The challenge 

Heysham 2 Power Station has a net electrical output of 1,210 megawatts and is capable of supplying more than 2.5 million homes. Powered by two advanced gas-cooled reactors, the station produces enough electricity to keep three cities the size of Liverpool supplied during peak loading hours. Situated on the north-west coast of England, Heysham 2 is owned and operated by EDF Energy.

A new compressed air installation was required at Heysham 2 to supply cooling air of breathable quality to full body suits. These full body suits enable manned access to be made to the reactor vessels for inspection, maintenance and necessary rectification work during scheduled reactor shutdowns.

The project required four new compressors and associated purifier and filtration units to be installed in an existing plant room. The system was designed to operate at 10 bar with regulation to a lower pressure.  

The solution

Through recent product development activities, Tata Steel was able to demonstrate improved pressure integrity values for its INSTALL+^TM products, addressing the installation needs of EDF Energy in full. 

The adoption of INSTALL+^TM for the new compressed air installation at Heysham 2 has resulted in a number of benefits. These include improved service life and ease of maintenance. For screwed and socketed tube used in compressed air service, product development activities undertaken by Tata Steel have also resulted in a significant increase in pressure capabilities. 

Product development has focused on the threaded joints and the benefits provided by threading compounds. Increase in pressure capability has been confirmed in a review of pressure ratings tables undertaken by Tata Steel in collaboration with the British Compressed Air Society.

EDF Energy specified a hot dip galvanised tube product for improved service life. Dual-certified INSTALL+^TM tube is supplied galvanised in accordance with the appropriate European Standards.

Manufactured in the UK, INSTALL+^TM screwed and socketed products also provide a fully demountable system. Ease of disassembly provides significant benefits for maintenance and inspection.