ERNE 02 NEWS

New Heat Treatment Center in Schlins

160 days of construction, nearly 54,000 speed. The new heat treatment center has of water and can be cooled to 57°F through square feet of space, and an investment space for up to four annealing furnaces. Cur- the use of groundwater. In addition, a new of € 5.1 million: Those are the key fi gures rently, two furnaces are in operation with a stacking crane has been installed with a load behind our new production facility on capacity of up to fi ve metric tons. The third capacity of eight metric tons and a process- Josef-Erne-Straße, which was completed in furnace will be installed in early 2019. It is ing speed that is three times faster. early 2018. larger than the two currently in place, and allows for a maximum weight of eight met- With the addition of these new buildings, To process customer orders more effectively ric tons. With this furnace in place, we will we’re now able to bring our two production and continue to increase the effi ciency of be able to heat-treat R=3D pipe elbows up facilities together in one place. The short our production processes, we decided in the to 48" in diameter and with a wall thickness distances that come with a compact produc- spring of 2017 to expand our production of 32 mm. The infrastructure for quenching tion layout will allow us to reduce the time facility in Schlins by another 54,000 square and cooling products after hot forming has from pipe to completed elbow. Our goal is feet. Now the new buildings have been also been updated. The new quench tank for to move all of our activities in Schlins to the completed and production is running at full large pipe elbows holds over 32,000 gallons new facility over the next few years. Editorial

Hot Forming with the Hamburg Bending Process

To turn a pipe into an elbow, a number of drel. By continuously pushing the pipe over different hot- and cold-forming production the curved end of the mandrel, the pipe processes are available. The difference diameter is expanded, while simultaneously between hot and cold forming has to do producing the desired bend, resulting in with whether the deformation takes place the fi nal elbow geometry. Meanwhile, the above or below the material’s recrystalli- second half of the mandrel end controls the Dear customers, zation temperature. In hot forming, the ovality and supports the elbow during the pipe is shaped to the desired geometry at a forming process. business partners temperature that is higher than the recrys- tallization temperature. For hot forming, The Hamburg bending process is used in and employees. Erne Fittings works, among other things, Schlins to produce pipe elbows with diame- with the Hamburg bending process. ters ranging from V" to 42". This process is especially well-suited for ferritic materials. I’ve been a member of the Executive Committee for about six months now. The Hamburg process’s main advantage For someone with a technical back- over the conventional induction process is ground, working for a technologically elbow extrados the resulting low ovality. This makes the advanced company like Erne Fittings elbow segmentable and piggable. is a very rewarding experience. As a newcomer, I’ve automatically had the In addition, these elbows have a well-de- chance to question production process- fi ned and very precise inside diameter, as mandrel intrados es and workfl ows with no pre-existing well as a more even distribution of wall assumptions. thickness. There is also a cost advantage in comparison to the induction process, due to A number of different ideas have reduced wall thickness. On the other hand, already emerged that should help us to the Hamburg bending process requires a improve our market position through heating forming separate mandrel for each bend radius, increased productivity. Coming up with which can have a negative impact on costs. ideas is just one small part of the pro- Erne Fittings has a decisive advantage cess. The bigger part is implementing here in that its decades of experience have them, and that only works if everyone In the Hamburg bending process, the pipe allowed it to assemble the world’s largest on the team is pulling in the same di- is pressed over a mandrel with the required collection of mandrels. rection. This will be a big challenge, but geometry. This mandrel has a smaller di- a fascinating and exciting one. ameter at the start of the bend than at the end of the bend. The pipe is heated before My area of responsibility also includes reaching the widening portion of the man- the other company sites. The expansion of the product range manufactured by our subsidiary, Erne Fittings Middle East (EFME) – from a current maximum of 12" outside diameter to 24" – will be keeping us busy in the coming year.

My understanding of my role, which I 10D Elbow for the “Ferngasleitung 32” Gas Pipeline share with my colleagues on the Exec- utive Committee, is to create customer value and thus to ensure our long-term Project in the German State of Saxony success as a company. In addition to product quality, quick responsiveness is also important. Because it is fi nancially Erne Fittings is meeting the ever-growing er, the Hamburg mandrel bending process impossible for us to store large quanti- LEIPZIG need for EN gas pipeline construction. used by Erne Fittings offers signifi cant ties of every product in the warehouse, Together with our partner of many years, advantages in terms of the dimensional new planning standards need to be RÄPITZ Piping-Service Steuer Handelsgesellschaft accuracy of these components. Placing the established. Close contact with our cus- mbH, we are supporting the transmis- bending tool inside the pipe allows us to tomers is essential, as is an optimized SACHSEN sion system operator ONTRAS in their provide consistent precision in wall thick- supply chain that makes the most of restoration of the gas pipeline known as ness, ovality, and inside diameter over the the capital we invest. BÖHLEN FGL-32. For this project, approximately 300 entire body of the fi tting. The tools de- high-precision and technically sophisti- signed by Erne Fittings are constantly being Happy reading! cated BA10 (R=5D) elbows with a nominal improved to ensure that its components diameter of DN500 (20") were delivered. show minimal deviation in terms of inside diameter and ovality. SACHSEN- ANHALT ONTRAS Gastransport GmbH operates the second-longest transmission network in This ensures minimal edge misalignment Dr. Gernot Heigl Germany, with about 450 network connec- between the elbow and the pipe it connects Chief Operating Offi cer (COO) tion points and 4350 miles of pipeline. The to, resulting in optimal piggability, the abil- transmission system operator is responsible ity to segment the elbow right at the job for safe and effi cient operation of pipeline site, and easy and effi cient weldability. That networks in the states that were historically means a signifi cant reduction in welding THÜRINGEN part of East Germany. Among other respon- time, which in turn contributes to reduced sibilities, this includes the restoration of costs. Our high-precision elbow manufac- Imprint the FGL-32 pipeline in the states of Saxony turing process minimizes the need for addi- and Thuringia, for which nearly 45 miles tional calibrations later on. The components Publisher: Erne Fittings GmbH, Hauptstraße 48, of pipeline were completely replaced and are not subjected to any further mechanical 6824 Schlins, Austria, T +43 5524 501-0 Connection points investments were made in pigging stations. stresses, which has a positive effect on Editorial: Katrin Tegel, Marketing at Erne Fittings Branch to downstream network or end consumer segmentability and piggability. Design and Layout: Weber, Mathis + Freunde, NIEDERHOHNDORF Dornbirn, AT Segmentable elbows of the type used in the ZWICKAU Edition 2/2018, company assumes no liability for FGL-32 pipeline are usually manufactured ONTRAS visited our factory to get an up- misprints. FGL-32 pipeline route with an induction bending process. Howev- close look at the advantages of the mandrel Introducing ...

Alexander Heimbeck

Senior Sales Manager With Erne Fittings since June 2017

Alexander Heimbeck moved from that come with working for one of the Düsseldorf to Vorarlberg to work for biggest players in the industry. I also like Erne Fittings. We sat down with him to the friendly way we interact with each talk about how his fi rst year with us has other. Everyone’s there for everyone gone. else.

What kind of work did you do before joining Erne Fittings? I enjoy taking on I worked for various project sales com- the challenges that panies in Germany, and specifi cally in technical project sales for pipes, fi ttings come with working and fl anges. My responsibilities were in business development, national and for one of the international sales (Europe, United States, Canada, South America, etc.) and biggest players in supplier diversifi cation. the industry. What are your responsibilities at Erne 10D Elbow for the “Ferngasleitung 32” Gas Pipeline Fittings? I’m in charge of the Russia, China, Korea What do you like about the Vorarlberg and Japan markets and the worldwide region? How is it diff erent from your Project in the German State of Saxony nuclear market, and I’m responsible home back in Germany? for project procurement. I also provide support for the acquisition of new Vorarlberg is really great! Everybody bending process. At the end of their visit, again that the mandrel bending process customers in Europe for special appli- made me feel welcome right away, technicians from ONTRAS, Piping and Erne used by Erne Fittings is an ideal way to cations, and for the identifi cation and both at Erne and in general, so I felt at Fittings engaged in a lively discussion about achieve the strict tolerances in gas pipeline approval of new suppliers. home right from my fi rst day here. The the increasing demands of gas pipeline construction. people in Vorarlberg are very friend- construction that explicitly confi rmed once ly and helpful. The area itself is just amazing, so after work I can go out on Fittings have my patio and enjoy the quiet and the beautiful mountain view. It’s almost always been my like being on vacation. favorite product. It’s defi nitely a big change from Düssel- dorf, where I used to live, but I’ve got everything I need to live and be happy here. Why do you work for Erne Fittings? What do you think is special about this What do you do in your free time? company? I enjoy the calm of the mountains, and I Fittings have always been my favorite like to go hiking as well. product, and my dream of someday working for a manufacturer has come true. Thank you for talking with us.

Erne has big goals for the next few years, and I’m happy to be a part of that. I enjoy taking on the challenges Erne Fittings Certification Portal

Certifi cates, attestations and proof of the certifi cation portal can be individually authenticity – they’re all indispensable for confi gured. Customers can access the both us and our customers. In offshore, documentation they need at any time, energy and chemical plants, and on other and download documents individually or projects as well, it’s important to be sure in complete packages. A comprehensive that the fi ttings in use are of the fi nest search function is also available to help quality. Unfortunately, counterfeit prod- customers fi nd the certifi cates they need ucts turn up on the market all too frequent- quickly and easily. To make the certifi cates ly. So it’s important for our customers to be more diffi cult to counterfeit, the new doc- able to trust in original products. uments always include a QR code as well. By scanning the QR code, the customer is That’s why Erne Fittings has decided to set sent directly to the website to verify the up a certifi cation portal. Once it’s fully c e r t i fi c a t e . YOUR POINT OF operational, complete documentation like CONTACT: certifi cates, source material certifi cates and Certain customers have been running the MATTHIAS ENDER test reports will be made available to our cus - certifi cation portal in a test phase since mid- (matthias.ender@ernefi ttings.com) tomers through the new certifi cation portal. June, and in July we introduced the certifi ca- tion portal in the United States. Worldwide In order to provide the best possible cus- deployment is planned for the end of the tomer service and fast, user-friendly access, year.

Certificates “Alongside quality and top-notch service it’s important to us that our customers feel Approvals confi rm compliance – and Erne confi dent in their choice of fi ttings.” Fittings has the most safety-related ap- provals of any manufacturer worldwide. Gerold Freudenthaler, CEO

Our fi ttings are used in complex applications like gas, nuclear, offshore and energy pro- jects. These applications require the highest group audit for its locations in Austria and level of safety and professionalism – and Saudi Arabia. Erne Fittings also earned the with us, that’s exactly what you get. Erne GOST-R certifi cate. The GOST certifi cate is Fittings has the most safety-related ap- the offi cial confi rmation that our products provals of any manufacturer. This past sum- meet Russia’s national quality and safety Did you know? mer, Erne Fittings passed the ISO 9001:2015 requirements.

We’ll be appearing at next year’s Stainless trade show in Brno. From May 15 - 16, 2019, our sales managers will be available to meet with you in Brno. Come by and see us!

HEAD OFFICE SUBSIDIARIES

Erne Fittings GmbH Erne Fittings USA, Inc. Erne Fittings Middle East Co. Ltd. Erne Fittings China Hauptstraße 48 9725 Kirkton Dr Road 106, Third Industrial No. 8 Xueqing Road, 6824 Schlins, Austria/Europe Houston, TX 77095 Support Area, 35729 Al Jubail 100192 Haidian District T +43 5524 501 0 United States of America Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Beijing, China F +43 5524 501 8930 T +1 281 363 2686 T +966 13 340 8191 T +86 10 827 372 31 offi ce@ernefi ttings.com F +1 281 367 2488 F +966 13 340 8197 F +86 10 827 372 30 ernefi ttings.com offi [email protected]fi ttings.com jubail@ernefi ttings.com china@ernefi ttings.com