WPC100M - High Temp Heat Shrink Sleeve

     In the world of pipeline coatings there are many factors to consider when making a field joint coating selection.  These could consist of reliability, proven performance, ease of installation, ability to install consistently, cost of application, preheat requirements, pipeline surface preparation, etc.

WPC100M for Elevated Temperature Lines.

      WPC100M is a mastic coated sleeve (the sealant is a butyl based mastic) with a long, long use history.  This product can be installed over a wire brushed surface.  This product can be used onshore or offshore.  This product is rated for use on pipelines operating at up to 80C (100C when offshore or on an insulated line).  It is available in 11", 17", 24" and 34" widths and happens to be a product that Joint Specialists always keeps a stock of (generally keep more than 5000 linear feet of material which would be sufficient to kick-off most jobs).

Data Sheets can be found here.

 

WPCT Features

In case you missed it, we recently completed a seven part series to analyze the seven most notable benefits of our WPCT product.  Here are the links to those posts:

WPCT Data Sheet.  To see the entire sheet, visit our website at www.jsicoatings.com or call us at 936/321-3333

1. Permanent Change Indicator - WPCT is the only sleeve on the market whose backing permanently changes as it is properly installed.  This allows for easy inspection at time of installation or even years later. 
2. Self Healing - WPCT is self healing which means during the course of operation, it will automatically heal any minor damage that it might have received. 
3. Simple Installation - WPCT requires no special training or special equipment.  The install process is easy and repeatable.  
4. /UNI Sleeve - While many sleeves are sold with the sleeve material and closure material shipped separately, WPCT typically is not.  This makes the contractors happy. 
5. Long, Successful Use History - WPCT has been used successfully for many years.  You can be confident you are getting a reliable coating that will properly prevent corrosion for the life of your pipeline.
6. Sand Blasting Not Required - WPCT can be installed over a wire brushed pipe surface.
7. No Primer Required - WPCT requires no primers or epoxies.  

Primer-less Pipe Coating

Seven Fantastic Features of the WPCT product

(This is part 7 of 7 in our Product Spotlight on Covalence WPCT; 

Wrap Around Pipe Coating with Thermal Indicator)

 

     WPCT does not require any primers or epoxies.  This means no time wasted waiting for solvents to evaporate or epoxies to cure.  It means no hazardous waste disposal.  It means no need for a special breathing apparatus and no risk of chemical burns on the skin.  WPCT is not hazardous in any way.  Why would you want to waste your time and money with all of that; when you could already be moving on to the next field joint with confidence that your pipe has been safely protected!

Wire Brush Pipe Coating

Seven Fantastic Features of the WPCT product

(This is part 6 of 7 in our Product Spotlight on Covalence WPCT; 

Wrap Around Pipe Coating with Thermal Indicator)

     One challenge that seems to always face contractors in the field is properly preparing the surface of the field joint for the field joint coating.   Right up front, I feel the need to be very clear:  when it comes to surface preparation; the cleaner the substrate; the better the bond will be.   That being said, the technical data as reported by Covalence on their data sheets and within their manufacturer's specification is attainable through an installation on a wire brushed pipe surface.  

A photo from the JSI archives.  Apparently this was pre-OSHA!

     There are many occasions where wire brushing the pipe offers tremendous advantages over the cost, labor and environmental implications of grit or sand blasting.  In many of those cases, WPCT should certainly be considered as a great coating option.

Most Popular Shrink Sleeve of All Time

Seven Fantastic Features of the WPCT product

(This is part 5 of 7 in our Product Spotlight on Covalence WPCT; 

Wrap Around Pipe Coating with Thermal Indicator)

     In the last decade, more than 2,000,000 field joints have been coated with WPCT.  That equates to more than 15,000 miles of pipelines (assuming forty foot joints).  Keep in mind; WPCT is only one of many field joint coating solutions that are regularly specified and sold.  That really is an astounding number!  That would be the equivalent of a pipeline that ran from Houston, Texas  to Kuwait City, Kuwait....AND BACK! 

     It doesn't stop there though.  WPCT has been in service in one form or another (TPS, WPC, WPC/B, etc) for more than thirty years!  I would guess that there are enough miles of pipeline coated with WPCT in the world to circle the earth; and probably circle it more than one time.  That is incredible.

     So, with literally millions of WPCT sleeves either buried or subsea for more than thirty years now; the simple truth is that we (with our close to one hundred years of combined coating experience) know of almost no reports of product failures.  Sure, we've heard of shrink sleeve failures over the years; but indubitably, when we are able to find out the details of the problem, we find that the failure was not a Covalence (previously Raychem) failure, it was a failure by one of "the other" heat shrink sleeve manufacturer's products.  I know it may be hard to believe, but I've seen it play out this way time after time after time.

      And that is why; an incredibly long, successful use history, is fantastic feature number five of seven for WPCT!

One Piece Shrink Sleeve

Seven Fantastic Features of the WPCT product

(This is part 4 of 7 in our Product Spotlight on Covalence WPCT; 

Wrap Around Pipe Coating with Thermal Indicator)

WPCT /UNI Sleeve with closure strip pre-attached in our shop.

 All wrap around shrink sleeves incorporate at least two components; the wrap around sleeve itself and the closure strip.  The closure strips function is to hold the sleeve in the shape of a tube (wrapped around the pipe) during installation.  At times in history, the sleeve and closure have been sold separately.  This could be confusing as closures would be lost in the box; dropped in the mud or installed the wrong way.  In addition, sometimes it can feel like an installer needs three hands if he is working with an unattached closure.

That is where our /UNI sleeve comes in.  Just about every wrap around sleeve that we sell comes with the closure strip pre-attached to the shrink sleeve.  We do this using special equipment in our warehouse designed for just this purpose.  As a result, we've seen field service requests drop dramatically.  Contractors are happy.  End users are happy.  We are happy.  All because of a simple thing like pre-attaching the closure strip and popularizing the /UNI sleeve.  There is no extra charge for this service; we just do it because it's the right thing to do.

Easy to Install Shrink Sleeve

Seven Fantastic Features of the WPCT product

(This is part 3 of 7 in our Product Spotlight on Covalence WPCT; 

Wrap Around Pipe Coating with Thermal Indicator)

     Finding a product that is easy to install, reliable and proven can be quite a challenge.  WPCT is one of those products.  It requires no special training, no special tools (other than a propane torch of course) and is easily repeatable.  Every box of shrink sleeves that we at JSI supply comes complete with an installation instruction sheet in every box.  If that's not enough, we have a handy (and short) installation video to walk an installer through the coating process step by step.

     The process is simple.  

1.  Clean the bare steel and adjacent line coating with a wire brush, being sure to remove all lose particles (and wipe down with a cleaner of some sort).

2.  Preheat the bare steel and adjacent line coating to at least 140F (but no more than 250F).  

3.  Remove the release paper and wrap the sleeve in place.

4.  Secure the closure strip using a gloved hand and a propane torch.

5.  Begin to shrink the sleeve, beginning on one end and working toward the other - always shrinking circumferentially. 

6.  Use a gloved hand or a silicone roller to pat down the overlap area.

The Sleeve is fully and properly installed when:

1.  The sleeve has fully conformed to the pipe surface, weld bead and factory applied coating step downs should be visible.

2.  There is mastic flow evident at both sides of the sleeve.

3.  All cross-hatch pattern in the sleeve backing has been replaced by a smooth surface.

 4.  There are no cold spots on the sleeve surface.

Pipeline Coating Repairs Itself

Seven Fantastic Features of the WPCT product

(This is part 2 of 7 in our Product Spotlight on Covalence WPCT; 

Wrap Around Pipe Coating with Thermal Indicator)

      WPCT is a product that just happens to be self-healing.  This phenomenon exists in other technologies as well; most notably the Stopaq viscoelastic material.   In the example below, I've made a small hole in the shrink sleeve backing which reaches all the way to the bare steel beneath.

Small hole, to the steel made with a screwdriver.

After a few hours, I took another picture of the sleeve:

Self Healing

     As can be seen, mastic flow has occurred to fill in the hole.  Bare steel is no longer exposed.  There is no longer a pathway for water or oxygen to reach the bare steel.  The steel is once again protected; due to the self healing nature of the WPCT.

    

Fantastic Pipeline Coating Inspection Tool

Seven Fantastic Features of the WPCT product

(This is part 1 of 7 in our Product Spotlight on Covalence WPCT; 

Wrap Around Pipe Coating with Thermal Indicator)

          Covalence WPCT (formerly Raychem) is the only product on the market with a permanent change indicator.  This means that the backing is supplied with a cross-hatched pattern and as the product is properly shrunk, that cross hatch pattern fades into a smooth backing. 

On the left the backing is still in its "as supplied" state.  On the right, the sleeve has been properly shrunk.

          This change is permanent which offers tremendous benefit in the field.  This allows a field joint to be inspected minutes after installation; hours after installation; days after installation or even weeks, months or years after installation.  If an area of the heat shrink sleeve has not been properly heated; it will be obvious to the hands and the eyes of the installer; the inspector and anyone else who might happen by.  

     This is just one of the features that makes WPCT the product of choice for many engineers and end users.  Stay tuned for part two of this series!