The Welder 01/2013 - ESAB

Figure 3 // Modules from Thailand arriving at the Aibel
yard in Haugesund.
Origo Mig 4001i inverter with
Origo YardFeed 2000 winner at Aibel
Aibel put four machines from four different suppliers to
the test in a two-month investigation involving 13 of their
best welders. To get a good view on their performance,
the power sources were used in actual production along
with existing welding equipment and with the same
welding consumables.
One of the machines from another supplier was soon
taken out of the test, because of its unstable wire burn-off
in FCAW which was regarded to be a potential cause
of welding defects. This required very precise parameter
settings and could, nevertheless, not be solved
satisfactorily. An aspect of this machine which the
welders really disliked was the switch on the door of the
wire feeder that needed to be activated to allow welding.
A second machine did not have the required voltage
display on the wire feeder needed by the welder to set
the welding parameters. The supplier was asked to
change this, but they failed to come up with a solution.
The machine had otherwise good welding characteristics.
Real competition took place between ESAB and the
supplier of many of the MMA/FCAW power sources
used by the yard at that moment. The latter has a solid
reputation among welders at Aibel, while ESAB is
respected for its automated TIG, plasma, and subarc
solutions and for its excellent welding consumables.
Odds were even in this respect, so the decision had to
come from a comparison on design and performance
of the machines.
ESAB’s Origo Mig 4001i with Origo YardFeed 2000 and
power source number three are comparable equipment
and both suited for heavy duty offshore fabrication.
Both feature primary switching inverter technology,
separate wire feeders, and good welding characteristics.
Differences are minor, but yet big enough to make Aibel
decide in favour of ESAB.
Most important was the minor amount of error codes
generated by Origo Mig 4001i with Origo YardFeed 2000
and reported by the welders. Error codes result in a
lower duty cycle and loss of productivity. This, in
combination with a display panel of power source number
three that had to be changed and repaired two times, was
one of the main reasons to finally opt for the ESAB
solution which performed without any problems. Another
decisive factor was the lower weight of the Origo
YardFeed 2000 of 11.3 kg versus 13.6 kg for the feeder of
supplier number three. Also there was more space around
the 5 kg wire spool, making it easier to replace. The ability
to activate three different parameter settings from the
welding gun was another well appreciated feature that
helped ESAB win the contest.
A real workhorse for heavy duty
fabrication
At 40 kg for the Origo Mig 4001i power source and
11 kg for Origo YardFeed 2000, the equipment can be
categorised as low weight. Weight increases by 14 kg
with the water-cooled version (Origo Mig 4001iw) and
another 19 kg for the cooling agent. Yet the equipment
is robust and built for heavy industries such as
shipbuilding and offshore fabrication – durable and
dependable. In total, Aibel ordered 10 air-cooled and 20
water-cooled versions with MA23 panels mounted on
the wire feeder.
Figure 4 // MA23 – ESAB’s basic panel for MMA, FCAW
and MIG/MAG.
MA23 is the most basic panel, giving MMA, FCAW, and
MIG/MAG short and spray arc are generally applied in
welding main offshore structures with stick electrodes and
cored wires respectively. The panel enables CC/CV power
source characteristics, has a digital V/A meter, 2- and
4-stroke, step-less inductance setting, gas purge and wire
inching, remote control, and three memory positions for
parameter settings. It meets most of Aibel’s requirements
in terms of welding processes and functionality. More
advanced features like pulsing, QSet, and synergic lines
are not available with the MA23 panel and are not
necessary in this type of heavy wall thickness welding.
There is always the possibility to later upgrade the
machines with the more advanced MA24 panel, for
instance to enable the welding of stainless and nickelbase
materials.
The panel is mounted on the Origo YardFeed 2000 wire
feeder, so that the welder can do all necessary settings
at the welding site. A remote control for regulation at the
arc is optional, but Aibel decided it was not necessary to
purchase any. ESAB offers connection cables from 10 m
to 50 m in length enabling a corresponding working
radius (plus gun hose assembly) of the power source.
Longer cables, however, mean more weight for the welder
to carry. With low weight being the major requirement,
Aibel opted for the shortest length of 10 m, accepting the
limited working radius.
FILARC PZ6138 cored wire still
going strong
Introduced in the mid-eighties, the FILARC PZ6138 all
positional rutile cored wire is still the benchmark product
in offshore fabrication combining a number of unique
properties. Amongst others, the Norwegian offshore
industry called for the development of a low-hydrogen
cored wire with excellent weldability for the productive
joining of low-temperature steel. The outcome, at the time,
was sensational.
Used in Ar/CO 2 shielding gas, the rutile based slag
formulation provides welding properties that were not
seen before with cored wires. PZ6138 has a soft spatterfree
arc that always operates in the spray arc mode with a
good penetration and good wetting onto the plate edges.
It is extremely “welder-friendly” which makes it easier for
the welder to produce sound welds. The availability of all
positional rutile cored wires, such as PZ6138, helped the
offshore industry in combating typical positional welding
defects such as lack of fusion and slag inclusions.
Another aspect much needed by the offshore
industry was the very high productivity of PZ6138 in
manual positional welding – up to three times as fast as
commonly used stick electrodes. This, in combination
with excellent low-temperature CVN (-60°C) and CTOD
(-15°C) mechanical properties and low-hydrogen weld
metal over the full parameter envelope, soon made this
cored wire the most popular welding consumable in
North Sea offshore fabrication. Nowadays, the wire is also
widely applied in new offshore fabrication areas in the
Middle East and Far East and in Brazil. Later introduced
and based on PZ6138 are PZ6138 SR (stress relieving)
and PZ6138S SR (CO 2 shielding gas + stress relieving).
The fabrication of the Gudrun platform is proof that
FILARC PZ6138 is still going strong in offshore
fabrication. It is widely applied in primary construction,
among others, for welding the super critical box nodes
connecting the several stories of the deck.
Figure 5 // FILARC PZ6138SR all positional rutile
cored wire.
Figure 6 // Spectacular view on the welding of one of the
box nodes of the Gudrun platform. The lightweight Origo
YardFeed 2000 wire feeder with 5 kg cored wire spool is
easily hand carried to the welding site.
Figure 6 shows the actual welding of one of the box
nodes with PZ6138 all positional rutile cored wire.
The lightweight Origo YardFeed 2000 wire feeder is
carried to the welding site and positioned within reach of
the welder. Welding parameters are set and fine-tuned
with the MA23 panel on the feeder.
FEATURED PRODUCTS
n Origo Mig 4001i multi-process inverter-
powered welding equipment, designed for
welding construction and stainless steel
with Origo YardFeed 2000, digital wire feeder
with working radius up to 50 m.
n FILARC PZ6138 all positional cored wire.
Well established in the offshore sector and
other demanding constructions like pressure
vessels, etc. An impact property down to
-60°C and it is CTOD-tested at -10°C.
5 // FEATURE FEATURE // 6