Heat Trace Expert Helps Company Deliver What Was Promised

A customer called the Utah office to obtain pricing for 3,700 ft. of self-regulating cable. They asked for a rush delivery, and said some of the heat traced lines had to be operational within 2 weeks. Bill Black, Valin®'s Process Heat Application Engineer in Dublin, called the customer for more detail. It was determined the project had not yet been designed or specified. The customer was doing insulation on the project and was approached by the owner to quote the heat trace. They did not have the expertise needed to complete the job and had promised their own customer a 2 week turn-around without knowing what was involved. Chromalox could provide the cable within that time frame, but not the design and specifications.
 
Bill Black from Valin® went out to the jobsite and assessed their needs. He determined that there were multiple circuits requiring different operating temperatures. Actions needed to proceed were reviewed with the company and included a quotation for materials, engineering design, start up and commissioning. Once the PO was received a procedure for project management was implemented. Valin® conducted job walks to develop Isometric sketches for each circuit. We reviewed the completed circuit ISO’s and conducted installation training for the company’s employees for all kits and cable with heat trace installers (2-site visits required). We also monitored the installer’s progress to make sure materials continued to arrive on time and were properly installed. Valin® reviewed the control panel location and installation, power connection site locations, and other electrical details with the plant electrician (Several site visits were required). Last, but not least, Valin® coordinated the time for start-up and commissioning of the heat Trace panel with the Chromalox service department and the plant electrician.
 
The customer had no idea how complex the project was going to be when they originally laid out a time frame. Without Valin® stepping in and providing all of the design and specifications in such a timely manner, they would have been in deep trouble, and the end customer wouldn’t have made their deadline. Valin® took the lead on this project and worked together with Chromalox to supervise the project with the customer’s installer’s from start to finish. Valin® will now be the first company the customer calls for all of their process heating needs.