Paul Boughton
Tyco Flow Control has announced details of the order it is now completing with Vanessa triple eccentric valves for the Shell Pearl (gas-to-liquid) GTL project at the Ras Laffan Industrial Park in Qatar, estimated at over $100 million in value.
The size of the project led to the involvement of several major EPCs located in various countries and continents, but such was the strength of Tyco global capabilities and its handling of the extremely challenging SGSI (Shell Global Solutions International) Type Approval Test (TAT) programme that it resulted in a truly outstanding result.
Initial contact was established with Shell in The Netherlands in 2005 to discuss the Pearl GTL project and the necessary TAT programme for valves. There followed eighteen months of technical discussions to define the applicability of the Vanessa zero leakage triple offset rotary process valve range, the acceptance criteria and the scope of the TAT programme. During the very severe testing regime the entire Vanessa valve range was qualified up to 72-in class 600 and 48-in class 900 in basic, cryogenic and high temperature configuration and witnessed by Shell.
The Tyco Valves and Controls UK project group worked closely with JGC Corporation (JGC) and Kellogg Brown & Root LLC (KBR) throughout the engineering phases of the project to reinforce the activities that had been carried out in conjunction with SGSI. KBR/JGC was charged with the overall project management contractor role and in addition provided the engineering and procurement for both trains of the main GTL process units and associated utilities.
By the completion of the contract in May 2009 over 3500 Vanessa valves in both actuated and manually operated configuration had been supplied in a variety of materials to cryogenic and high temperature applications with double flanged and butt welded configurations. Among these were 188 off 30-in class 600 valves, 58 off 36-in class 600 valves and 33 off pieces 42-in class 900 valves.
Commenting on the news, Alberto Bertamoni, Vanessa vice president of sales & marketing, said: “The contract is significant not just for its value and complexity but also for the fact that triple offset rotary process valves have taken over a role previously fulfilled by ball valves. The result is not only a more sophisticated product – as witnessed by their performance in the TAT regime – but also an extremely competitive one because of its design superiority, material selection, and other advantages that stem from reduced weight.”
The Tyco Valves and Controls UK project group negotiated a number of blanket orders to supply Vanessa valves plus some Hindle ball valves and Narvik Desuperheaters including Manual Valves, Motor Operated Valves, On/Off Pneumatically Actuated Valves and Control Valves to JGC/KBR working with engineering centres in both Yohohama and London.
The same team provided the full range of project management support dealing with the complexities and challenges that a project of this scale requires, including commercial, technical, document control, expediting, shipping/logistics. The project was carried out in close collaboration with the Vanessa plant and the actuator manufacturers which included Tyco’s Biffi operation, providing the client with a focal point of contact throughout.
Tyco’s Biffi operation also supplied a wide range of pneumatic actuators for both on-off and modulating control applications from the RP range (Rack and Pinion) and ALGAS range (canted and symmetric yoke) actuators. These actuators ranged from the RPS models up to the very large ALGAS 18C range of spring return models. Pneumatic control systems were also included as part of the contract and were engineered by the team at Biffi to accommodate the operational requirements of the various packages.
Shell pioneered the development of GTL technology and has operated a medium scale GTL plant at Bintulu, Malaysia since 1993 – the facility has a current capacity of 14700 bbl/day. After a decade of operating experience at the Bintulu plant, Shell planned the world scale 140,000 bbl/day GTL plant in Qatar which is planned to be operational towards the end of the decade.
For more information, visit www.tycoflowcontrol.com
The size of the project led to the involvement of several major EPCs located in various countries and continents, but such was the strength of Tyco global capabilities and its handling of the extremely challenging SGSI (Shell Global Solutions International) Type Approval Test (TAT) programme that it resulted in a truly outstanding result.
Initial contact was established with Shell in The Netherlands in 2005 to discuss the Pearl GTL project and the necessary TAT programme for valves. There followed eighteen months of technical discussions to define the applicability of the Vanessa zero leakage triple offset rotary process valve range, the acceptance criteria and the scope of the TAT programme. During the very severe testing regime the entire Vanessa valve range was qualified up to 72-in class 600 and 48-in class 900 in basic, cryogenic and high temperature configuration and witnessed by Shell.
The Tyco Valves and Controls UK project group worked closely with JGC Corporation (JGC) and Kellogg Brown & Root LLC (KBR) throughout the engineering phases of the project to reinforce the activities that had been carried out in conjunction with SGSI. KBR/JGC was charged with the overall project management contractor role and in addition provided the engineering and procurement for both trains of the main GTL process units and associated utilities.
By the completion of the contract in May 2009 over 3500 Vanessa valves in both actuated and manually operated configuration had been supplied in a variety of materials to cryogenic and high temperature applications with double flanged and butt welded configurations. Among these were 188 off 30-in class 600 valves, 58 off 36-in class 600 valves and 33 off pieces 42-in class 900 valves.
Commenting on the news, Alberto Bertamoni, Vanessa vice president of sales & marketing, said: “The contract is significant not just for its value and complexity but also for the fact that triple offset rotary process valves have taken over a role previously fulfilled by ball valves. The result is not only a more sophisticated product – as witnessed by their performance in the TAT regime – but also an extremely competitive one because of its design superiority, material selection, and other advantages that stem from reduced weight.”
The Tyco Valves and Controls UK project group negotiated a number of blanket orders to supply Vanessa valves plus some Hindle ball valves and Narvik Desuperheaters including Manual Valves, Motor Operated Valves, On/Off Pneumatically Actuated Valves and Control Valves to JGC/KBR working with engineering centres in both Yohohama and London.
The same team provided the full range of project management support dealing with the complexities and challenges that a project of this scale requires, including commercial, technical, document control, expediting, shipping/logistics. The project was carried out in close collaboration with the Vanessa plant and the actuator manufacturers which included Tyco’s Biffi operation, providing the client with a focal point of contact throughout.
Tyco’s Biffi operation also supplied a wide range of pneumatic actuators for both on-off and modulating control applications from the RP range (Rack and Pinion) and ALGAS range (canted and symmetric yoke) actuators. These actuators ranged from the RPS models up to the very large ALGAS 18C range of spring return models. Pneumatic control systems were also included as part of the contract and were engineered by the team at Biffi to accommodate the operational requirements of the various packages.
Shell pioneered the development of GTL technology and has operated a medium scale GTL plant at Bintulu, Malaysia since 1993 – the facility has a current capacity of 14700 bbl/day. After a decade of operating experience at the Bintulu plant, Shell planned the world scale 140,000 bbl/day GTL plant in Qatar which is planned to be operational towards the end of the decade.
For more information, visit www.tycoflowcontrol.com
