Industrial Resources Inc (IRI) assists in testing a groundbreaking weld procedure.
Industrial Resources Inc (IRI) assists in testing a groundbreaking weld procedure for the United States Department of Defense Missile Defense Agency Vessel on a project led by Elliot Bay Design Group (EBDG).
The Seattle-based engineering firm, EBDG, was commissioned to engineer a repair weld procedure for the USNS SBX-1 X-band radar vessel, a vessel that travels into arctic waters and operates in the most extreme weather conditions on earth. Vessel maintenance and repairs require that large openings be cut out of the hull for maintenance access. The access hatches are then welded back in place after work is complete. Because the vessel’s hull is manufactured from an exotic grade of steel 1.5 inches thick, a challenge emerged when welding the hatches back in place.
Welders discovered that the existing repair process was extremely time-consuming because the steel had to be heated up and held at 1,100 degrees Fahrenheit before lowering steel temperatures, which took place over many hours. The process was complicated further by the thickness of the hull, making temperature regulation extremely difficult and unpredictable. The Department of Defense sought a new procedure to reduce the repair time and associated expenses while meeting or exceeding standards and regulations.
IRI’s Sedro-Woolley fabrication shop became a testing ground for the project. Partnering with EBDG, IRI’s skilled fabricators prepared the test weldments and helped develop the new weld procedure. Detailed testing and reporting were recorded and analyzed by EBDG’s onsite engineers. “It was a pleasure to work closely with IRI’s team of skilled fabricators,” said Matthew Wichgers, EBDG Project Engineer, “Their expertise and enthusiasm were crucial to our success on this project.”
To read more about the testing process in greater detail, follow this link.
The combination of EBDG’s leadership and IRI’s talent produced a highly successful outcome: a procedure that passed all quality assurance and performance requirements and is now used in our nation’s shipyards to repair the USNS SBX-1 X-band radar vessels.
About Industrial Resources, Incorporated
IRI is an employee-owned company in operation since 1986. Its Washington headquarters, along with a 15,000 square foot fabrication shop, is located in Sedro-Woolley, WA. Along with its Alaska headquarters located in Dutch Harbor, the company manages operations spanning five states: Washington, Alaska, Idaho, California, and Oregon. IRI’s focus is heavy industrial work with a specialized emphasis in the Marine industry.