March 2019 Vol. 1

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PPN- The Leading Source of Industry News on Polymer Pipes and Plastic Pipe Failure – Live News Feeds!


Victorian Building Authority (VBA) Encouraging All Plumbing Practitioners to review a Cautionary Note on Mixed (PP-R/Copper) Pipes in Hot Water Recirculation Systems Published by Aquatherm
https://www.vba.vic.gov.au/media/latest-news/article/2016/aquatherm-australia-issues-cautionary-note-on-combined-copper-with-pp-r-heated-water-circulatory-systems

Reliance Worldwide Founders Sell Down $365M Stake (Macquarie selling Munz stake in Reliance Worldwide)
https://www.afr.com/street-talk/macquarie-selling-munz-stake-in-reliance-worldwide-20190226-h1bpny

PPS – Specialists but not limited to HDPE Live Tie Ins and HDPE welding local to Chinchilla
https://www.polypipesolutions.com.au/ | [email protected] | 07 45316630

Australia’s Top 10 Tax Dodgers: Fletcher Building Australia
https://thenewdaily.com.au/money/finance-news/2019/02/27/top-10-tax-fletcher/

Stress Analysis of GRP / GRE / FRP Composite Piping System
http://www.whatispiping.com/grp-gre-frp-piping-system

New Zealand Contractor to Turn Plastic Bottles into Pipes
https://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/new-zealand-contractor-to-turn-plastic-bottles-into-pipes

New Method to Lay HDPE Pipe Wins Award
https://www.hydroworld.com/articles/2019/02/method-used-to-lay-pipe-for-naturstromspeicher-gaildorf-energy-storage-pilot-project-wins-award.html

Pipe Failure Laboratory Formally Opens
Melbourne, 4 March 2019:  ExcelPlas has opened a failure analysis facility in Melbourne, Australia which will provide failure analyses that support the piping and plumbing industry in conducting effective and efficient root cause analyses.

  • The aim is to prevent and learn from pipe and fittings failures and continue to improve safety, reliability and up-time.  The facility will carry out the crucial initial steps of a failure investigation, which could include visual inspection, non-destructive testing [NDT], disassembly, cutting of components, etc.
  • The facility will be supported by ExcelPlas’ very experienced team of polymer experts who are able to carry out further analyses, which may include fractography (scanning electron microscopy), mechanical testing, chemical analysis, etc. as well as draw on experience from several 1,000 failure analyses carried out in the ExcelPlas Labs over the past 25 years.
  • The facility consists of a large warehouse to support receiving, inspecting, and storing large pipe sections and other failed components, as well as office space and other facilities.
  • There is much to be gained from pipe manufacturers and end users performing failure investigations and root cause analyses as it provides better insight on why piping and fittings have failed and how failures can be prevented in the future, enhancing safety, reliability and saving costs.
  • For our clients, we routinely conduct incident reports and independent forensic failure analysis of HDPE pipe systems and other polymeric components.
  • We know first hand that HDPE pipe system failure can result in explosion, fire and loss of life, and ultimately in costly litigation and damages. In addition, these failures can cause service interruption, safety concerns and loss of brand credibility.
  • For these reasons, we believe that condition monitoring and failure analysis must be standard practice for the utility market. We strive to determine an exact cause of failure, and develop remediate, corrective actions to prevent recurrence.
http://www.excelplas.com/contact-us

Reece Share Price Slides as Downturn in the Construction Industry Starts to Bite
https://www.investsmart.com.au/recommendations/pressure-builds-for-reece/144057

Fletcher Building Release Half Year Results (Declassified)
https://fletcherbuilding.com/assets/4-investor-centre/other-documents/2019-fletcherbuilding-half-year-results-presentation.pdf

Fletcher Building Back in the Black But Feeling the Heat in Australia
https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/property/110720743/troubled-fletcher-building-back-in-the-black-for-first-half

Plastic Pipe Institute Releases Guide for Specifying HDPE Conduit and Small Diameter HDPE pipe
https://plasticpipe.org/pdf/tn-50-guide-to-specifying-hdpe-conduit.pdf

New Document Explains how to Safely Handle HDPE Pipe on Solar Projects
https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2019/02/new-user-document-explains-how-to-safely-handle-hdpe-conduit-on-solar-projects/

Plastic Pipes Welding Brings McElroy Machines to Middle East
https://www.mining-technology.com/contractors/cables/mcelroy/pressreleases/%EF%BB%BFplasticpipes-welding-middle-east/

MCELROY TRACSTAR 500 III For Sale $153K
https://www.machinerytrader.com.au/listings/construction-equipment/for-sale/22291991/2019-mcelroy-tracstar-500-iii

South Australian Courses in Butt Fusion Welding and Electrofusion Welding of HDPE Pipe
https://www.tafesa.edu.au/xml/course/sc/sc_T559826577.aspx


ExcelPlas – the Australian Pipes & Fittings Testing Laboratory

  • Accredited to ISO 17025 by the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) Australia, and is Australia’s largest laboratory dedicated for the testing of plastic pipes and fittings to various Standards which include Australian, European and International Standards.
  • The staff employed at the laboratory have a combined experience of more than 85 years within the plastics industry specifically with manufacturing, quality control and the research and development of plastic piping systems including HDPE, PEX, PP-R, PVC, U-PVC, M-PVC, O-PVC, ABS, GRP, GRE and PB.
  • Services provided include conformance testing, compliance testing, batch release testing, root cause analysis for field failures and non-destructive testing of samples.
  • http://www.excelplas.com/

ExcelPlas Lab Specialising in HDPE Pipe Condition Monitoring, Failure Analysis and Testing
In the event of a HDPE buttweld or electrofusion weld failing during initial testing, or in service, we can conduct investigations to assist in identifying the root cause of the failure.
This service also extends to the premature failure of the pipe or fitting itself.
http://www.excelplas.com/plastic-pipes

ExcelPlas Pipe Testing is a Leader in the Field of Polyethylene (PE) and High-Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Testing
ExcelPlas is accredited with the National Association of Testing Authorities (NATA) for butt weld tests, bend and tensile tests, peel decohesion tests on electro fusion sockets and failure mode determination
http://www.polypipetesting.com.au/butt-fusion-welds/

New UHMWPE Pipe for Tailing Offers Greater Than 4X the Abrasion Resistance of PE100 (Australia wide)
http://slurrypipes.com.au/


ExcelPlas Poly Pipe Weld Inspection Lists Top 7 Causes of Weld Failure:
• Lack of scraping
• Inaccurate scraping
• Contamination from dirt, water, oil or clays
• Lack of Paralell-ness of fusion faces
• Misalignment of surfaces
• Time, temperature and pressure deviations
• Not adhering to cool times

We have extensive experience in inspection of poly pipe welds for assuring welded joint quality.  Direct Poly Pipe Inspection ensures that operators are following the proven welding procedure; this reduces the occurrences of operational errors which lead to defects such as inclusions, lack of fusion (LoF), porosity and misalignment.
More information, contact [email protected]

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