Case Study

Sullom Voe chooses Hydratight’s weldless connectors

One of Hydratight’s biggest mechanical connector customers is BP’s giant Voe oil terminal, which has seen the good housekeeping sense in keeping a stock of Hydratight’s weldless connectors on site since 2006.

Since that time, our connector has become an integral part of repair and maintenance procedures at Sullom Voe, which now has over 60 connec - tors in use, the largest a 10in flange adaptor.

The reason is simple: for “hot” work, surrounded by live pipes full of high- pressure oil and gas, our mechanical connector is faster and far safer than welding.

Speed and safety were clearly major factors for BP and its repair contrac - tor, Wood Group. The is one of the largest in Europe, vital to the UK oil industry for well over two decades as the main receiving terminal from over two dozen oil and gas fields in the East basin. To halt production, or even part of production, for one day at Sullom Voe could mean the loss of many thousands of barrels of oil.

Hydratight’s mechanical connectors were not originally intended as a rapid repair solution, but over hundreds of projects the system’s ability to per - form that way has become evident, and more and more operators now keep stocks for urgent repairs. In many situations, skillfully-installed con - nectors can be significantly faster than welding, are rarely slower, but are almost always safer, demanding less prep time, minimal shut-down of live pipes and an ability to put a line back into service more quickly.

Sullom Voe’s stock of connectors means units are always on hand for urgent pipe repairs or layout modifications. Hydratight experts also gave local technicians full training, so if a repair is truly urgent, it can be achieved as quickly as technicians can prep the site and apply the con - nectors.

Above: Sullom Voe terminal Hydratight’s part in the huge Sullom Voe enterprise began in early 2006. Below: Hydratight mechanical connector Wood Group ordered a small number of flange adaptors, then nine more of the same units, and at the same time asked Hydratight engineers to demonstrate the connectors’ extensive capabilities.

The speed and simplicity of installation impressed those who saw the demonstration and a subsequent live test — fitting and pressure-testing the nine flange adaptors already purchased — sold the recipients on the Continued on page two “Hydratight’s mechanical connector was not only the safest option, but also the simplest and easiest... Hydratight has a truly a fantastic design, and is a great company to work with.”

Ian Davies BP Mechanical Engineer Continued from page one

connectors’ abilities. In October 2006, Wood Group ordered 42 connec tors and adaptors for pipes up to 6in, and since then they have bought around 20 more.

Why did Hydratight’s mechanical connector’s qualities prove so persuasive? Martin Popple, a piping designer with Wood Group, explained: “We were attempting to reduce hot working, to minimise the hazards associated with it on sites like this, but we needed to ensure system integrity.

“We were looking for an approved system with ease of installation and a large temperature spread — attributes found in our 150 and 2000 Series flange adaptors.

“New piping can be shop-fabricated, the connector installed and tested and the sections painted while the defective piping is being demolished. The new work can then be installed and leak-tested. Using our mechanical con - nector allows a more seamless sequence of events and minimises down - Sullom Voe terminal times.”

Ian Davies, a BP mechanical engineer, added: “The initial nine connectors were for a low temperature blowdown line within our gas-drying plant. With - out Hydratight’s connectors we would have had to complete hot work on a site close to equipment containing hydrocarbons in over nine different loca - tions within a hazard zone. That would have demanded the shutdown of the whole fractionation system for safe welding conditions, and significant costs in lost production. Using Hydratight’s mechanical connectors was not only the safest option, but also the simplest and easiest — with insignificant costs compared to lost production. Hydratight has a truly a fantastic design, and is a great company to work with.”

Many more companies have discovered our mechanical connectors’ ease of use, safe working abilities and speed, both topside and subsea. Our connectors have been used on pipelines of up to 42in and subsea has even been used in a diverless repair on a 30in, 210bar pipe, 200m down in the Norwegian fields.

Hydratight has now supplied upwards of 2,500 connectors in sizes between 1in and 42in around the world, for maintenance, construction and repair projects.

For more information visit hydratight.com

HT/CS-MC/UK/09-12