Fluids Handling

TYCO FCT VALVES PULL OUT ALL THE STOPS FOR RELIANCE

Phil Black - PII Editor 16/10/2008

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Special airlift involves massive Antonov 124 freight aircraft.

Tyco Flow Control pulled out all the stops recently to deliver six 36 inch FCT actuated ball valves to customer Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) in time to meet a very tight deadline for Block KG-D6 of the Krishna Godovari project off the East coast of India. Successful completion of the contract required a very sophisticated logistics operation with a high degree of resourcefulness and major cooperation between client and supplier that included the hire of a massive Antonov 124 freight aircraft to deliver three of the six units.

Last minute modifications to the valves required by the exacting nature of the application could only be carried out at the Tyco FCT plant at St Juery in France and four of the units had already been shipped to India. Tyco immediately scheduled the additional work and made arrangements with RIL to repatriate the four valves using a ship from Singapore. Meanwhile the team at St Juery worked flat out to not only meet the new schedule but also to accommodate unavoidable delays in the return sea voyage and still finish the work ahead of time.

To deliver all six valves by 23 May 2008 three of the units had to be transported by air – a complex undertaking given their size. The valve actuator assemblies measured 5.5m height and weighed 40 tonnes each; very few aircraft are able to carry this kind of cargo and use the airports at Toulouse and Mumbai. Once the aircraft had been selected, further was work was done to construct the necessary steel skids, install a special ramp on the aircraft and hire the necessary 60 crane at each end of the journey.

Commenting on the operation Bruno Fredon, plant manager at the FCT production facility said, “It is nothing short of a minor miracle that the team was able to accommodate the very tight deadlines and all of the unforeseen challenges of this project. Cooperation, planning, daily follow up, and above all the commitment of all involved, have made this project a real success. Everyone involved has displayed a level of professionalism that matches our customers’ highest expectations.”

Production flow is designed to be routed via three 24 inch trunk lines to the onshore terminal (OT) where the valves are installed. The OT is sited near Gadimoga village in Tallarevu Mandal, about 30 km south of Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh, India.

For more information contact Tyco Flow Control, Market Harbrough, Leics.
Tel: 01858 467 281 Fax: 01858 434 728 E-mail: sales_uk@tyco-valves.com
Web: http://www.tycovalves.com