TPT January 2007

P rogress in W elding T echnology, E quipment & C onsumables

geometry without overlay, and requires no secondary operations such as grinding or cleaning. In addition, because the orbital welding equipment is automated, welders can monitor several welding units simultaneously. CMI has since employed orbital welding for tubes from 5mm to 60mm on materials like titanium, Inconel, and stainless steel 304 and 316. This technology has been used both at CMI’s plant and also at customer locations. It has used orbital welding equipment in the fabrication of entire processing plants, boiler systems, skidded assemblies, clean rooms, and large heat exchangers. Today, the company has five TIG/GTAW orbital welding systems, including three closed, one open, and one tube-to-plate welding head. Quality control inspections for orbital welding follow the same procedures as for manual welding at CMI, although the regularity of the automated process is an indicator of consistency. The first weld of the day produced by each automatic welder is designated as a sample, to ensure that the temperature is correct, the heads are clean, and the entire process is operating correctly.

Subsequently, a new sample may be produced every 10-20 welds, depending upon the product, to ensure that everything has remained stable. › Optimum weld seam geometry, with inside/ outside remaining nearly oxidation free

› Multilayer weld macrography

welding equipment and began to use automated welding. For the process equipment and heat exchanger projects, CMI selected orbital welding equipment from Polysoude. By using orbital welding, CMI claims to increase productivity rates because the process is less labour intensive than manual welding. A welder can make more welds per day because the weld presents a regular

This article was supplied by Mr Dick Herzfeld.

Polysoude – France Fax : +33 240 681 188

Email : info@polysoude.com Website : www.polysoude.com

CMI Enterprise – France Fax : +33 241 211 959

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J ANUARY /F EBRUARY 2007