voetje zetten

Dutch to English Tech/Engineering Petroleum Eng/Sci Ship to shore loading/unloading of Pygas

In a set of instructions concerning the loading and unloading of pyrolysis gasoline from ship to shore, the following:

"Afstemmen pompsnelheid van reguliere laad/lossnelheid, maar ook pompsnelheid voor starten/’voetje zetten’."

I think it may have something to do with filling the first foot of a pipeline but I am not sure. Can anyone throw some light on this and give me a correct English translation?