Mueller Environmental is located in Houston, TX and is a leader in air filtration, noise control, evaporative cooling, mist extraction and emission control products supplied throughout the United States to gas transmission pipelines.
Mueller Environmental developed the Helical Coil Separator as a solution to the problem of black powder in natural gas pipelines. The Model KLS, Helical Coil Separator, is a multiple element, filterless separator intended for the high efficiency separation of solids and/or liquids from high pressure gas flow. There are no moving or removable parts.
The fabrication of the helical coil elements was outsourced to a machine shop who employed a two step process to bore out a 4" diameter high grade drawn over mandril steel pipe. The machine shop would bore out the center of the pipe to allow the helical coil to slide inside and they also chamfered the outer diameter of the pipe. This process added complexity to the purchasing and supply chains for Mueller as well as cost $78 per piece.
Mueller Environmental saw an MSI ChamferMate in another company's facility and approached MSI to see if they could develop a solution for them to be able to reduce cost, improve quality, and bring the pipe fabrication process in house.
MSI supplied Mueller Environmental with a C8H ChamferMate with custom boring bars. This pipe beveling machine is able to reduce the steps in the process and bore the inner diameter and chamfer the out diameter in one step. "Not only were we able to bring this pipe fabrication operation in house but we were able to change the pipe we used to a more standard 4" diameter pipe which improves our costs and purchasing operations." says Mark Allen, Mueller Environmental Plant Manager.
MSI supplied different boring bars for each size of pipe required to make the helical coil elements. "The C8H ChamferMate is easy to operate and set up. The quality and reliability have been excellent and Wayne and his team have been great to work with. We reduced our cost per piece from $78 to $8 including all materials and labor. Needless to say the custom C8H ChamferMate and MSI have made our processes simpler and much more cost effective." states Mr. Allen. "Our only other option would have been to use a CNC machine which would have had a longer cycle time, been more complex to operate, and been much more expensive that the MSI solution."
ChamferMate® high production chamfering machines and pipe beveling machines are designed for easy setup and operation. Heavy duty construction and quality components are utilized to provide our customers with years of dependable service. Models available for a wide range of diameters and applications such as chamfering, beveling, and deburring.
The ChamferMate® Model C8H is a heavy duty hydraulic powered pipe beveling machine with up to 8-3/4” OD capacity. With 20 HP, the C8H has the power to machine weld bevels and other forms on the end of heavy wall pipe and tubing within its range.
MSI is located in Beaumont, TX and builds chamfering and pipe beveling machines, marking equipment, hydraulic bar shears, nut assembly tables, cylindrical parts feeders, bolt cross drills, and bolt shortening tools and services an international customer base in a variety of industries.
