[ Tubes, Pipes, Fittings ]
[ Tubes, Pipes, Fittings ]
Smart piping
One important recent trend is that of“ smart piping”, which allows real-time measuring of water flow, pressure, temperature and presence of contaminants. By automating inspection and tracking systems, facilities can reduce defect rates by 8.5 %. Sensors feed data into management systems that predict tool wear or material variation, cutting downtime and scrap metal generation. Tata Steel has embedded smart piping solutions in 23 installations in India. In stainless-steel manufacturing, ThyssenKrupp has installed AI-based defect-detection systems across three facilities, reducing reject rates by 11 % and energy consumption by 9 %. AI is also being adopted by end users, including chemical plants, power stations and water utilities. By welding ultrasonic or fibreoptic probes directly into pipe arrays, data can be gathered on corrosion rates, flow turbulence and temperature gradients. Such predictive maintenance can cut planned outages by up to 20 %.
dusting in hydrogen- and CO-rich atmospheres. The alloy, to be applied in seamless tubes, combines hightemperature integrity with creep performance similar to alloy 601. Another high-temperature material has
Samsung is constructing a large semiconductor factory in Taylor, near Austin, Texas.
been developed by Alleima: its nickelchromium alloy, Alleima ® TD, is intended for mineral insulated thermocouple cable in sectors such as aerospace, automotive, aluminium production and refineries, in temperatures up to 1250 ° C and beyond.
Traditional markets Not only are stainless tubes and pipes in demand from fast-growth industries, but they also continue to be important in more traditional ones such as oil & gas and water treatment, including desalination. In the first of these, manufacturers are benefiting from large orders: Vallourec won a 1 billion USD contract with Petrobras for OCTG and pipe orders and picked up further business from Shell( Orca project), Sonatrach and Aliseas. Tubacex likewise won a 40 million euros contract from Petrobras for its gas extraction operations. Krupp Precision Tubing has stepped up production of its super duplex stainless-steel pipes, especially tailored for high-salt marine environments in deep-sea oil & gas developments and offshore wind power. The pipes will be used in the Juno oilfield expansion in the North Sea. Whereas demand for oil & gas is not especially strong at this moment, there is now an acute water shortage. Indeed, the UN has now used the term“ water
18 Stainless Steel World March 2026 www. stainless-steel-world. net