PURGIT founder, Hank Hilliard, began his career in tank barge cleaning and repair in 1971.  The shipyard that Hank and his father built in Channelview was cleaning 2,000 tank barges a year by the time Hank left to open PURGIT in 1993.  Hank subsequently designed and patented environmentally positive innovations for vapor control systems. PURGIT  has implemented these patented  designs into mobile systems that have revolutionized the way barge and tank cleaning is being done.

Environmental regulations were quickly developing in the mid-1990s so PURGIT coupled portable combustors and flares with its patented inert gas purging business (CO2 and nitrogen) to control vapors at shipyards and tank farms. PURGIT now designs and builds portable flare systems to meet the strict safety and environmental standards in refinery settings.