First flanges attached

Subsea Riser Products (SRP), an Acteon company, has successfully attached the first flanges to pipe sections that will make up a unique ultra-high-pressure drilling riser for use by Venture Production in the North Sea.

The flanges were joined to the pipes at SRP’s premises in the UK, using a novel shrink-fit process that the company developed specifically with the fabrication of risers like this one in mind. SRP managing director Simon Luffrum said, “The development of the shrink-fit flange has been the key to this entire project.
We have had a good deal of interest in the technique from a number of other operators.
Now that we have proved the technique it is likely to find application in a variety of riser-related projects in the future.”
The flange is first heated using induction coils to over 400°C, which causes it to expand sufficiently to fit over the end of the 19¼-in ID riser pipe section.