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Watch this episode of Swaging With Gary as he gives you the straight facts and covers important issues regarding tube fitting Intermix and Interchange. 

Intermix is any combination of nuts, ferrules and bodies. Interchange is using the same brand of nut and ferrules with another brand of body.

When tube fittings are intermixed or interchanged, it doesn’t matter, you are asking for trouble and we don’t recommend it! It is an unsafe business practice which could cause costly leaks, can lead to unpredictable performance and leave you vulnerable to hazardous safety and environmental conditions.

Can you live with costly leak? To learn more, view the Lowdown on Leakage infographic.

In this episode, Gary covers:

• Intermix/Interchange in the Field
• The Truth About Intermix/Interchange
• The Swagelok Performance Facts
• The Swagelok Warranty 

Pump failures, particularly unanticipated ones, can cause facility shutdowns, lost revenue, equipment damage and potential increase in environmental audits.

Our seal support systems are used on rotating equipment in hundreds of companies locally and world-wide, large and small as well as in all types of environmental conditions. 

Limit your risk and reduce cost with the right seal support system by taking advantage of our: 

(Pictured from l to r: Swagelok Southeast Texas’ Chris Ori and Chris Jones, and Ci’s Matthew Macaluso)

Do you ever consider your company, operation and responsibilities and think "What if I had access to experts who could increase my production speed?" If you did, what could you accomplish?

Do any of these other issues sound familiar?

• "I could use assistance with forecasting."
• "I wish I had help with supply chain management."
• "I need a second set of eyes ensuring reliability."
• "I wish I had access to certified engineers."

They sound familiar to Swagelok Southeast Texas, because our clients have relayed those concerns to us for years. And we've been listening. Charbonneau Industries is just one example of how we were able to provide help in those areas, and fuel growth.

Charbonneau Industries responding to needs of customers pays off

Charbonneau Industries, or Ci, is a brand-neutral master distributor and integrated supplier of engineered products and services. Its focus on quality and responsiveness through a unique stocking strategy has propelled the company’s growth.

Located in Houston, Texas among a network of the most critical gas pipeline infrastructure on the planet, Charbonneau Industries (Ci)’s Matthew Macaluso, Mechanical Engineer for Ci, describes what they do. “Think about your house and anything in it that runs off of natural gas. There is a vast network of pipelines that need to be kept safe and running at all times. At Ci we provide full packages, not only valves, but entire assemblies that help with integration and automation, and keep those lines working optimally.”

When your rotating equipment fails, it’s often because your seals fail. This happens for many reasons:  misalignment, poor lubrication, seal wear, fatigue, contamination, or improperly sized and selected components.

Swagelok Southeast Texas Seal Support Systems help to extend the life of your mechanical seals and keep your rotating equipment running.

If, in days past, you have questioned why hard piping was used for mechanical seal flush lines and seal support configurations in process pumps, you are certainly not alone. Chances are that this hard pipe requirement carries over from the days when pumps were packed with rope, horse hair, cotton and other materials.

More recently, however, American Petroleum Institute Standard 682 (API 682) began to endorse the use of tubing for some seal piping plans. Regrettably, tradition-bound purchasers still opt for hard pipe; we are asking them to reconsider.

When Swagelok Company’s FKB series ball valve was first released, an oil and gas industry customer possessing decades of experience with our products—Santiago “Chili” Gomez, founder and president of Ocean Edge Services, Inc. (OES), in Houston—tried to make it fail. He pushed the product to its limits. It would not fail.

Chili was battle-testing the Swagelok component because he was thinking of putting it to use in a high-pressure subsea application where failure was not an option. Swagelok came through for him—once again—and he standardized on the product. Chili’s razor focus on quality is rooted in his desire to always deliver safe and reliable solutions for customers. “Every project has your name on it,” Chili reflected. Fast forward to today. Chili is about six years into his own venture after devoting 20-plus years of his career to global product and services companies in the oil, gas, and process industries.

As Project Manager for the Laser Analysis Division (LAD) of Yokogawa, Phillip Proctor has helped his company solve big problems for customers. Yokogawa Electrical Corporation is engaged in an intense transformation from an instrumentation and control system hardware provider to a solutions provider – one that spans the fields of test and measurement, industrial automation and control, and information systems. Yokogawa’s Laser Analysis Division is no exception. They specialize in a spectroscopic analyzer that has virtually no peer in the industry for detecting extremely low levels of particular gases in industrial processes using lasers.

The LAD, as one would assume, targets chemical plants and other large-scale manufacturing facilities that can use such detailed and critical analysis down to the part-per-million, such as O2 and CO detection in combustion stacks. While the products they sell, such as the line of Tunable Diode Laser Analyzers, are all made in Yokogawa’s Georgia facility, they all find their way to the Webster, Texas facility where Proctor works. “If a TDLS Analyzer goes anywhere in the world, it goes through here,” shared Phillip.

Swagelok Southeast Texas' Customized Solution helps Ramin Corporation

Ramin Corporation is very familiar with providing custom solutions for clients. Founded in 1984 by Jim Ramin, the company began as a laboratory glassware and scientific equipment manufacturer in north Houston. Located in the heart of the energy and petrochemical industry, Ramin has grown steadily providing oil & gas companies and the laboratory market high quality stock and custom ASTM glassware.

“There is not much we cannot do from a glassware or machining standpoint for our customers,” says Dale Stanaland, who has been with Ramin for nearly a decade in multiple capacities, including purchasing and operations, as well as sales and customer service. “We’ve had customers bring us everything from specific, detailed plans to rough drawings of products they are looking for. We pride ourselves in being able to deliver just what they need.” With steady growth over the last 27 years, Ramin has been able to add a great deal of experience and talent to their team, which now numbers 15 and is growing. “We have a full staff of glass blowers, machinists and programmers who really pride themselves in helping customers solve problems.”

Background

One of the world’s largest plastics, chemicals and refining companies in the world, located in Pasadena, Texas has been partnering with Swagelok Southeast Texas since 2012.  They are a leading producer of chemicals including, but not limited to, ethylene, propylene, tertiary butyl alcohol, methanol, and acetic acid. Intermediates and derivatives from this company find use in numerous everyday applications including fuels, automotive fluids, furniture and household goods, coatings, adhesives, cleaners, and even cosmetics and personal care products.

As a partner, we understand when maintenance is required, time and cost are key factors involved. That’s why Scott Breaux, a Technical Advisor with Swagelok Southeast Texas, began conversations early with the company about how turnaround projects had typically been done in the past; the challenges involved and started working diligently on developing a plan to address their challenges.