Surveying high-energy piping hangers
Using a proprietary camera system to undertake accurate hot and cold hanger surveys
Challenges
Operators of plant containing hanger-supported piping can often experience difficulty in inspecting their hanger assets. Challenges include:
- gaining access to hard-to-reach hangers
- identifying topped- or bottomed-out hangers
- reading data from a distance such as hanger name plates
- the need to install and then remove expensive scaffolding to enable hanger inspection
- the difficulties in identifying poorly functioning hangers.
Solution
hrl: has developed an imaging device able to capture still and moving pictures of difficult-to-reach objects. The device can be used on a telescopic arm to help overcome inspection challenges by:
- enabling surveys to be undertaken using a standard method
- providing an inspection system that is safe to use
- eliminating the need for scaffolding
- providing video imaging to give visual records of hanger position in hot and/or cold conditions.
Benefits
Using its imaging device, hrl: undertakes hanger surveys, under hot and cold conditions that benefit clients by:
- identifying hangers that are operating outside their travel limits
- increasing their confidence that their plant's high-energy piping-support system is operating within specification or that out-of-specification hangers are being identified for follow-up action
- reducing the risks of unplanned outages due to pipe cracking
- providing greater inspection access to equipment without the need for scaffolding that can be costly and time-consuming to erect, and can restrict plant access while in place
- increasing inspection operator safety by enabling indicator readings to be from walkways
- enabling readings to be taken at close range and so improving the accuracy of those readings.
