Product category:
Metals finishing lines and equipment
News Release from: Mitutoyo (UK) | Subject: Mitutoyo Series 810 IN2 View HT hardness testers
Edited by the Manufacturingtalk Editorial
Team on 16 April 2002
Automatic hardness testers check pipe
welds
For hardness testing of welded pipes used in oil and gas fields a pipe producer uses two Mitutoyo fully automatic hardness testers and avoids having to use two full-time operators.
The Metallurgical Services function of the giant Corus organisation can be called upon to carry out investigative testing on any materials supplied by the company to many of the most demanding metal customers around the world An ongoing task involves hardness testing of welded pipes used in oil and gas fields
This article was originally published on Manufacturingtalk on 24 Mar 2005 at 8.00am (UK)
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For this, Corus depends on two Mitutoyo fully automatic Hardness Testers to cope with the volume of testing required without the need of full-time operators to carry out the work.
Test blocks manufactured by Corus Tubes and Pipes that include a section of submerged-arc weld are sent to Metallurgical Services where they are cut into sections, prepared to a suitable finish of three microns and then etched to reveal the weld micro-structure in readiness for the hardness testing.
To perform the test, the Mitutoyo Series 810 IN2 View HT fully automatic hardness tester is programmed by a technician for the required number and spacing of indents - different customers specify different surveys and number of indents in either weld or plate.
Further reading
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A manual vision measuring machine features double-telecentric optics combined with such a large focal depth that workpieces of varying thickness can be measured without refocusing.
Automated machines test fine fibres
Producer of miniature, automated fibre-strength testing machines uses a scanning laser micrometer to help rapidly evaluate tensile properties of fibres down to 5 micron.
Typically a survey consists of around 80 indents and takes one hour to complete - the time being governed by the required load time for each indent.
Corus has two series 810 IN2 View HT machines at its Redcar, Cleveland facility, both automatically carrying out the hardness test before producing a table of results, as well as printing out a test certificate and schematic diagram of the weld showing results for each indent.
The two Mitutoyo machines provide very accurate, consistent results and free-up labour whilst the test takes place.
Cath Fennel, Section Manager in Metallurgical Services at Corus explained, "The technicians just programme the machine for the required test, hit the Go button, and the machine takes over.
Before we had the Mitutoyo machines, they could spend 12 hours a day manually carrying out the tests and writing down all the results.
It was a ridiculous use of labour! Now they are free to do other work." When Corus was looking to automate its hardness testing function, it had difficulty finding a company able to fulfil its needs.
Fennel continued, "We contacted a company called QC Plus for help with image analysis.
This was about seven years ago: there were automatic hardness testers about but none that would test on an etched sample." "QC Plus, hand in hand with Mitutoyo, developed the software specifically for our needs and we ended up with the ideal system for hardness testing of welds. Request a free brochure from Mitutoyo (UK) ...
Since then the same system has become available to any company concerned with weld assessment.".
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