Our customer came to us to solve an issue for a process that he had where he would need an extreme amount of nozzles in a compact reactor. With all the nozzles on the 24” head, the vessel being stainless, half pipe jacket coil, and a body flange; we took the job knowing it would be a challenge. Without the capability of our shop and 3D modeling, this tank would have never been able to be built. The reactor was so busy; the top head lift lug was welded to a blind flange that was bolted to the agitator flange.

Our engineering team did an amazing job of working with the customer to manage the job and get the customer exactly what he wanted. The job started as most do with a sketch and a bunch of words on paper. From there our engineering manager worked closely with his team and the customer to create this vessel. There were challenges along the way, such as, overlapping flange planes and available space. Designs went back and forth with the customer, changing from a conventional jacket with internal baffles to a half pipe coil jacket. This was just the beginning.

Our production team faced its own challenges including sequencing, distortion, and complexity. We used our waterjetting capabilities to cut the holes in the head to minimize distortion. This was of great benefit as the holes were exactly where they should be as well as the cold process of the waterjet did not distort the head at all. In fact, the head without the nozzles was affectionately referred to as a “lady bug”. As anyone in the steel industry knows there are also certain nuances associated with half coil jackets, but compared to the head those issues seemed insignificant. The last real concern we had was welding the nozzles in the head as to not block welding of other nozzles. This was marked on the drawing by the production team and was followed without incident.

The most important part of creating any product for a customer is their complete satisfaction. In this regard the reactor shined through and through. We received e-mails complimenting the entire company for its ability to complete such a “nice looking”, technical and unique vessel. This project was one of the more challenging and also most rewarding projects in recent memory.