In oil and gas, downtime isn’t just inconvenient—it’s expensive.
“If your equipment isn’t running, you’re not making money,” said Matt McCleney, Product Support Manager at L&M Radiator. “In a lot of cases, you’re also getting penalized by the well owner. So, you’re losing revenue and paying penalties at the same time.”
Still, when it comes to downtime, a machine’s radiator is often the sticking point for oil and gas operations around the globe. Too often, operators install a cheap radiator, only to watch it clog, crack, or start leaking almost immediately once it hits the field.
“We’ve seen non-MESABI® radiators fail in as little as 25 to 50 hours of engine runtime,” said McCleney. “That’s not even out of the demo phase before they’re leaking.”
Eventually, customers stop asking for faster fixes—and start asking for a better solution. One that can beat the harsh conditions of oil and gas operations for decades without interruption.
That’s when they call L&M Radiator.
“I’ve got MESABI units in West Texas that have been running 20-plus years and are just now coming in for their first service,” says McCleney. “If you look at the total cost of ownership over the life of the equipment, ours is substantially lower. Downtime adds up fast. Avoiding it changes everything.”
Those 20-plus-year radiators are owned by BJ Services, a long-time loyal customer of L&M’s. The West Texas conditions faced by this company are some of the harshest in the United States for oil and gas operations. The wicked heat, sandy environment, and windy conditions are difficult challenges to overcome, creating the perfect recipe for clogging and overheating. Still, the MESABI prevails.
“For the folks at BJ Services, radiators are the least of their worries,” said McCleney. “My contact there told me the MESABI radiator is bulletproof. There are plenty of things he has to worry about, but the radiator isn’t one of them. They’re golden.”
Resilience Against Debris and Vibration: How the MESABI® Does it
Oilfield equipment moves constantly. Trailer-mounted frac units, skid-mounted generators, and portable power packages all experience sustained vibration during transport and operation. For a rigid, tightly-packed core, vibration is kryptonite. But not for the MESABI.
Typically used in fracking and surface pumps to cool Caterpillar 3512 Tier 4F engines, Cummins QSK 50 Tier 4F engines, Cummins QSK60 Tier 4F engines, or MTU 16V4000 engines, MESABIs combat thermal and mechanical shock and fatigue with L&M rubber seal ingenuity.
“Vibration doesn’t bother the MESABI,” says McCleney. “Our cores are designed to flex. The tubes and seals move with the equipment instead of fighting against it. That way, it doesn’t crack or break.”
The main MESABI design employed by the oil and gas industry is the MESABI® Cube Cooling System. The Cube Cooling System uses significantly less space compared to typical horizontal coolers while meeting the expectations for performance demanded of much larger systems.
All of this and more make MESABI radiators especially effective for pressure pumping units, mobile power generation, and drilling support equipment—applications where non-MESABI radiators are often the first component to fail.
Remote Operations Demand In-Field Serviceability
Unlike conventional cores that trap debris and require removal for cleaning, MESABI’s individual copper tube design allows for easy field maintenance.
“MESABIs are very porous and easy to clean,” said McCleney. “Most customers can pressure wash them right there on the rig. The amount of time that saves the maintenance team is beyond measurement.”
Even if damage does occur to a MESABI, individual tubes can be replaced instead of scrapping the entire core—restoring cooling efficiency without extended downtime.
“With conventional cores, every repair reduces cooling efficiency,” said McCleney. “With Mesabi, you can keep it performing close to new for decades.”
That durability extends globally. Mesabi radiators are currently in service for customers such as Baker Hughes, Nabors Drilling, and Aramco in Saudi Arabia, Argentina, and throughout South America, where field repairability is critical.
“You can fix them in the middle of nowhere,” said McCleney. “Customers keep extra parts on hand, quickly make the repair, and get back to work.”
For oil and gas operators tired of repeat failures, MESABI radiators offer longevity, uptime, and real-world serviceability.
When your radiator is the least of your worries, the rest of the operation runs smoother—and that’s exactly the point.
L&M Radiator: Experience the Mesabi Difference
To learn more about MESABI® and oil and gas applications, click here to find the sales representative for your region.
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