CoatingsPro Magazine

JAN 2013

CoatingsPro offers an in-depth look at coatings based on case studies, successful business operation, new products, industry news, and the safe and profitable use of coatings and equipment.

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abovE Robotic carts tend to be scene stealers, but the heavy lifting on this project was accomplished by a crew from Structural who hand-rolled and troweled a proprietary, multi-layered, reinforced V-Wrap 700 epoxy coating system. abovE It took just the right combination of manpower and robotics to repair this power plant cooling system on time, but the repaired cooling system passed all final tests. The repaired segments now meet or exceed the pipeline's original specifications. Installations (ROI). For the past 15 years, ROI has focused on rehabbing vertical manholes using a remotely operated coating delivery system Kronz calls SPOD. "I remember the day Structural called," Kronz says. "They basically said, 'Can you adapt your vertical system to a horizontal cart and deliver it in 10 days?' " Kronz jumped at the chance. He began immediately by mating one of his vertical SPODs to a horizontal cart. The SPOD was already equipped with a Graco Probler P2 Elite internal mix gun, so no changes were needed there. Kronz then fabricated a rotating extension arm to keep the #6225 spray tip approximately 18 inches (45.72 cm) from the substrate. He rigged up an umbilical system to manage the heated high pressure line and 110 volt electricity to power the cart's spotlights, drive motor, and spray head motor. He fashioned a wireless controller so he could simply hold down a button while keeping an eye on the spray rotation and pattern. "We had a very short application window on the pipeline project, so we built a plywood mock-up of a 10-foot (3.05 meter) diameter pipe inside our shop," Kronz says. "That way, we could set up and fine tune everything. When that was done, we disassembled the SPOD, shipped it, reassembled it, and dropped it through the 36-inch (91.44 cm) manhole. It took about an hour and a half to set up, and we were soon doing three feet (0.91 meter) per minute. We were out of there in about five hours, total; that included a lot of conversation and back and forth about what we were doing. We only did one section as a pilot project." VenDor teaM GRACO INC. Fluid handling equipment 88-11th Ave. NE Minneapolis, MN 55413 (800) 647-4336 www.graco.com PERFORMANCE SOLUTIONS ADVANTAGE Robotic blast cart 719 E Main St. Winneconne, WI 54986 (920) 379-1356 REMOTE ORBITAL INSTALLATION, LLC SPOD robotic coatings cart 429 Venture Court Verona, WI 53593 (608) 845-0360 www.roi360.com SPONGE-JET INC. Sponge coated abrasive blast systems 235 Heritage Ave, Suite 2 Portsmouth, NH 03801 (603) 610-7950 www.spongejet.com STRUCTURAL High performance coating systems 7455 New Ridge Road, Suite T Hanover, MD 21076 (410) 859-6539 www.structuraltechnologies.com the WhoLe enchILaDa Aided by two robotic carts and sponge-encapsulated blast media, the Structural crew finished on time. The power plant pressurized the concrete pipeline, and the repaired sections held. All who worked on the project were satisfied that they had crafted a repair that met or exceeded the concrete pressure pipe's original specifications. "Underground pipelines like this are almost impossible to replace," says Rozek. "They run underneath structures, and you just can't get to them. That's why it's exceedingly important to have everything working perfectly." This was a tough job in a lot of ways, Sponge-Jet distributor Zaharias says. Three contractors previously eyeballed the project and couldn't take a bite out of the apple. "With the help of the robotic carts we now have a process that lets us do a lot of work in a relatively short amount of time," says Zaharias. "Everyone pitched together and did a good job that will last years and years." Sure, it took a lot of teamwork, hard work, and ingenuity to get the project completed on time. But hey, why leave the power plant operators in a pickle when you can deliver the whole enchilada? cP January 2013 g www.coatingspromag.com 79

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