One of the first steps in many repair and overhaul projects is to remove any corrosion and old coatings to reveal the true condition of the base material. Customers can now take advantage of specialised blast equipment that has been acquired by Sulzer to improve the efficiency of repair projects, even for large pieces of equipment, such as turbine rotors.
Sulzer is known for delivering rapid repairs to a wide variety of rotating machinery including gas and steam turbines, compressors, generators, motors and pumps. All this equipment is subjected to continuous corrosion and erosion during its time in service and when the time comes for an overhaul, it is essential that the initial cleaning process is achieved quickly and effectively.
This latest investment adds to the facilities at its Houston Service Centre. The new blast cleaning system is designed to be flexible in operation and effective at recycling the blast materials to minimise costs.
Measuring 20 feet (6m) high, 16 feet (4.8m) wide and 60 feet (18m) long, the main blast chamber can be sub-divided with a set of doors to allow two cleaning operations to be carried out at the same time but with different blast media. The scale of the new equipment means Sulzer has one of the largest blast facilities on the Gulf coast, and its flexibility means that it can also be used efficiently for smaller items.
The purpose-built blast room incorporates effective cleaning and recycling of the abrasive media as well as comprehensive dust collection apparatus to keep the local environment clean and contaminant free. The entry and exit to the blast room are designed to allow a large rotor to remain on its transport trailer, minimising any risk of damage and reducing the time required to complete the cleaning process.
