TPi July 2009

Connectors Fi t t ings , Flanges &

Photo – Burak Boru – Turkey – see page 38

Fittings, Flanges and Connectors In these specialties, fit is everything. A tube performs not as a unit but as an element in an assembly. For the integrity and utility of the tubing system, the connections must be of the same high quality as the pieces joined. Whatever the assembly method, tubular joints are expected to be strong, leakproof, corrosion-resistant; robust to whatever extremes of temperature, abrasion, and vibration may present in the environments in which the jointed structure will see out its life in service. This is a tall order for small components. But fittings, flanges, and connectors have been satisfying outsize expectations for as long as lengths of tubing have been fitted together. That is to say, for as long as systems for the transport of water and fuel have facilitated life in community. The seasoned professionals who supply precision-milled fittings and couplings come out of a tradition of craftsmanship which enables the producers of tube and pipe to serve these high purposes.