Tube and Pipe
ERW Tube & Pipe Mills

As the world-leading supplier of laser seam
tracking systems for tube and pipe mills,
Meta has substantial experience of Tube and
Pipe Mill environments. Several recent
developments have demonstrated our
commitment to the overall Tube and Pipe
sector and led to the introduction of two
new applications for ERW mills.

Online Mismatch Measurement

By measuring mismatch accurately online,this system enables operators to tell at aglance if tube is being made to tolerance.This is very useful during normal production because it provides instantaneous and continuous measurement of actual mismatch as-welded. This means that any drift causing a deterioration in mismatch can be detected before it produces out of tolerance product. This helps in producing consistently high quality tube. The online mismatch measurement is particularly beneficial after product changeover, enabling operators to get the mill operating inside acceptable tolerances quickly thereby reducing scrap.

The mismatch measurement system consists of a laser
sensor head, industrial computer for image processing
and a colour graphics screen for operator output. The
laser sensor head is fully ruggedised, so it can be
mounted just after the welding point. This provides
actual mismatch a fraction of a second after welding.
The sensor is not affected by the heat affected weld zone
or by the ERW environment.

Offline Line Tracking System

High quality ERW pipe must often be 100% inspected by UT. However, after welding and scarfing, it is no longer easy to detect the weld line. One solution to this is to paint or mark a line on the pipe during welding. The line is a fixed angle or distance from the weld point. The line provides a reference to the weld position. Meta has a fully automatic line tracking system that detects the line, compares the actual line position to the target position and outputs corrections to attached motion axes.

This system provides for automatic tracking from the start to the end of the pipe. This means that the UT operation can be fully automated. This system provides two main benefits:

• Detection and tracking of the line removes any doubt about the actual position of the weld line. Placement of the UT probes is then known to be accurate relative to the weld. This improves the
  accuracy, quality and reliability of the UT system
• Tracking of the weld line can be fully automatic, thereby improving productivity.