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Leaders & Innovators in Automated Orbital Welding
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Driving Down the Cost of Energy
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While the increasing cost of energy is a constant concern, there is little doubt that the need for electrical power will increase over the next several decades. The Department of Energy predicts that the demand for electricity will increase 50% by 2030. Despite recent events in Japan, at least some of this energy will be supplied by nuclear power generation. Existing U.S. nuclear power plants were constructed using 1960's and 1970's technologies, relying mostly on manual techniques. New nuclear power plants overseas have incorporated automated GTAW and other higher deposition welding processes. In order to be competitive, U.S. commercial nuclear component ma nufacturers and construction firms can take advantage of current advances in automated welding technology. Automated GTAW narrow gap technology is now sufficiently advanced that the next generation of power plants are being designed to incorporate this technology which reduces the cost of components and assemblies of the most critical parts of the power plants. Read more...
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One unique project at a fertilizer plant in Ince, UK
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M15 Weld Head
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AMI has supplied automated orbital welding systems for a unique project at GrowHow UK Ltd's fertilizer plant at Ince, near Chester. The Ince site produces one million tons of fertilizer annually, providing essential nutrients for grass and arable farming, and needed to install a new converter vessel in its ammonia synthesis gas loop. When faced with welding the 18" (457 mm) diameter, nearly 2.5" (63 mm) thick stainless steel pipes, contractors Fabricom called upon AMI's expertise to provide an automated welding system that could guarantee weld quality and speed unachievable by a manual process.
AMI provided full training to the Fabricom engineers and supplied three Model 415 power supply and Model 15 weld head systems to enable welders to work 24 hours a day and complete the project with minimum plant downtime. AMI's Model 415 power supply gave GrowHow the reliability of an automation controller designed to meet the challenges of the most demanding welding applications. Completing the system was the Model 15 large diameter pipe weld head with a specially adapted chisel torch nozzle designed to accommodate the
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GrowHow's Chemical Works
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relatively narrow compound bevel optimized during the welding development phase. This was the first time GrowHow had used automated orbital welding and they selected the AMI system for its reliable repeatable high quality across all welds. In a situation where the quality of every weld is vital, the ability of AMI's equipment to cope with the thickness of the pipe wall and maintain weld integrity under extremely high gas pressure and temperature gave the company significant advantages. Read more...
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| The Model 415
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The Model 415 is primarily designed to work with AMI's orbital and fixed automation weld heads. It can control third party positioners and welding manipulators. The 400 A 100% Duty Cycle power supply contains all the hardware and control elements of a welding automation cell in a highly integrated compact package. At the heart of the power supply is an industrial computer programmed via a 12" (305 mm) touch screen or keyboard. The intuitive graphical user interface (GUI) makes programming easy using
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NGT Sytem with M415
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standard welding industry terminology and clearly organized input fields. The M415 has many standard hardware and software features. The standard programmable functions are Welding Current Control; Arc Voltage Control (AVC); Wire Feed; Rotation/Travel Control; Hot Wire Voltage Control; Oscillation. Read more...
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| The Model 81 as a cladding weld head
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Petroleum refineries and petrochemical power plants both employ large (16-24"; 406-610 mm) valves to control and direct the flow of various chemicals, including superheated steam. Each of these various fluids present unique challenges to the valve internal mechanisms, exacerbated by the common presence of very high pressure. Because of the hostile environment, the valve seats are usually manufactured from Stellite, a cobalt-chromium alloy that is noted to maintain hardness even at high operating temperatures. This material, while ideal for the application, is difficult to apply, and hard to machine. Since replacing a valve is usually not a viable option, given the extensive ASME B31 requirements associated with the cutting out and re-welding a new valve in place, in-situ repair is a desirable alternative.
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Standard M81 Pipe Weld Head
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By machining away the original valve seat, and replacing it with a new one, identical to the original manufacturer's specifications, a fifty year old valve can be restored to service with the same confidence level as if a brand new valve were installed.
The first step in creating the new seal is to clad an intermediate surface using 309L wire, an austenitic stainless steel with a cte midway between the cast iron housing (at 9.5x10-6/�C) and the Stellite seal material (at 13x10-6/�C). The material is deposited using an Arc Machines, Inc. Model 81 Pipe Welder. This weld head was originally designed to weld sections of pipe together under limited clearance conditions. However, with the use of a stock bracket (from AMI) the welding torch assembly can be redirected outward, so that the Model 81 becomes an ID cladding tool. Read more...
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| New Sales Representatives in South China, South Korea, South Africa and Western Australia
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To meet growing international demand, and to provide better market reach, AMI has signed up with new partners who will market, demonstrate and sell AMI's products on their domestic markets.
- We proudly announce the appointment of our new sales and service representative in South China. Since 1979, Shanghai T+C Machine Trading specializes in pipe working equipment and tube tooling for the maintenance, repair and manufacture of heat exchangers, condensers, coolers, and boilers.
- Our new sales representative, Nain Industrial Co. in partnership with Weldwell Co. in South Korea, are well known and respected within the power generation industry and knowledgeable on automated welding solutions for heavy wall materials.
- Seflex Witbank, our new sales representative in South Africa, is a welding solutions provider to the mining, engineering fabrication, steel and stainless steel producers and power generation sectors.
- With over 35 years in operation, GF Engineering Pty Limited in Western Australia, has extensive experience in the Australian oil and gas industry, which gained them the reputation of welding leaders and specialists in their field.
To find your local sales representative, please click here.
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- AMI's Model 415 - the industry's most advanced multifunction welding power supply - has over 140 optional features available.
- Over 1,300 Model 227 power supplies have been sold since its launch, and it's now the industry's most favored equipment for its reliability and versatility.
- AMI has 32 Sales Representatives around the world and sells to customers in more than 50 countries.
| To learn about our history, please click here.
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| www.arcmachines.com Tel: +1 (818) 896-9556 sales@arcmachines.com | |
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