Houston, TX, USA, 5/22/01: Piping Technology & Products, Inc. and its 24x7 Quick Turn/Emergency Service were put to the test on a Friday evening when they received an emergency call from a company located in Jamaica. The Jamaican company was concerned with existing pipe supports at their location and made a request for a PT&P field services representative to visit and inspect.

An experienced PT&P field services manager arrived at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday to survey and fulfill the request.

The reported problem was a pair of rusted and decayed spring hangers dating back to 1969. After inspection, PT&P’s field services manager concluded that the aged spring hangers could no longer support the piping system due to changes in the design of the system, whereas, failure resulted in additional forces being exerted onto the steam turbine.

Figure 1: PT&P was requested to inspect the failing piping system. Shown here is the outlet streamline from the steam turbine. It cannot support the load because of its rusted spring coil.	Figure 2: Rusted constant spring support found in the powerhouse supporting the air heater.

Following identification of the measurements, load capabilities, and movements of the spring hangers, it was apparent that the system design did not compensate for the weight of two globe valves that were added to the system at a later date. Thus, PT&P’s field services manager had to take into consideration the weight of these two globe valves when sizing the replacement parts.

PT&P supplied and delivered two Type G variable spring assemblies to Jamaica on the following Monday. Type G assemblies can accommodate unusually heavy loads, and is especially adaptable for avoiding interference in spaces where headroom is limited. In this case, the spring assembly was supporting loads in excess of 2000 lbs. and movement was limited due to its location in the powerhouse. Please refer to "inspection and maintenance of supports in piping systems" and "corrosion protection" for details.

Figure 3: Depicted above is the inlet streamline from the steam turbine. As a result of the decay, the coil has fallen out which is just one of the reasons for the turbine failure.	Figure 4: The reported problem in the powerhouse was a pair of rusted and decayed spring hangers. Shown above is a rusted constant spring that had been in place since 1969.

Figure 5: PT&P supplied two Type-G variable spring assemblies. The photograph above details a g-can found on site.	Figure 6: Installed in 1969, this constant could no longer support its load as indicated by the travel pin which has rusted and decayed.