Joint protection | advertising feature
production facility and is able to produce as many as 1,000 sleeves each day, in sizes ranging from 57 mm to 1,220 mm in diameter. One factor that has played a part in this fast production growth is the simplicity of the CE sleeve design, which does not call for complex machin- ing and welding processes. When CELER fi rst introduced the CE sleeve to the
Russian market, it was competing against a number of alternative welded joint corrosion protection technolo- gies, including slip casting, protectors, and stainless sleeves. At that time, Russian oil companies had no particular weld protection preference. However, within fi ve years, the sleeve had proved itself to be the most effi cient protection technology in terms of reasonable pricing, reliable performance, and easy installation (the collar and two design variants means the CE sleeve can be installed on any pipe grade without the need to calibrate the pipe ends). By 2012, CELER’s sleeve production volume had grown to 200,000 units a year. This rapid growth in demand for sleeves lead the
company to begin production of a range of pipeline accessories, such as the Ch-5-A mastic and a complete line of special fi ttings (including pipe-bends, reducers, T-joints and fl anges with anti-corrosion coating and weldolets that are connectable to the sleeves). Several of these special fi ttings and mastics are also patented. During the fi rst fi ve years, CELER exploited its
growing income to equip itself to manage the entire production cycle for manufacturing sleeves, mastic and various fi tting types in-house. The company has continued to grow since by expanding its production capacity and increasing its production areas. Each year a new production shop is added to the manufacturing facility.
The company has also worked to continually improve
the CE sleeve design and quality. In 2005, it introduced a new collar (which is patented separately) which is easier to install and achieves a tighter fi t. The mastic formulation was also improved, allowing its shelf life to be extended from six months to eighteen months to meet the increasingly demanding requirements of customers.
In the same year (2005), CELER also obtained a
Certifi cate of Conformity of the Quality Management System to GOST R ISO 9001-2008. This conformity has been successfully renewed each year and the company proudly claims that it has not received a single quality complaint since then. CELER’s customer list includes almost all of
Russia’s major oil companies. Long-standing custom- ers such as TNK-BP, Lukoil and Rosneft, have more recently been joined by Tatneft, Bashneft, Gazprom, and Slavneft. Two years ago, CELER also started working very closely with Surgutneftegaz. A key strategy in the company’s business develop- ment has been to collaborate closely with design institutes. This enables it to ensure that its products are included in new fi eld development projects such as the construction of fi eld oil pipelines as early as possible in the development stage. Currently, more than 30 R&D and design institutes include CELER’s CE range in their projects. This includes the sleeves, as well as CE fi ttings and all kinds of special parts. In recent years, the company has also focused on
introducing new equipment to increase labour effi ciency and to expand its production capacities. A year ago, CELER commissioned a robot-aided welding complex supplied by KUKA, which is said to be unique in Russia.
May 2013 | PIPELINE COATING 29 Above right:
A custom pipe bend compris- ing T-joint, reducer and
fl ange under construction
Special fi ttings in the CELER factory. The
epoxy-coated parts are
designed for joining using CE sleeves
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