Edmonton Valve & Fitting Blog

These five topics proved the most popular for the past year

A lot of our posts come with some great (free) downloads. We look back at our top customer downloads for 2018, including the Hand Tube Bender Manual - did you get your hands on all of them yet? 

Some of the greatest resources on our website are the many downloads you can get for free. Fill out the form, click the "download" button, and you get tons of useful information at no cost.

A few of the most popular downloads are old favorites. There's no greater classic in fluid systems than the Swagelok Tube Fitter’s Manual. Author Joe Callahan had a 42-year-career at Swagelok. In fact, he started before the company was called Swagelok, and ended up as president, chief executive and chairman.

The Swagelok Tube Fitter's Manual balances theory and practical examples, making it a must-have reference for fluid system engineers, designers, and technicians, as well as students. Each of its 11 chapters covers a different aspect of a tubing system, including fittings, tubing, installation, and more.

The other classic is our Hand Tube Bender Manual.  Bending tubing by hand is often the fastest and simplest way to bend tubing. The Hand Tube Bender Manual explains step-by-step how to prepare, measure, and calculate, to perfectly execute the bends every time. Once you've learned how to do use it properly, Swagelok hand tube benders provide consistent, high-quality bends in tubing made from most materials used with Swagelok tube fittings.

Special subjects

But people also loved a couple of less-common items. Among them are our VCR & VCO Face Seal Catalogues. The VCR line is our metal gasket face seal fittings. In the catalogue you'll find typical VCR assemblies, pressure and temperature ratings, testing and cleaning information, and more. VCO is a line of O-ring face seal fittings. The VCO catalogue is likewise packed with technical data and testing information.

Visitors to our site also found the Swagelok Special Alloys PDF desirable. When you need parts made of titanium, 6-Moly or any of 10 other alloys, this is the place to start sorting through your choices. Swagelok has the industry knowledge, metallurgy expertise, quality reputation, layers of support, and skills in both design and manufacturing to assist with your job requirements. 

Expert advice

For a broad range of expert advice, our Training & Education page proved very popular.

Whether you need in-depth courses taught by expert instructors or training videos and online classes, Swagelok training equips your team to work safer and smarter. Topics include:

• Swagelok Essentials: Learn to build and maintain dependable systems, taught by Swagelok-certified trainers at locations and times convenient to you.
• Sampling System Training: Three courses that will help you diagnose, troubleshoot and eliminate sampling system design flaws.
• Advanced Tube Bending: Learn different methods of tube bending for both simple and complex offset bends with hand and bench-top tube benders.
• Tech Tips Videos: A wide range of Swagelok expertise at your convenience with our video library, with topics from tube bending assembly to regulator applications.

Are any of these downloads missing from your collection? This is a great time to fill in the gaps.

Get quick, tailored advice

In a hurry or have a question? Please get in touch (we respond fast):

If some of these posts don't sound familiar, this is a great time to catch up

With 2018 now at a close, we look back over the past year at what the most popular Swagelok blog topics were for our readers. 

Here on our blog we like to emphasize variety. Sometimes we write about products, sometimes about services, sometimes about people. Most of the time we give you practical information, but we also like to have some fun once in a while.

Our blog allows us to go a little deeper into a subject from time to time. For instance, you've probably heard or read that you should never mix Swagelok components with those from another manufacturer. As we explained in June, there are several practical reasons, from workplace safety to keeping your warranty valid.

Then there's the topic of pressure ratings. Customers often ask us about how to find out the pressure rating of a particular Swagelok tube fitting. We explained three key questions back in August.

We also like to pass along tips for saving money. Anytime you require a special tool but don't want to shoulder the cost of buying it, inquire with us if you can rent it from Edmonton Valve. We have rental tools for a variety of jobs, including tools for installing cone-and-thread fittings. We can even train you to use them properly.

The right choices

Now that we're deep into winter again, it seems like a good time to revisit a post from last February about a great way to slay ice, the Steam Lance. Important to note that we fabricate steam lances right here in Edmonton in our Custom Solutions department, so we can make them exactly the length you want.

Sometimes it's hard to know exactly what you do want, especially when it comes to hose. Swagelok offers 18 series of hoses, in sizes ranging from 1/8 inch to 2 inch with more than 30 possible end connections. How can you select the combination that's best for your particular job? Use the Installer's Pocket Guide for Swagelok Hoses, which we described in March.

Those are some of the most popular posts from our blog in 2018. If you feel like you may have missed out on some other interesting topics, we have all our posts archived. Browse through them, then contact us if you'd like to learn even more about a particular topic. We're easy (and quick) to reach at 780-437-0640, or through the contact page on our website. 

Free, expert advice on calculating the cost of fluid leaks at your facility

Most experienced professionals who work on fluid systems have dealt with thousands of fluid leaks. In strictly financial terms, how much have they saved their companies by stopping those leaks? How much more can be saved by ending and preventing leaks?

Leakage is expressed as a flow—a volume per unit of time, cm3/minute, gallons/day etc. The system fluid is the leakage vehicle. Therefore, the cost of a leak varies with what is leaking out (or, in the case of a vacuum system, leaking in).

One drop per second will add up to more than 400 gallons a year. For fluids costing, say, $5 a gallon, that can be up to $2,000 wasted every year.

And that's just from a single leak. If you've ever spotted one leak in a fluid system, it's very likely that that there are others hidden out of sight.

Quick download

Even if fluid leaks don't result in fires, falls, and the like, leakage costs big money. Chapter Ten of the popular Swagelok Tube Fitter's Manual shows how to calculate it.

But even when the only fluid involved is compressed air (a seemingly “free” fluid), it still means using extra power to keep the pressure up. A leak with an orifice of only 1/16 of an inch at 100 psig will waste 280,000 cubic feet in a month.

Indeed, at a cost of only 20 cents per thousand cubic feet, that's $672 wasted each year on "free" air from a single leak. Multiply these losses by the number of leaks in a facility, and the wasted money compounds quickly.

Benchmarks

Industry experts estimate that 100 million gallons of hydraulic oil are lost each year through leakage. All that lost lubrication accounts for millions of dollars in damaged equipment. That, of course, means lost production when machines are shut down for repair.

If the leak results in the loss of process gases, analyzer gases, nitrogen, helium, or hydrogen, it can mean the difference between profit and loss. These specialty gasses can have costs per cubic foot in orders of magnitude more expensive. That's in addition to the cost of improperly calibrated or operating instruments, which can result in off-spec product.

Erosion

Consider, too, that the same benefits that make steam useful make it a headache when the system has a leak. Aside from all the problems mentioned above for other fluids, steam has well-known erosive properties that usually make leaks grow larger with time.

And in the case of steam leaks, fuel cost and boiler efficiency tell less than half the story. Many factors in the steam system affect the cost of steam. They include fuel cost (lower-cost fuels result in lower steam cost ); operating steam pressure (lower operating steam pressure results in lower steam cost, while higher operating steam pressure requires more energy to produce the steam); and the percentage of make-up water or percentage of condensate return (normal condensate returns have a higher Btu content than make-up water; today’s industrial benchmark for condensate return is 90% if the plant is not injecting steam for the process).

The good news

A small leak can drain big dollars off the bottom line, and get worse over time. But there is a free resource that can help you calculate the cost of leaks in your unique operation. Download Hidden Cost of Leakage here.

Get quick, tailored advice

In a hurry or have a question? Please get in touch (we respond fast):

With a lifetime of field experience to draw on, he's a hit with our customers

"In this field, the training is never ending as the technology is constantly evolving," says Don Yahn, one of the newest members on Edmonton Valve's Custom Solutions Field Engineer team. 

Don Yahn, one of our newest team members in Custom Solutions Field Engineering Support, carries a lot of credibility when he talks to customers. For 34 years he worked at Shell Canada's Scotford Refinery, so he knows firsthand the complexity of dealing with fluid systems in the field.

Since the spring of 2018 he's been using that vast store of knowledge to support our Custom Solutions team and provide field engineering to our customers. Frequently that means traveling to customer sites with our sales associates to see where Custom Solutions might help customers with issues they may be having. It's not unusual for Yahn to suggest solutions that the customer never realized we could provide.

Listening to our customers

Yahn puts a lot of emphasis on listening to customers and then thinking back to when he may have dealt with a similar issue.

One recent visit started out with a discussion on issues the customer was having with pressure regulation on gas streams. It quickly evolved into a discussion regarding filtration and the frequency with which they were changing filters on multiple sample streams.

"I asked some basic questions, took that information away and did some research, and found they had been using the wrong filters all along," Yahn says. "They were just doing what the site had always been doing and hadn’t really questioned why they were changing filters so often."

Yahn's recommendation should reduce their maintenance workload significantly so the customer can focus on other priorities.

"Many of the issues I’ve seen thus far have been one’s I’m familiar with, so I’m comfortable having those discussions," he says. But he also has a wealth of industry research to draw on.

"In this field the training is never ending as the technology is constantly changing to keep up with the evolution of computing and processing of data," he says.

Industry experience

Yahn also has provided some basic design overviews for customers that aren't sure about certain issues or where to turn for support.

"Sometimes just a quick discussion or some email exchanges can help them move forward with making the changes, knowing that the issue was looked at and re-affirms their own thoughts," he says.

The deep knowledge Yahn possesses is hard to come by. He graduated from the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology back when there were less than 20 graduates from The Instrumentation Engineering Technology department. When he left Shell, he was Senior Instrument Technologist Major Projects.

He takes pride in always trying to "do the right thing" and having his contributions valued. He also takes pride in the acknowledgement that others have given him for passing along his experiences and helping their careers.

"In my career at Shell I was used to people coming to me with a problem and looking to me to come up with a solution," Yahn says. He sees his role at Edmonton Valve as an extension of that mentoring. "I make myself available to everyone at Edmonton Valve & Fitting if there’s an area where I can contribute to their success."

Interested in getting Don Yahn and our Field Engineering team out to your site? Contact us by clicking the "Message Us" below to get it set -up!

Additional Swagelok expertise and resources for fluid system experts

You can find the newest blog posts at https://www.swagelok.com/en/blog

What's new?

Swagelok Company recently launched their newest 'hotspot' for all things fluid system related with their blog, "Swagelok Reference Point."

You can expect to see two to three new blogs post per month, so there will always be fresh content and relate-able blogs to your applications and industries. 

You can find topics such as:

• Analytical Instrumentation
• Fluid System Training
• Fluid System Safety
• Fluid System Evaluation

We at Edmonton Valve will be cross-referencing the blogs in our blog space too, so we will be keeping you up-to-date on the newest posts and relevant topics to our customers. 

We hope you enjoy this new online space - check out the Swagelok Reference Point blog today!

Get in touch

Have questions about this post, send us a quick email and we will be happy to assist.

Any energy management program should include efforts to prevent and repair leaks

Leaks can be costly in more ways than one. Download our Hidden Costs of Leakage PDF to explore how a leak in your system could be impacting your business and budget. 

Leak breakdown

In any fluid system, there could be one or more kinds of leaks:

• Inboard leakage, where something is flowing into the system from outside
• Outboard leakage, where something is flowing out of containment into the environment, or
• Internal leakage, where something is flowing across internal seals within containment, such as a leaky valve seat

There can even be virtual leaks, where nothing is breaching the containment, but internally trapped fluid gets released into the system due to material out-gassing, absorbed or adsorbed fluids, entrapment in cracks or dead-legs, etc.

Leakage can take many forms, like:

• Compressed air leaking out of a pneumatic system
• Steam escaping from a processing line
• Hydraulic fluid seeping out of machinery

Common causes 

Bad installation techniques are frequent causes of leaks. Common mistakes include failing to fully insert tubing into the tube fitting body, under-tightening, over-tightening, putting bends in the tubing too close to the end of the tube, and poorly preparing the tube. Surface defects such as dents and scratches can lead to leaks too.

Another cause of leakage is using components outside their rated temperature and pressure ratings or with incompatible materials. Also, low quality fluid system components also contribute to leaks. Proper selection of high quality fluid system components are an integral part of creating leak tight fluid systems.

(Recommended: Get local help with product selection.)

Isn't some leakage normal?

It's true that whether it's an inboard, outboard, or virtual leak, no man-made system will always be leak-free. But consider the following:

A group of 1,304 different process installations leak checked more than 600,000 fittings for a five-year period ending in September 2013, and reported the results to Swagelok Company. Almost 10% of the fittings that had been interchanged or intermixed with another manufacturer's components were found leaking, and pipe fittings had a leak rate of about 7 percent. In contrast, Swagelok tube fittings had a leak rate of about 1%. (This data is not offered as test results that are scientifically valid or statistically significant.)

While the 1% leak rate for Swagelok fittings is 7-10 times better than pipe fittings and intermixed/interchanged fittings, we believe that one leak is one too many. So, we strive to get to the root cause of every leak. We find that many Swagelok tube fittings are not installed according to our installation instructions. Poor installation practices, low quality tubing, improper tubing or fitting selection - all these contribute to leak rates. We have found that customer leak rates can approach zero when Swagelok tube fittings are used in concert with high quality tubing, a robust Swagelok safety and installation training program, and energy management services.

Isn't tracking down and stopping all the leaks expensive?

Possibly -- but not stopping them is likely to be expensive too.

The leak data noted above correlates well with a study performed by Dr. Arthur Sterling of the Chemical The-Hidden-Costs-of-Leakage.png Engineering Department at Louisiana State University in 1999. Dr. Sterling surveyed eleven industrial plants in the Louisiana area and determined that leaks were present in many areas of the plant. The average instrument air leak was 494 milliliters per minute. Using a cost of $0.40 per 1000 cubic feet of instrument air, the average fitting leak costs $0.31 per month.

Leaks can damage equipment, hurt production, cause product contamination, and create unsafe working conditions and other health hazards. All it takes is a small puddle of hydraulic fluid or a jet of steam to put someone in the hospital.

If that is not motivation enough to engage in proactive leak detection and prevention programs, fluid loss is also expensive. According to a study conducted by the Energy Department's Office of Industrial Technologies, even something as simple as a ¼” diameter leak of compressed air can cost as much as $8,382 a year using a rate of five cents per kWh and assuming constant operation and an efficient compressor.

How to find leaks

We have a few ways to spot leaks. One is to put the suspect parts under water in a chamber made of transparent polycarbonate and look for bubbles. Another is to apply one of our Snoop® liquid leak detectors. When the parts are pressurized, the leak will produce bubbles. Leaks are usually expressed as a flow — a volume per unit of time. Anyone using Snoop will get the basic idea instantly: the bigger the bubbles, the worse the leak.

Leaks can also be detected by measuring losses in pressure, and of course by simply looking to see if any fluid is escaping. Technology has added to the arsenal of tools. The list now includes thermal imaging cameras and ultrasonic (acoustic) leak detectors.

Leak detection + leak prevention = better safety and lower costs

Any good energy management program should include efforts to prevent and repair leaks. If you don't have such a program, start one. If you already are making the effort, make sure you document any resulting energy savings. You may be surprised at how fast leak prevention and repair can pay for itself. You'll have lower maintenance costs, less downtime, higher production, and safer workers. Lower overall system costs add up to more profitability.

Get in touch

Talk with our team about finding, assessing, and addressing leaks at your facility:

Up to 50% of skilled workers could retire withing the next 10 years - we can help relieve that pressure

Building an effective training program can help maintain the skills of your experienced workforce and assist your new staff in getting up to speed. Let us help with our free resource, “Three Steps to Building an Effective Plant Training Program."

Did you know last year alone Swagelok helped train approximately 40,000 individuals on their plant’s fluid systems? If you weren't one of them, we can assist you today. 

Building an effective training program

Not sure on where to start in building an effective training program for your plant and operations? Here is a quick overview on our free download:

• How to meet the varied needs of your labour force
  (Step 1: "Don't leave anyone out")
• Questions to ask when looking for a training provider 
  (Step 2: "Look for experienced instructors")
• The proper follow-up for your people after training
  (Step 3: "Manage the 'forgetting curve' ")
• Bonus tips for each step

Learn more about our training offerings, get in touch today. 

Additional resources:

• New Training Centre Has Plenty Of Room For Learning
• Swagelok Services Relieve the Other Kind of Pressure
• Seek Suppliers That Help You Prepare for Recovery

Cylinder assemblies take a beating in the field, so give them the attention they deserve

Edmonton Valve’s Cylinder Maintenance program will put your cylinders to the test with a visual inspection, assessment of threads, fittings, etc., and a full detailed report on their overall condition with recommendations for repairs and further testing if required. Contact us if you would like to set-up a discussion for your own cylinder maintenance program. 

Sample cylinder assemblies can face a rough life in the field. Unlike fittings or gauges, you don't just install them and leave them alone while they do their job, possibly for years. Cylinder assemblies go through an endless series of connecting and disconnecting and valves are continuously opening and closing. Valve stems are subject to wear over time as the seals are being exposed to different fluids, range of temperatures, and pressures.

The assembly may rattle around in a truck bed while being transported around the site. There's a lot of potential for sudden damage, such as someone dropping an assembly and breaking a valve handle, or long-term damage such as threads wearing out. Extreme cold weather that we have in Alberta definitely takes its toll too.

If you don't pay close enough attention to the wear and tear, leaks may develop at the connection points. In applications where a coating such as sulfinert is required, repeated use can wear away the coating and give you less accurate readings when the contents are analyzed.

Introducing our cylinder maintenance program

Just as you'd want a trained expert to inspect your car, trust the trained experts at Edmonton Valve & Fitting to inspect your cylinder assemblies. This year we have introduced our Cylinder Maintenance Program as one of our quality assurance services.

We will visually inspect your cylinders and any related assemblies, using a micrometer on the cylinder itself to ensure that the cylinder has not been deformed and is still within tolerance to operate safely under pressure. In our experience, sample cylinders tend to last a long time, but we have seen some instances of thread damage and rust or corrosion.

We'll assess the conditions of threads, needle valves, rupture disc valves, and fittings. When we're done, we'll write up a report for you, with detailed pictures of our findings. We'll make recommendations and, if you like, make repairs and tests.

Sample cylinders and their corresponding components all have a lifespan. This service is a great way to inspect these components to ensure they fall within certain safety parameters and guidelines.

All you have to do is decide how often you'd like us to perform an inspection (every three years or so is typical). One of our associates can visit your site to begin the conversation of a suitable starting point. This service is tailored to each specific customer and what results they are looking to achieve. We are excited about this new program and teaming up even more with our customers to provide a safe and efficient work environment. 

Request more information on this service here. 

Additional resources:

• Cylinders Are a Must For Grab Sample Systems
• Sample Cylinder Assemblies Offer Flexibility
• Edmonton Valve's 5 Pillar Approach to Services

We'll rent or sell the machines, and we'll teach you how to use them

Swagelok's Welding System M200 is available for rental purposes or for purchase. And if you're not sure how to use the machine, we can help you out with a training session to get you comfortable with the system. Just contact us and we will gladly help you out with your needs. 

There are times when you want to connect two pieces of tubing permanently rather than with a removable fitting. You could manually weld them together, but you'll get even better results with an orbital welder. That's because the computer-controlled machine precisely guides the welding electrode in a circle around the joint. The machine doesn't get tired either, so the last weld of the day will be just as good as the first.

The process is also known as Gas Tungsten Arc Welding, or GTAW. Lightweight, portable equipment makes it easy to do the work right at the job site.

Edmonton Valve & Fitting has a welder waiting for you, and we'll teach you how to use it.

Touch-screen ease

The Swagelok Welding System M200 power supply offers an easy-to-use touch-screen for trouble-free data entry and uncomplicated viewing of information. The screen layouts are simple to follow. You can program variables such as weld current and electrode speed, then track each weld. The Windows-based system monitors the welding, captures and compiles data in real time, and electronically transfers it from the welder to a computer. That makes documentation easy too.

Watch and learn

Just because a machine is automatic doesn’t mean it automatically does the job correctly. The quality of the work still depends on the skill of the operator. Even the fanciest orbital welding machine can't tell you if you need ordinary stainless steel tubing or more specialized material.

We offer a four-hour training course to get you up to speed.

The course is a mix of lecture and hands-on practice. We'll explain all the parts — the power supply, the fixture block, the welding head and more. We'll show you what a good smooth weld looks like (flat, not concave or convex). You'll learn how the machine reacts to different inputs. The level of the arc current, for example, controls weld penetrations. Travel speed affects both the width and the penetration of the weld.

Then you'll get a chance to hook up the power supply yourself, prepare some tubing for welding, and put the machine through its paces.

We don't rush you, because we know that proper setup is the key to good welding.

Rent or buy

You have two options: renting or buying the equipment.

If you're renting and have some experience operating an orbital welder, we may still ask a few questions such as when you last used a welder, and whether you've rented from us in the past. We'll also probably want to know what size of material you are welding, as that determines which of several heads to use. Then we might ask about wall thickness, which could determine which electrode is best.

As with any rental agreement, you assume responsibility for any damage, but we want to reduce the chances of you having any problems. If we aren't sure about your level of expertise, we'll insist that you take the training class.

Usually we can have a welder ready for you with only a couple of weeks notice. If you want to buy, it may take a little longer. But that extra time means you have more flexibility on scheduling the training class.

We'll be glad to tell you more. Send us a note through our website or call us at 780-437-0640

Additional resources:

• New Classes Offer Hands-On Training for IPT Fittings 
• Your Checklist for Tubing Quality
• Nice Looking Threads, but What Size Are They?

Stop by our booth #1076 to talk about hose, Grab Sample Modules and watch burst demonstrations

We are looking forward to heading south to Calgary for the 2018 Global Petroleum Show from June 12th - 14th. Not only are we teaming up with our friends at Calgary Valve & Fitting but with many Swagelok associates from across North America. Make sure you register to come to the show before May 31st for Early bird pricing - see you there!

Once again, Edmonton Valve & Fitting will join forces with other Swagelok affiliates for the big Global Petroleum Show in Calgary from June 12 through 14. We'll be in our usual spot: booth 1076, right inside the doors of Hall A. We'll have 16 people manning the booth in shifts, so you will find a knowledgeable fluid system expert any time from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the first two days, and until 4 p.m. on the third day.

If you haven't been to the GPS in the past, you've been missing the leading exhibition and conference for oil and gas professionals. More than 50,000 trade professionals attend GPS, while more than 100 industry leading experts share their knowledge and understanding across the event’s expansive line-up of conference sessions.

The Swagelok advantage

At our booth we'll have Swagelok hose products on display, along with grab sample panels.

We're also excited to talk to you about MEP services, where we concentrate on three areas in a plant. The first is rotating equipment such as pumps and compressors. We have the specialized fittings that make working on those systems easier, such as Thermowell Tees to reduce the number of welds and up-sizing of pipe.

The second area is energy management and utilities. The third area is conversion from traditional piping to small bore tubing (2-inches and smaller).

Throughout the show we try to have some senior representatives in the booth, so you can have a serious conversation and expect to come away with some solid information. If we can't answer your question on the spot, we'll get your contact information and get back to you as soon as we can.

So excited we could 'burst'

We will also have our burst chamber on-hand that we use in our Swagelok Total Support training classes. Our Swagelok booth staff will be running demos and you can test your skills with pulling up a tube fitting and see what pressure the tubing bursts. We suggest you compete with your peers and see who has the higher burst pressure!

So stop by, say hello, and gather some free information and expertise.We look forward to seeing you in June.

For more on this topic, see:

• Seal Support Simplified: Call Edmonton Valve & Fitting
• Anatomy of a Swagelok Hose: What's Going on Inside and Out
• A Customer View on Edmonton's Tube Fitting & Installation Training