The helpful heat exchanger experts at Enerquip have been designing and fabricating shell and tube heat exchangers for our customers’ production plants since 1985.
The Enerquip team is passionate about not only building heat exchangers, but building the best heat exchanger solutions for our customers. Enerquip’s culture is built around integrity. Our team is never done learning, never done growing, and never satisfied with “good enough”.
GENERON is the world leader in the design and manufacture of custom process air and gas separation systems including nitrogen generators for onshore and offshore platforms, floating production, storage and offloading units and transport tankers for the oil & gas market. GENERON has an expanded product base which includes primary compression, instrument air and post compression packages.
GENERON can design and manufacture standard systems or custom engineered packages. For over 40 years, GENERON has provided thousands of systems worldwide to the oil and gas, marine, and industrial service industries that meet stringent customer and third-party society specifications. GENERON® systems are designed for all areas of classification, from Safe to Hazardous Areas, Class I Division 2, Zone 1 and 2, potentially explosive atmospheres, CE / PED, as well as other European standards.
GENERON has a wide variety of clients that require nitrogen generation systems, including drilling and service contractors like Schlumberger, Weatherford, and Halliburton; engineering companies like Alliance Engineering, Wood Group, McDermott, Fluor, and Petrofac; and major oil companies like Exxon-Mobil, Shell, Chevron, Total, and British Petroleum.
High Expectations
GENERON’S dedicated research and development team in California is constantly working to improve product offerings.
Most recently, the GENERON® Dehydration Hollow Fiber Membrane, was re-developed to reduce the weight and size of overall systems, while maintaining instrument quality air. Innovations like this, along with the complete GENERON® product line, continue to elevate the standards and expectations of clients.
GENERON’s facilities in Houston, Texas and Pittsburg, California allow the hands-on monitoring of quality control while delivering the most cost effective products. Both are certified by certified by DNV to ISO-9000 standards, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Pressure Equipment Directive, GOST, and Underwriters Laboratories and the Canadian Standards Association. High quality and high standards are expected from not only their company, but the companies they partner with.
For nearly a decade, GENERON has trusted Enerquip to provide stainless steel shell and tube heat exchangers for these systems. GENERON turns to Enerquip multiple times a year to fulfill the needs and expectations of a growing customer base. The shell and tube heat exchangers Enerquip develops are integral in the nitrogen generation and natural gas compression and processing packages. GENERON relies on the high standards and integrity of Enerquip’s products and services to fulfill this need.
Industry Standards
GENERON relies on Enerquip’s commitment to meet all necessary compliance standards. Enerquip produces shell and tube heat exchangers that are code compliant and follow the regulations set by the Tubular Exchanger Manufacturers Association (TEMA’s) Classes B, C and R; the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME); the Pressure Equipment Directive; the Ministry of Manpower; 3-A; as well as the codes set forth by the American National Standards Institute. Enerquip also fabricates to American Petroleum Institute (API) and Canadian Standards Association (CSA) standards. Enerquip is able to produce heat exchangers that are customized to GENERON customers’ specific needs. Many have unique requirements for various sizes, models and capacities. While many other shell and tube heat exchanger suppliers provide standard pieces of equipment, Enerquip is able to tailor each product to the unique applications for which it will be used. This is because Enerquip has in-house engineers who develop solutions for GENERON’s clients’ needs.
“We often require more customized equipment,” explained Sergio Gonzalez, the Americas Sales Director at GENERON.
“That’s why we turn to Enerquip. They have the engineering and manufacturing capabilities and facilities.”
Enerquip can produce shell and tube heat exchangers ranging from two inches to four feet in diameter, and it has access to a variety of alloys with which to create the equipment. Using the right material is important to GENERON’s clients to ensure the longest lifespan of the equipment as possible. Using the wrong metal can cause corrosion or won’t be able to withstand the pressure or other conditions of the operations.
Quick Turn-Around and On-Time Delivery
Delivery time is another key factor GENERON appreciates. Enerquip prides itself on providing fast deliveries to clients for whom time is a critical factor. GENERON clients sometimes need to put in rushed deliveries for various systems that GENERON provides. However, the company cannot deliver unless it works with a supplier that can provide them with the necessary equipment in a short period of time. Gonzalez explained that even when GENERON clients need a system to be expedited, Enerquip is eager to accommodate the short time frame whenever possible.
GENERON also values the time Enerquip takes to answer questions and give feedback about various products and orders. Gonzalez explained the contact person he has at Enerquip, Shane Viergutz, is always available to talk and is helpful.
“Every time I call them, even if it’s after hours, he answers the phone or returns my calls,” Gonzalez said.
Sometimes GENERON’s customers need a heat exchanger but don’t need a full system for gas compression, production or processing. Other times, they’ll indicate they need an exchanger or system for an application that GENERON doesn’t specialize in. In these instances, Gonzalez explained, he steers them directly to Enerquip. This is because he knows Enerquip’s engineers will be able to work with them to create the right solution for their needs.
“I’ve recommended Enerquip to some of my clients when they only need the heat exchanger, or when it’s not our market,” he said. “When they are working on a different application that we are not directly involved with, I send them directly to Enerquip.”
In getting connected with GENERON’s trusted supplier, the clients know GENERON is looking out for their best interests and will help them succeed in the future.
GENERON plans to continue working with Enerquip for years to come. The company knows Enerquip and its engineers are dependable, efficient, and will work hard to create the best solution for the many systems GENERON provides to its clients.
Simply put, said Gonzalez, “Overall, Enerquip gives good service to us, good products, and good quality.”
A quality product doesn’t just happen by chance. The materials used to make it need to be carefully chosen; the plant or factory where it’s made needs to be intelligently designed; and the equipment needed to manufacture the product needs to be top-notch.
Once these three requirements are filled, your operation is in good shape. But all equipment has a lifespan, and over time, it’ll start to wear out. Ensuring that all pieces of equipment are working properly is crucial in any operation.
Ordering new equipment or replacement parts can become a tricky business. It takes time to build a large piece of processing machinery, such as a shell and tube heat exchanger. And making a specialized design can take even longer. Chemical Processing pointed out that some of the biggest pieces of processing equipment can have lead times of as long as 24 months – longer in some cases. A lot can happen in two years of waiting for an item, and your time is precious.
It’s important that months aren’t wasted spent waiting for a critical piece of equipment to arrive. To avoid too-long lead times, be sure to follow some best practices and keep some strategies in mind.
Know when you’ll need it
You don’t need a crystal ball to get a good idea of when you’ll need to replace equipment. You should know the age and condition of most pieces already. You are also probably familiar with the average lifespan of the types of equipment you use. Some simple math can give you a general range for when your equipment may begin to age out.
“Keep in mind that your machine could be an outlier.”
Knowing when a machine’s performance is likely to begin diminishing is a good start, but not every machine runs the same. Many factors determine how a machine will normally operate. Differences in the environment in which it’s used, where it was built and by whom will all play important roles. Learn the average lifespan to get a good idea, but keep in mind that your machine could be an outlier.
Regular inspections are key to detecting when an item needs to be repaired or replaced. Even when the equipment is brand new, be sure to inspect it on a regular basis. As it gets older, it might be a good idea to increase the frequency of inspections.
Create an ordering schedule
Since you can determine the general timeframe that you’ll need to order a piece of equipment, it shouldn’t be hard to draft up a guideline or schedule for when you’ll need to order certain pieces of equipment.
Once you have this clearly written out, it’ll be easier to determine when and how much you should be saving up for the next equipment purchase. If you know around when you’ll need a new piece of equipment or replacement part, you’ll be able to order it ahead of time. That way, you won’t have to put any equipment out of commission while you wait for your order to come in, and you can replace broken machinery quickly.
You can also communicate this information to your manufacturer so they are aware of your needs. Plus, they’ll have a good idea of how much time it’ll take to produce and ship what you need – valuable information to have when ordering equipment.
“Work with a company you trust can produce quality equipment.”
Be prepared for emergencies
No one can predict the future, and even the most careful manufacturers might have to handle a costly mistake or damaged piece of equipment at some point. When something like this happens, it’s important to move fast to make up for lost production time. Having an emergency budget set aside can help maintain your financial stability. And working with a company that you trust can produce quality equipment on a quick schedule is crucial. They can also assist you by recommending what spare parts to have on hand, in the event of an emergency.
Work with a company you can trust
No matter what industry you’re in, the importance of building a good relationship with your business partners can’t be overstated. The stronger your relationship with the company, and the longer you work with it, the more it’ll learn about your unique process and the better it will be able to help you. Also, when you get to know a company, you’ll get to know its process a little bit better, which will only make collaboration smoother.
When it comes to your shell and tube heat exchangers, if you’re unsure of the best way to initiate the order process, or want to learn about how to reduce the impact of lead times, contact the engineers at Enerquip
When your reputation is on the line, you can trust Enerquip to provide the quality, performance and on-time delivery that you need to keep your shell and tube exchanger project on track.
Enerquip, a homegrown company that specializes in a wide variety of shell and tube heat exchangers, recently broke ground on construction of facility improvements to meet its plans for continued growth.
Enerquip has been one of the leading providers of heating and cooling equipment for production plants and the OEM’s and system integrators that support them. The company crafts stainless steel and high alloy shell and tube heat exchangers of the highest quality, with delivery lead-times that are half of the industry standard. The size of Enerquip heat exchangers can vary from the length of a loaf of bread to the size of a school bus.
The new additions to the facility will include an expanded and remodeled office area, allowing enough room for 10 new employees. The facility has also installed building-wide Wi-Fi, which will allow employees to use state-of-the-art video meeting screens to remotely review projects with clients from their conference rooms.
“We wanted Enerquip to make a better first impression on our customers, and to be a place that our employees are proud to come to work,” said Jeannie Deml, President & CEO.
Enerquip also gave the facility a facelift, and the building underwent some light construction to add more windows throughout the facility to allow access to additional natural light. The facility increased its shop floor space by 25 percent by adding vertical storage racks, which didn’t require the company to add on to the building.
“With the additional space and updated facilities, Enerquip will be able to serve customers more efficiently, increase production throughput and volume, and blend better with the surrounding neighborhood,” said Tim Strebig, Plant Manager.
The indoor renovations are planned to be complete for staff to move in by the end of January, 2015. Exterior improvements and landscaping are scheduled for completion in the Spring of 2015.
About Enerquip
For more than 40 years, Enerquip has been a top designer and fabricator of stainless steel and high alloy shell and tube heat exchangers, with a reputation for quality and fast delivery. The company is one of the most trusted in the industry and provides both custom and standard off-the-shelf solutions for heating and cooling applications. Enerquip serves markets such as the pharmaceutical, beverage, brewing, food processing, dairy, paper, chemical, waste water and renewable fuels industries.
