TPT November 2013

Welding technology

Robot welding technology in pipe shops

a pipe every four minutes. In this way production time and cost per pipe spool is drastically reduced while weld quality is increased.

The system can be integrated in a fully automated pipe shop to achieve a highly efficient production flow. This includes transport buffers, a high- rise storage for 300 pipes, saw and grinding tool. Smart logistics software monitors each pipe individually to finish

THE production of pipe spools for shipbuilding is a complex and time- consuming process. Weld quality and dealing with tolerances are just a few of the critical factors for effective and efficient production in pipe shops. Kranendonk ‘Smart robotics’ has introduced a solution that automates pipe spool production: a flange assembly cell. This robot production system takes care of assembly and welding of flanges to tubes, with high quality results. The flange assembly cell, already in use at shipyards in Holland and Singapore, extracts the information it needs directly from the end user’s 3D CAD system. As a result, manual programming of the production line is not needed. This makes the cell highly flexible and capable of handling continuously changing designs. Production tasks are centrally controlled which means that the system can be run by just one operator. The development of the robotic pipe shop is a result of a thorough analysis of pipe spool production. Results indicated that by welding flanges before bending pipes, 90 per cent less rework was needed for pipe fitting. This resulted in a change in production flow. The robotic pipe shop thus brings a significant competitive advantage over traditional pipe spool production. For highly accurate flange assembly, Kranendonk developed a robot vision system. Vision technology enables robots to recognise flange and tube location, size, centre point and bolt holes. This ensures smooth assembly in the correct orientation for any pipe length. After picking and placing flanges, two of the four robots perform tack welding on both sides of the pipe. Final MIG/MAG welding is done by four robots simultaneously at the inner and outer side of the flange. A clamping unit rotates the tube at welding speed. Welding settings such as voltage are automatically applied by the central control system. Process data can be monitored as well as logged for quality purposes. Thanks to integrated seam tracking in the ESAB welding equipment, the system compensates for product tolerances (ie unroundness) to ensure accurate end products.

Kranendonk – The Netherlands Website: www.kranendonk.com

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N ovember 2013