Valves are integral to the efficient operation of many
manufacturing and process plants, but the type of valves
being installed is rapidly changing. Here, James Roper,
industrial brand manager for Durapipe UK, discusses the
industry shift in valve specifications

With plant managers under rising
pressure to increase productivity
while reducing costs, more and
more processes are being automated,
sparking an industry shift over the last 12
months towards installing actuated valves.

The demand for automated procedures
has increased rapidly over recent years as
plant managers look to achieve a greater
accuracy of control and efficiency within the
plant, while reducing costs. Moving
processes away from manual actions to
automated procedures means less manual
labour is required, reducing costs and
increasing the speed and accuracy of systems.

Plant managers can benefit from
automating systems that are required to
perform an action and those that purely
monitor processes. When an action is
required, such as chemical dosing or
isolation, if this can be programmed to be
undertaken automatically and controlled
remotely, it can completely eradicate the
need for any personnel on-site, significantly
reducing plant running costs.

When it comes to monitoring plant
processes, if this is conducted by
an operative who needs to
manually patrol the plant
and check all the
processes are
performing correctly,
human error can
come into play and
oversights could occur.

It is impossible for
anyone to watch all of
the processes all of the
time, so any problems
may not be detected straight away and a
delay could be potentially damaging.

An option is to install sensors that
monitor the various processes within an
automated system, which can be
programmed to shut down certain parts of a
plant immediately if a problem is detected.

This ensures the issue is identified straight
away and can be quickly and easily fixed
with minimum disruption, downtime and
danger to the plant.

This shift to automated processes has
brought with it a need to move to actuated
valves, however Durapipe UK is advising
that there are a vast array of options available
and plant managers need to be careful not to
select valves purely on price.

Durapipe offers two main types of
actuators for valves – pneumatic and electric.

While there are pros and cons for each, there
is no right or wrong option and the decision
should be made largely based on the facilities
that the plant has and the various processing
requirements.

Pneumatic valves have a lower unit cost
but they require a compressed air system on
site to provide an air supply to power the
actuator. It has only a few moving parts and
is simple to operate offering a longer
lifespan, however, it can only be used in two
positions – open or closed. This type of
actuator opens and closes the valve very
quickly, which may not be ideal for some
dosing applications where a very small
amount of chemical needs to be accurately
measured into a system.

The other option available is electric
actuators, which can be easily installed
wherever there is a power supply. The unit
cost, however, is higher due to the more
complex mechanisms involved. This
actuation also allows the valve to be locked
into multiple positions between the open and
closed settings and operates more slowly,
offering greater flow control through a
system.

With so many options available, the task
of specifying valves and actuators can be
complex, so it is always recommended to
seek expert advice.

Durapipe UK offers a
dedicated in-house
valve department
with technical
support staff who can
offer specialist advice
on the specification
and installation of
valves and actuators,
as well as provide
on-site training.

With projects so time
critical, prompt delivery is
crucial to the smooth-running of
installations. The company is able to
deliver valves direct to site within 24h of
receiving an order in most cases.

Actuated valves are only a small part of an
automated system; automated flow/chemical
control and measurement solutions are
integral to the efficient running of an
automated plant. Therefore it is important
that all of these products are considered
together at the outset so that a fully matched
solution, that best meets the requirements of
the plant, is installed.