Time and money savings in South Africa

Huntsman Tioxide, a South African company manufacturing paint pigments, discovered fatigue cracks in critical areas of two of their 38 year old, 40m long rotating kilns.

Anxious to remedy the problem, they contacted Abington who sent Alan Smith to South Africa within 24 hours to inspect the kiln and make a preliminary assessment.

Further investigations were carried out at TWI resulting in the recommendation to change the kiln design. This led to proposals on how and where to reinforce the kiln to prevent the fatigue problems recurring.

A programme of scheduled NDT inspection resulted not only in considerably increased inspection intervals but also in extension of the lifetime of the kilns themselves. A direct result of the work carried out was that HuntsmanTioxide was able to save up to £20 000 per day avoiding shell replacement and associated loss of production.

To find out more about how TWI can help your company improve performance and extend the life of plant, contact Alan Smith. E-mail: alan.smith@twi.co.uk