facility specializes in abrasive cleaning of steel and the application of industrial protective coatings for plate, pipe, structural steel and other fabrications.

Between 1998 and 2001, Blastco relocated and established locations in Texas and California. Warren formally established the TF Warren Group in 2000 to consolidate the operations of all of the companies, he adds.

Growth Opportunities
The TF Warren Group in 2007 made its first significant acquisition when it purchased Tarsco, which had more than 24 years of storage tank construction, repair and maintenance experience. “With that acquisition, we expanded into tank engineering, fabrication, procurement and field construction of aboveground storage tanks,” Warren says.

The group expanded its capabilities even further in recent years when it purchased the assets of USA Tank, a leader in the design, manufacturing and construction of aboveground bolted storage tank systems headquartered in Goodman, Mo. The acquisition enabled TF Warren Group to establish a new affiliate, Tarsco Bolted Tank Inc.

“This acquisition will allow us to produce innovative bolted tank storage products while at the same time delivering impeccable customer service,” Warren says. “This new chapter supports our goal to be the leader in the coated bolted tank market and creates larger opportunities, better tank coatings and stronger financial stability.”

Combined Strength
The companies within TF Warren Group often unite their capabilities on larger projects. Brant Corrosion Control, Brant Industrial Roll, Blastco, Blastech and Tarsco, are all providing services related to a contract with Barrick Gold to provide equipment, tanks and other services for Barrick’s operations in the Dominican Republic.

The companies have also combined efforts in the past on other projects. Work was completed in 2013 on a state-of-the-art fuel turnkey terminal on Melones Island near the Pacific entrance to the Panama Canal. Tarsco provided engineering, procurement, fabrication, and construction services (EPFC) on the island project. This terminal’s total storage capacity is two million barrels of product. Blastech collaborated with Tarsco to utilize the RediPlate™ process they developed to protect the steel during ocean transit and improve field construction schedules.

On another project Tarsco used the expertise of Blastech and Brant Corrosion Control. This project was part of a large development for a new nickel processing facility in Long Harbour, Newfoundland. Tarsco provided EPFC services for nine storage tanks. Eight of the tanks ranged in size from 26 feet to 50 feet in diameter and 34 feet to 52 feet in height. The ninth tank was a shop built API 620 tank 5-feet 10-inches by 19 feet 11 inches high.

Blastech provided blasting and pre-priming of the tank plates to ensure high quality surface preparation. Coatings for the linings work was provided by Brant Corrosion Control consisting of the application of field applied chlorobutyl rubber. Brant constructed a unique enclosure that was about 60-feet wide by 80-feet high by 130-feet long to enclose the tanks and maintain the optimal environmental conditions including steam curing at 200°F for 48 hours for the immersion-grade lining that was installed.

Working Together
A project completed in Corpus Christi, Texas by Tarsco, Blastco and Blastech in 2014 was recognized by the Steel Tank Institute as its “Tank of the Year.” The three companies collaborated to construct six LPG storage tanks totaling one million barrels of storage capacity for a terminal project in Corpus Christi, Texas. Four of the tanks hold 200,000 barrels of refrigerated propane each and are 150 feet in diameter by 68 feet high. The remaining two tanks each hold 100,000 barrels of refrigerated butane and are 117 feet in diameter by 59 feet high.

“Dome roofs were built near the bottom of the tank and then air raised into final position at the top of the tank. The 200-plus-ton roofs were built in pieces and utilized sub-assemblies on temporary structures in the low position as a suspended insulation deck was constructed,” the company says. While in that position, a cable leveling system was installed to assist roof stabilization as it traveled from the bottom of the tank to its final position. A seal was installed along the periphery of the lower edge of the roof, which sealed the roof to the shell. Extensive shell plumb and roundness checks were made to ensure a smooth ascent.

A Top Priority
All TF Warren Group companies participate on the company’s safety management committee that comprises senior management representatives and includes Warren as a member. Committee members meet weekly to develop ways to promote and encourage safety and environmental awareness within the group’s companies. This includes reviewing all incidents, standardizing policies and providing safety training and equipment.

“Our people are our company’s greatest strength; it is their collective expertise and hard work that allows us to provide the solutions our customers need,” Warren says. “We value their safety, health and the environment they work in.”