PHE inspection
May 1st 2009 Vital to production at the Diageo beer packaging plant at Runcorn are 10 large plate heat exchangers (PHEs), which are protected through a performance agreement provided by heat transfer specialist, Alfa Laval.
Under the terms of the agreement, Alfa Laval inspects and carries out hydrostatic pressure tests on each PHE plate pack on a regular basis and also holds a spare plate pack in reserve for emergencies.
Routine testing involves opening the plate pack, inspecting each plate for signs of wear such as cracks or pinholes, reporting the unit's condition and recommending any remedial work that may be necessary to the site engineering staff.
Since the objective is to keep Downtime to a minimum, if any major work, such as re-gasketting, is required it has to be accomplished within a very tight timeframe. More articles from Alfa Laval Limited: | 
