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Sulzer Pumps is to supply 42 pumps for installation on two FPSO vessels that will operate in the Pre Salt Iracema cluster areas located in the Santos Basin, off the coast of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The order, consisting of pump packages for seawater lift, water injection and auxiliary services, was awarded by Keppel FELS Brasil S/A. Keppel FELS Brasil was awarded the contracts for the fabrication and integration of the two FPSO vessels P-66 and P-69 by Tupi B.V, a consortium led by Petrobras.
With this order, Sulzer Pumps will be supplying to eight FPSOs currently under construction for Petrobras, and more than 1,300 pumps in service for Petrobras in offshore Brazil.
The water injection pump packages contain API 610 BB5 pump models driven by a 5.5 MW electric motors whilst the seawater lift pump packages consist of vertical pumps driven by 960kW submersible electric motors.
Other pumps are used for various auxiliary services essential to FPSO operations such as cooling water circulation, hot water circulation and water injection pump boosting.
The pump packages that are scheduled for delivery in 2014 will be built at Sulzer Pumps’ facility in Jundiaí, São Paulo. This is a development, manufacturing and distribution centre for Sulzer.
(Image source: Sulzer)
UK flowmeter company Litre Meter has shipped its 3,000th offshore positive displacement (PD) meter, following a series orders from the offshore oil and gas industry.
Recent shipments include a series of meters to be used subsea, on a variety of chemicals, over a wide range of flows at high pressure and calibrated at specific viscosities.
For example, Litre Meter rotary piston flow meters are part of systems used to control the amount of ‘antifreeze’ injected into pipelines at 430bar in subsea gas exploration on fields in the Caspian Sea and the North Sea.
‘Antifreeze’ fluids like methanol are used as thermodynamic inhibitors, which lower the freezing point of gas hydrate. They are injected into pipelines where there is a risk of hydrates (dew) forming then freezing at low temperature.
The antifreeze prevents gas hydrates solidifying as crystals and blocking pipelines - which can result in a costly shutdown and the risk of explosion or unintended release of hydrocarbons into the environment.
Litre Meter said it has also recently shipped flowmeters for use in chemical injection skids on a number of fields in the Gulf of Mexico and the Persian Gulf off Dubai.
These meters are used in the flow measurement of wax dispersants and pour point depressants (PPD) to control their use to a very high tolerance.
Wax dispersants break apart and prevent the reformation of hydrocarbon sludge deposits and improve flow by reducing the viscosity of the fluid. PPDs are used to reduce the viscosity of oil and to maintain flow rate by preventing the build-up of wax crystals at low temperatures.
Sludge deposits are typically composed of varying concentrations of hydrocarbon, asphaltene, paraffin, water and inorganic materials. They are commonly found in storage tanks and vessels, production and transportation pipelines, process systems and hydrocarbon-producing formations where they have an adverse effect on the flow of crude oil from the well head.
Other recent offshore applications for Litre Meter equipment include a potable water chlorine dosing skid for a North Sea gas platform. These instruments are used to measure the flow of water in a range of 1,470 to 5,000 l/hr at a pressure of 8.5 bar.
The meters need to be both accurate and robust over long periods of continual use. In addition, all the process wetted and pressure retaining parts had to be constructed from 6 Moly austenitic stainless steel.
Litre Meter CEO Charles Wemyss said: “The shipment of the 3,000th meter for an offshore chemical injection application fully demonstrates the variety of demanding applications that VFF flowmeters can be used for, from maintaining flow assurance to ensuring the supply of potable water on offshore platforms.
“Litre Meter’s VFF flowmeter is ideally suited for use in the oil and gas industry and in particular for low flow / high pressure applications.
“Years of experience in chemical injection applications onshore and offshore have confirmed the instrument’s capability to reliably measure fluids under extreme conditions of both temperature and pressure.”
Atlas Copco AB is to acquire Edwards Group Ltd , a UK-based supplier of vacuum and abatement solutions, for £1.04 billion.
With 3,200 employees., Edwards had sales of £626 million in 2012 – over 50% in Asia – with an earnings (EBITDA) margin of around 19%.
The Crawley-headquartered company's vacuum products are used in a range of manufacturing processes, including for those making semiconductors and flat panel displays.
In the process sector, Edwards is focused on four specific sectors: power generation, chemical and pharmaceutical manufacture, and petrochemical production.
The company's potfolio encompasses dry pumping technologies used in the production of pharmaceutical active principles and specialty chemicals, especially where oil-free vacuums are required.
Edwards also supplies seawater injection deaerators for crude oil recovery, and large-capacity steam ejector systems used in refineries.
The acquisition offers Atlas Copco an opportunity to develop synergies between vacuum and compressed air solutions markets, said a 19 Aug group statement.
“The vacuum solutions market is growing and has similar characteristics to our existing industrial businesses,” said Ronnie Leten, president and CEO of Atlas Copco.
The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of 2014, with Edwards to join a new new 'vacuum solutions' division within Atlas Copco’s 'compressor technique' business segment.
ABB has delivered the East West Interconnector to EirGrid, the Irish transmission system operator. The 500MW transmission connection is the highest capacity link of its kind, based on voltage source converter (VSC) technology, to go into commercial operation.
The interconnector links the Irish and UK grids, enabling cross-border power flows and enhancing grid reliability and security of electricity supplies. The new link also facilitates power trading between the two countries and connects Ireland to the European grid.
As Ireland expands its wind power capacity, it can export surplus electricity to the UK, and can import power when required.
A 262 km cable system connects Woodland in County Meath, Ireland and Deeside in north Wales.
The cables are equipped with extruded polymeric insulation that provides strength and flexibility to endure the severe conditions of the Irish Sea.
According to ABB, HVDC Light’s ‘black start’ capability can help restore power quickly in the event of an outage, without the aid of external energy sources.
NOF Energy is staging an event at Newcastle United Football Club on 19 Sept for companies looking to network with well-known subsea companies in the north east of England.
Organised on behalf of Subsea North East (SSNE), the event will include presentations on topics including: New business opportunities for high performing and innovative suppliers; Industry spends and trends; and How to position your business in the subsea supply chain.
SSNE is an advocacy group for the North East of England’s subsea sector: promoting the region’s capabilities in the development of subsea technologies and solutions.
The SSNE executive committee includes: BEL Valves, Duco, Forum Energy Technologies, IHC Engineering Business, Newcastle University, OSBIT Power, PDL Solutions (Europe), Penspen, SMD, Quick Hydraulics, Wellstream, Wilton Group, NOF Energy and Subsea UK.
Engineering companies entering the 2013 Best Factory Awards (BFA) have shown a sharp increase in productivity and a decline in customer lead times compared to entries last year.
The trends confirm reports that UK manufacturing has gathered speed this year, say organisers of the event which is run by Cranfield School of Management in partnership with Works Management magazine.
There are 14 plants shortlisted for the BFA:
Cummins Power Generation Ltd, Manston, Ramsgate – Constructs diesel and gas powered generators for primary and secondary standby power.
Herman Miller Ltd, Chippenham - Manufactures high quality seating for offices.
VI-Spring Ltd, Ernesettle, Plymouth – Produces quality hand crafted mattresses and divans for the global market place.
Tharsus Vision Ltd, Blyth – The plant provides Original Equipment Design and Manufacture service (OEDM).
EMS Radio Fire & Security Systems Ltd, Herne Bay, Kent – Designs and manufactures wirefree fire detection equipment.
Siemens Plc, Industry Sector, Drives Technology, Congleton – Manufactures variable speed drives.
FujiFilm Speciality Ink Systems Limited, Broadstairs, Kent – Produces digital flexo and screen printing inks.
Milliken European Airbag Products, Bury – Manufacturers airbag fabric and also airbag components for automotive airbags.
Sony UK Tec, Pencoed – The factory produces broadcast and professional camera solutions and undertakes collaborative manufacturing solutions for customers.
Eaton Production International GmbH, Industrial Control Division, Worksop – Manufactures switch disconnectors and CAM switches.
Autoglym, Letchworth, Hertfordshire – Produces products used in the cleaning and polishing of automotive vehicles.
Bosch Thermotechnology Ltd, Worcester – Manufactures high efficiency heating and hot water appliances.
D S Smith Packaging, Livingston – Manufactures and prints corrugated fibreboard packaging.
Tata Global Beverages Ltd, Eagleascliffe, Stockton-on-Tees - Manufactures Tetley tea bags.
The winners will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on 27 Sept.
Control system to integrate new energy sources onto the grid
Administrator
To integrate alternative energy sources such as wind, solar and tidal onto the grid effectively, operators face the challenge of monitoring their performance in real time and optimising the microgrid or cell.
This challenge is all the greater because disparate power generation sites tend to be located at some distance from the operations centre and need to be monitored remotely.
To meet these demands, LocalGrid Technologies has partnered with National Instruments to develop a smart grid-ready platform that can be customised to meet the needs of different grid applications.
The company has created a complete microgrid control solution based on NI CompactRIO hardware. The LocalGrid software runs on distributed embedded controllers deployed in the field, pushing intelligence and decentralised decision making out to the remote devices and distributed energy resources.
LocalGrid platform is designed to securely manage power flow, peak load, distributed generation, and other energy assets. Using real-time data collection, analytics, and control on a distributed intelligence network, it is said to push decision-making out into the network, increase system fault-tolerance and offer scalable architectures for the operator.
“The core of our product is a secure distributed data management system, where each remote device stores its own local data in an internal encrypted database," explains Graham Beauregard of LocalGrid Technologies.
"The data from each device can be configured to flow up to a higher storage capacity device installed in a substation or operations centre for example,” he added.
For the application LocalGrid needed a cross-platform, highly flexible database solution that supports encryption. Its selection – the Raima Database API for LabVIEW, implemented with RDM Embedded 11 – provided a database management solution specifically designed for applications deployed on CompactRIO and NI Single-Board RIO devices.
The system allows standalone operation because the database resides in the LabVIEW data directory. It also offers extended functionality to share data between multiple targets – whether sharing information between CompactRIO devices or outside computers.
The Raima Database API for LabVIEW enables programmers to design data management functionality into their software applications using a programming interface that is familiar to them. It is available on the LabVIEW Tools Network and is the first database to deliver relational data management locally on real-time CompactRIO devices.
One or more CompactRIO or NI Single-Board RIO devices can store and share data without requiring connectivity to external database servers. Events can be logged and queried, streams may be captured and configurations may be shared through Raima functions.
“RDM Embedded is fast, flexible, and designed for embedded targets allowing us to base our entire system around a single database product with native support for LabVIEW,” said Beauregard. “This will simplify our design and reduce errors or unknowns during development.”
LocalGrid is currently working on the development of the new platform with a major distribution utility that is pioneering new technology for the power industry. The company has also deployed a number of units in the field and expects to deploy more over the next year.
The Kessko factory in Bonn, Germany is using four Watson-Marlow pumps to help deliver ‘sweet’ products to customers in the bakery, confectionary, ice cream, biscuit and soft drink trades.
The MasoSine SPS series pumps transfer of up to 2 tonnes of hazelnut spread every 60 minutes. The units are used in a system that fills 160 containers an hour with exactly 12.5kg of mixture.
“We fill 160 containers in this process every hour,” explains technical manager Reiner Liffmann, “which is the equivalent of 2 tonnes of hazelnut spread.”
The suction power of the MasoSine SPS pumps makes them suitable for use with viscous substances such as the chocolate spread being handled at Kessko.
The design is claimed to provide a particularly gentle, virtually pulsation-free pumping operation compared to other positive displacement models such as gear pumps.
The sinusoidal design of the rotor creates four chambers with each turn, through which the medium – in this case the sweet spread – is pumped from the inlet port to the higher-pressure discharge port.
The rotor, unlike on rotary lobe pumps with multiple shafts, is powered by a motor via just one shaft. The scraper gate prevents any liquid from flowing back from the discharge side to the lower-pressure suction side of the pump.
As the chamber volume does not change, the system is suitable for pumping liquids containing soft solids or viscous media.
A heated jacket for the housing is used especially for this type of application, while other pumped liquids require a cooling jacket in order to keep the temperature of the product constant.
For cleaning, the SPS pump can be stripped down in 10 minutes, and are also suitable for CIP and SIP processes.
Project owners and investors in the biogas industry need to be increasingly wary when selecting and buying packaged systems for their plants, a leading equipment supplier has warned
According to Landia, the industry is now seeing an "increasing amount of manipulation" around the sale of low-margin, all-in-one ‘boxes’ – packaged systems that are sometimes trimmed to the bare minimum.
“It’s not all down to price, but too many customers are making substantial outlays without asking fundamental questions," said Paul Davies of Landia, which has pumps and mixers installed in biogas plants around the world.
Even if the equipment is of reasonable quality, he advises buyers to ask: "‘Who is going to look after it?': ‘How long is it going to take to get spares?': and 'Who is going to fit them – and when?'”
The warning doesn’t just apply to pumps and mixers, but also to feeder wagons, mills, gas detectors, blowers and flares. It is also aimed at the people involved in financing biogas projects.
“The ‘route-one’ purchasing decision makes it easier to raise the all-important finance as most of these overseas companies have reference sites that appear to provide the banks with the words they want to hear," said Davies.
"If I was lending money, especially in what’s supposed to be a recession, I’d want far more long-term security for my investment,” he added.
Another concern is that some overseas firms are providing new ‘biogas packages’ with, for example, CHP engines that sometimes don’t meet UK regulations.
“If I was a German biogas provider, I’d be dealing with almost any country other than UK because our regulations are so demanding," continued Davies.
"But," he concluded, "if you are one of those choosing to ignore some or all of the legislation, then you’ll find everything much, much easier as a supplier, and obviously be more competitive.
"Unfortunately for the biogas industry, some customers currently seem blinded by the attraction of a single supplier.”
Pump and mixer manufacturer Landia has continued a recent run of work in its home county Shropshire with the introduction of a new pumping station for international storage and distribution company Grocontinental.
Working with Chalcroft Construction, which carried out the installation as part of a new 4,000m² warehouse for Grocontinental, Landia’s pumping station will handle wastewater and yard run-off at the Whitchurch site.
The new installation at Grocontinental follows work carried out by Landia at the nearby Dearnford visitor attraction and at The White House School.
The latter project involved to installation of a a 4kW 1500rpm Landia DG chopper pump to transfer raw unscreened sewage from a 3-metre deep sump to the sewer main.
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Peristaltic pump maker Watson-Marlow Pumps achieved a 13% rise in first-half operating profit to £18.1 million on sales of £63.6 million – 7% higher than a year ago, parent group Spirax Sarco Engineering plc has reported.
The gains reflected generally positive market conditions, as well as significantly higher R&D and product-launch costs in the first six months of 2012. This included the roll-out of the Qdos metering pump (pictured), which was reported to be now gaining market traction.
Spirax Sarco identified the biopharmaceuticals and foods & beverage sectors among the drivers behind sales growth for Watson-Marlow brand pumps and tubing, and MasoSine pumps.
On the other hand, sales of its Bredel industrial hose pumps were impacted by "markedly lower" project activity in the US water treatment markets and mining markets worldwide, said the group's 8 Aug interim report.
Regionally, sales of Flexicon filling systems and MasoSine pumps were surprisingly strong in the EMEA region, though growth was strongest in Latin America, Russia and China.
Emerging markets, however, represented just 19% of first-half sales for Watson-Marlow's pumps business – compared to 45% for Spirax Sarco's steam specialties business.
For the group as a whole, Spirax Sarco posted a 6% rise in sales for the six months ended 30 June to £331.6million.
Adjusted operating profit rose by 17% from £58.2 million to £68.1 million; at constant currency, the increase was 14% due largely to the strong profit rebound in EMEA.
The higher profitability in Europe was helped by cost savings from a restructuring in the second half of 2012 and improved operating efficiencies in the group's main European factories.
Commenting on the results, Mark Vernon, group chief executive, said: "Against a challenging market backdrop, we are pleased to report good organic sales growth of 4% and significantly higher adjusted operating profit."
"Although we anticipate continued sluggish economic conditions in most of our markets and a challenging fourth quarter comparison, the board expects the Group to make good progress in 2013," Vernon concluded.
Danish power plant company Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian Contractor A/S (BWSC) is to build and operate two major biomass plants in the UK following the success of lengthy efforts to secure investment for both projects.
A newly formed Danish JV is to invest £160 million to establish the Brigg Renewable Energy Plant – a 40MW biomass power plant in Lincolnshire, which will be primarily fuelled using locally sourced straw.
Due for start-up in early 2016, the plant will be the first project to be delivered by BWSC PLC – the venture formed specifically to build, own and operate power plants by PensionDanmark and BWSC, which is putting up £32 million of the investment.
BWSC has a 15-year agreement to operate and maintain the Brigg power plant, which will employ boiler technology from Danish company BWE to provide steam for the turbine generator.
The Lincolnshire plant was developed by Eco2, a UK renewable energy company that is currently collaborating with BWSC on a woodchip-powered plant in Wales and a straw-powered plant being built in Sleaford, Lincolnshire.
The new investment was agreed between all parties on 8 Aug following on from what BWSC said was a much awaited announcement by the UK government regarding biomass funding.
“The financial crisis has challenged the success of Danish businesses exporting sustainable energy plants," said Anders Heine Jensen, chief executive of BWSC in a 13 Aug press statement.
"With this model, not only will we be market leaders in power plant technology, but we will also own, operate and finance new plants in collaboration with PensionDanmark," he added. "This boosts our competitiveness considerably and establishes Danish energy technology on the world map.”
According to PensionDenmark, the JV provided a blueprint to generate attractive returns, with limited risk as most of the investment was in the form of loans and the bulk of earnings are regulated. Costs, it added, would be fixed via long-term contracts.
The Lincolnshire project announcement came just days after a £55-million order for BWSC to build a 15.8 MW biomass CHP plant in Derry/Londonderry, Northern Ireland. The contract with Evermore Renewable Energy (ERE) also includes a 15-year operation and maintenance agreement worth a further £39 million for the Danish power plant company.
The Irish biomass plant will be fuelled by recycled wood and is expected to be handed over to ERE for start-up of commercial operation during summer 2015.
Identifying the right kind of fuel and amendments in the UK legal framework conditions for renewable energy were among the challenges faced during four years of effort to secure finance for the NI project.
BWSC said it and ERE had been in contact with several potential investors, before obtaining financial approval for the project. Denmark's EKF (Export Credit Agency), it noted, played a decisive role in helping to ensure risk cover and funding.
Funding for the Evermore plant was eventually provided by the UK Waste Resources & Energy Fund (UKWREI) – a fund managed by the Foresight Group and in which the UK Green Investment Bank plc is a cornerstone investor – and Investec Bank plc.
”Developing and constructing energy projects is a very complex process which involves local authorities, government agencies and many specialists from different professions," said Jensen of BWSC
"Technical skills, high levels of cooperation and trust and, not least, a lot of patience are crucial factors for our business to achieve a successful project implementation,” the CEO concluded.
Jardin Corrugated Cases is saving nearly £40,000 per year following the installation of a flash steam recovery system – a project financed by an interest-free loan through the Carbon Trust.
Flash steam escaping from the company's 11,000 sq metre manufacturing site in Ely, Cambridgeshire, previously wasted significant amounts of energy and created a poor environmental image around the plant.
Jardin Corrugated Cases engaged Spirax Sarco to design an advanced flash steam recovery system, which it then supplied, installed, commissioned and project managed. The supplier also applied for a Carbon Trust loan on its behalf of the company.
Accordign to Spirax Sarco, the system saves 2.8 tonnes of CO2 per £1,000 spent, significantly beating the Carbon Trust’s loan criterion of a minimum two tonnes per £1,000 spent.
The Spirax Sarco installation features its FREME (flash recovery energy management equipment) system, which is designed to ensure all the usable heat in the condensate from the steam system can be returned to the boiler.
The system works by passing returning condensate through a heat exchanger system where it heats the boiler feed water. Crucially, this heating takes place on the high-pressure side of the boiler feed pumps, so the system can safely heat the water to more than 100°C without boiling and causing pump cavitation.
Spirax Sarco also provided automatic boiler blowdown controls with full heat recovery, boiler feedtank insulation and a packaged pump system to ensure all condensate from the main corrugator is returned for recovery.
As well as the savings in energy and carbon dioxide emissions, the system is saving water and water treatment chemical costs for Jardin Corrugated Cases and has eliminated the need for boiler operators to manually blow down the boilers each day, the supplier reported.
Energos is preparing to build its ninth advanced conversion facility at AmeyCespa's Milton Keynes Waste Recovery Park, which received planning approval this month.
The Waste Recovery Park, which is due to start on site in 2014 and begin processing waste in 2016, was approved unanimously by Milton Keynes Council's Development Control Committee following six months of borough-wide community consultation and liaison.
As an integral part of the Waste Recovery Park, which includes recycling and anaerobic digestion, the 90ktpa conversion facility will generate 7MW of electricity. It will process non recyclable, non hazardous household waste - as the final stage of a three-step waste treatment process.
Energos has developed a total of seven waste fuelled advanced thermal conversion facilities across Europe, including the UK's only operational facility.
The UK-based company is currently building its second UK plant at the Glasgow Recycling and Renewable Energy Centre, and has recently received planning permission for a third facility in Lisburn, Northern Ireland.
The Energos technology uses a gasification process that converts residual, non-recyclable waste into a syngas by using the heat of partial combustion to free hydrogen and carbon in the waste. The syngas produces high temperature steam that can then be converted into electricity in a turbine.
The Waste Recovery Parkis expected to reduce Milton Keynes Council's current waste management bill by more than £50 million and help reduce the amount of household waste going to landfill.
In combination with Milton Keynes Council's existing recycling initiatives, the new facility is intended to ensure that only around 2% of the borough's waste will be landfilled.