TPT July 2011

I ndustry N ews

TMK IPSCO rolls out second thread line

TMK IPSCO’s premium pipe threading facility in Ohio, USA began a two-week commissioning phase for its second thread line, which will allow the facility to thread more and larger pipe to meet the expanding demand in the oil and gas industry. “What this means for the industry is that we are now able to provide an even quicker response to the growing needs of the Marcellus drilling region,” said Piotr Galitzine, chairman of TMK IPSCO. “Marcellus will play a major role going forward as natural gas finds new uses in electricity generation and municipal transportation.” TMK IPSCO’s Premium pipe connections are well-known in the industry. The second thread line will allow the plant to thread pipes up to 13 5 / 8 " in diameter, up from the previous size range of 4"- 7 5 / 8 " under the first thread line. Each line is capable of threading more than 40,000 tons of pipe per year with an ULTRA- DQX™ Premium Connection, ULTRA- SF™ Premium Connection or ULTRA-FJ™ Premium Connection. TMK IPSCO’s team expressed great optimism at the added capacity brought on by the addition of the second thread line at Brookfield. “The second line not

only doubles our threading capacity at Brookfield,” said David Green, director of operations in TMK IPSCO’s Premium division, “it also allows us to thread a wider range of product more efficiently, including the new ULTRA-QX™ Premium Connection, which is especially important in deeper and higher pressure drilling environments. This is true in Marcellus and in some of the Canadian projects that we began shipping directly to this year.” In addition to threading, the facility in Brookfield also manufactures connections fittings and accessories for oil and gas exploration and recovery. The facility’s accessories line was commissioned in October 2010 and is the only such provider in the Marcellus region. “The accessories business is crucial, as the float equipment and other tooling required in the wells require the same threading as the pipes with our premium threads,” said Mr Green. “We are working to expand our accessory business at both our Brookfield and Houston locations.” Strategically located near TMK IPSCO’s steelmaking and pipe-rolling operations in Koppel and Ambridge, Pennsylvania, the Brookfield facility currently employs more than 60 workers. Total employment at the Laser cutting offers a number of key benefits for the customer as complex cutting procedures, including angles and V-shapes in both closed and open section tubes, can be carried out in a single pass. Electronic drawing lists can be programmed directly into the machine, allowing prototypes to be produced quickly in a single pass, saving time and money on processing and providing greater opportunities to redesign and refine. David Cleaver, sales manager of Lasertube Cutting, commented, “Acquiring our second LT8 opens up a wealth of opportunities for our customers, not just in the extra capacity it provides, but also in the speed of turn round. It also increases our capabilities for newer and growing requirements in the offshore wind turbine industry and other renewable energy markets where high volumes are required, often to tight deadlines. Crucially, the LT8 allows us to guarantee repeatability in terms of accuracy, tolerances and finish.” the tube division’s commitment to serving its customers by using the latest and most advanced processing equipment.

facility is projected to increase to more than 100 with the future addition of a third thread line. “We are fortunate to have a wealth of experience and expertise in our backyard,” says Ernie Sexton, plant manager at Brookfield. “We look forward to expanding our team in this rapidly growing region.” Groundbreaking for the second line took place in early October 2010 during a visit to the facility by the Board of Directors of TMK, the parent company of TMK IPSCO. TMK IPSCO operates in North America as a division of TMK, a global market leader in energy pipe production. TMK operates 23 production facilities around the world. TMK product offerings include a wide range of seamless and welded energy tubular products including oil and gas drill pipe, well casing and tubing, line pipe, LD pipe, standard pipe, hollow structural sections and related services. The company also manufactures premium connections for oil and natural gas drilling and production under the ULTRA™ Premium Connections and TMK Premium brand names. TMK IPSCO – USA Email: pr@tmk-ipsco.com Website: www.tmk-ipsco.com Typical applications for laser cut mild steel tube includes arms for excavating equipment for leading yellowgoods companies, precision cut steel sections for the UK’s leading coach builder and other vehicle manufacturers, and for bracings in buildings. Stainless steel products that benefit from laser tube cutting include architectural handrailing, racking systems for shop fitting, architectural feature work, security and architectural fencing, lighting columns and office furniture. The LT8 can process traditional circular, square, rectangular, oval, elliptical oval and open sections such as channel, angle and flat bar. Also equipped with a tilting head, the LT8 offers 3D cutting for time- saving weld preparations. High productivity is achieved with the machine’s ability to load material automatically from a dedicated bunker or from a single bar loader on the other side, and automatically cut multiple pieces of different profiles and lengths. Barrett Steel – UK Email: chris.lamb@barrettsteel.com Website: www.barrettsteel.com

Extended laser tube cutting facilities

LASERTUBE Cutting, part of the Barrett Steel Group, has commissioned its second LT8 tube laser, with a third on order for delivery in June 2011. The addition of the third LT8 will establish Barrett Steel’s tubes division as one of the leading laser processors in Europe. Previous recent investment has been in the LT Jumbo, the largest tube laser in the UK both in terms of tube range processed, lengths that can be produced and scale of machine. Plans to invest in the UK's first LT Fibre laser will bring Barrett Steel’s total investment in new technology to £2mn, further demonstrating

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J uly 2011

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