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Looking back 40 years ago, owning and operating a building property was a much easier task existing in a far simpler world.  Fewer government regulations and controls, less demanding tenants, fewer critical systems, more knowledgeable, dedicated, and experienced engineers, no Covid-19 of course, and piping systems which almost never presented a problem.  American piping products were the only materials installed and were of the highest quality.  Combined with highly effective corrosion control chemicals, and having simple robust designs, piping failures were almost unheard of.

• Negative Directions
  

That has all changed, however, and substantially for the worse.  From our perspective, having been heavily involved with the fitness for service condition assessment of over 1,100 building properties with ages ranging from the late 1800s to just two years ago, most of those in the building management field are totally unaware of the many changes which have occurred in terms of their critical piping systems.

Changes such as:

• • • Lower quality pipe
    • More corrosion susceptible pipe
    • Less effective corrosion control chemicals
    • Thinner pipe schedules
    • Less restrictive design specifications
      
    • Pipe deliberately manufactured below ASTM specifications
      
    • Less resilient pipe joining methods
    • HVAC designs favoring corrosion
      
    • Improperly selected, incorrectly installed, and ineffective water filtration
    • Less skilled and knowledgeable engineers
    • Green demands favoring higher corrosion levels
    • Covid-19 related building shutdowns
    • Less attention to maintenance and repairs
    • An increase in the “Run-To-Failure” form of operations
    • Accelerated failures of newly installed piping systems

As a result of these and other issues, we are documenting dramatically higher corrosion activity and accelerated failures at newer as well as older piping systems.

• Website Resources
  

Significant insight into our knowledge base of information relating to piping, corrosion, ultrasonic testing, water filtration, and many other corrosion associated issues can be found on this Internet site.

Our Technical Bulletins section offers useful information and recommendations to most of the above issues.  Also, our Photo Galleries provide a visual guide to the most common corrosion related problems afflicting most building properties.

• Speaking Engagements

Where our CorrView Internet site or other resources still fail to provide sufficient insight and support, a personal face to face discussion relating to building piping systems, their assessment, and the reality of today’s threats to building operations can be arranged.  Typical conference subjects are listed above, and are ideally suited for those involved with:

• • • Building, facility, and property management
    • Building operating engineers
    • Facility condition assessment
    • Corrosion control / Mitigation
    • Professional engineers / PE
    • Due diligence / Fitness for service
    • Loss prevention
    • New Construction / Renovation / Expansion
    • Insurance
    • Data centers / Critical operations

• Discussion Subjects

Topics of discussion based upon over 30 years of ultrasonically investigating such issues can be customized to address questions such as:

• • • What types of diagnostic piping investigations are available?
      • Visual inspection
      • Metallurgical failure analysis
      • Ultrasonic testing
      • Remote robotic camera inspection
      • X-Ray
      • Intelligent UT pigs
      • Infrared

• • • How do such diagnostic methods compare?
      • Information gained
      • Providing definitive answers
      • System coverage
      • Benefits
      • Disadvantages
      • Approximate costs

• • • Can historical based engineering assessments provide similar answers?
      • Worthless in terms of predicting pipe condition
      • Far lower corrosion rates decades ago
      • Maintenance and corrosion control cannot be predicted
      • Lower pipe quality today
      • Differences in chemical protection

• • • How about reviewing corrosion coupon reports and water treatment logs?
      • Created by chemical providers in judging their own success
      • Do not cover the full history of the piping system
      • Limited snapshot indications of condition at best
      • Corrosion coupons are substantially inaccurate
      • Chemical treatment logs only prove chemical presence
      • Both are easily doctored and falsified

• • • Aren’t other forms of corrosion monitoring as informative as UT?
      • Corrosion coupons
      • Electronic corrosion monitoring – LPR
      • Metallurgical testing
      • Water analysis
      • Water treatment logs
      • Water treatment oversight

• • • When is pipe testing appropriate?
      • Following a piping leak or failure
      • Building acquisition
      • System age related concerns
      • Defining the limits of pipe replacement
      • Condition or “Fitness-For-Service” assessment
      • Confirm chemical treatment effectiveness
      • Prioritizing pipe repairs / Replacement
      • Concern due to observations of rust and scale
      • Establish new piping baseline condition
        
      • Assess the safety of a pipe cleaning or relining process
      • New building ownership
      • Preventative / Predictive Maintenance

• • • How does ultrasonic pipe testing or UT work?
      • Its method of operation
      • Is a system shutdown required?
      • How accurate and reliable is UT?
      • How about insulated pipe, pipe located behind walls or underground?
      • Can Painted and water filled pipe be tested?
      • How long does a typical survey take?
      • How much pipe can be inspected in a given day?
      • When are the test results available?

• • • What information does UT testing provide?
      • How do I interpret the wall thickness data gained from UT?
      • Will it define corrosion rate?
      • Can UT estimate how long the pipe will last?
      • Should other professional services be involved?

• • • What are the most common UT applications?
      • Condensate
      • Condenser water
      • Chill water
      • Domestic water
      • Dual temperature
      • Fire protection
      • Hot Water Heating
      • Sanitary waste
      • Steam

• • • What can I do to ensure a successful piping condition assessment?
      • Define a focused interest or system of concern.
      • Share all information about its history, maintenance, leaks, failures, etc.
      • Ensure that planned advance preparations have been carried out.
      • Provide as-built piping layout and riser diagrams and other documentation.
      • Dedicate building personnel for the full duration of the investigation.
      • Ensure there are no delays in testing progress.
      • Schedule additional field time for safety seminars, orientations, site related paperwork.
      • Ensure that all required wall openings have been completed in advance.
      • Provide an insulator to remove and replace pipe insulation.
      • Enlist a professional engineer to oversee the above.

• Discussion Options

We can accommodate any subject interest at varying levels of detail.  This includes providing handout material for attendees, Powerpoint presentations, etc.  As always, our Internet site offers a wealth of valuable information on many subjects covered above.

• • • What forms of lecturing do you make available?
      • Large group conference
      • Business guest speaker
      • Small group assembly
      • Informal company setting
      • Video Conference
      • Phone Conference

Please give us a call for further information.

© Copyright 2024 – William P. Duncan, CorrView International, LLC