Capital Project:Furnace retube for petrochemical manufacturer

MINI-CASE STUDY 02 | PIPING SHOP FABRICATION | EAST CHICAGO, IN

Market: Chemicals and Refining

Location: MORRIS, IL

Scheduled Timeframe: March, 2021

Challenge

One of the largest petrochemical facilities in the Midwest needed to retube a furnace that reached its 400-cycle lifetime. Because of a Manhattan Mechanical Project Manager’s extensive experience working at the manufacturer’s ethylene facility and a solid working relationship, the client chose the company’s team of multi-skilled craftsmen to retube 880 feet worth of 5″ ANK400 tubes.

While actively working with the client to improve efficiency and safety, the Manhattan Mechanical team provided safe project execution to complete the furnace retube, which involved blinding the furnace, caulking of spring cans, cutting the furnace tubes, and removing them from the radiant-section doors. 

In addition, Manhattan Mechanical’s craftsmen flew in new tubes, hung them from the spring cans, and set the tubes’ elevation. Once the elevation was set, the team purged the furnace with nitrogen to remove the air for the welding procedure. Once the air was removed, the coils/tubes were welded together and 100% X-ray inspected.

• Heavy Material

The ANK400 material used for this project was very heavy, but with Manhattan Mechanical’s ability to handle a heavy haul, this project made for an exciting challenge. The key, as detailed below: Manhattan Mechanical field personnel are multi-crafted and able to operate cranes to move heavy material. 

Solution

• Exceptional safety standards and multi-skilled craftsmen enable increased safety and cost-savings.

Thanks to Manhattan Mechanical’s safety-oriented, multi-skilled craftsmen, the client saved a considerable amount on overall project costs. 

These craftsmen are pipefitters, boilermakers, insulators, carpenters, millwrights, ironworkers, scaffold builders, etc. During this particular capital project, the same group of craftsmen also handled welding and material handling, including operating cranes; plus helping with blinding and other aspects of the project scope. This led to increased efficiency and cost-savings for the ethylene manufacturer.