TUBE NEWS 2016 May 2016 | Page 41

Block Pipes Instantly and Effectively with Pipestoppers® Blocking pipes in order to carry out routine maintenance, repair work or even for weld purging is easy with Pipestoppers®. off pipes with hydrocarbon gases and liquids inside. The Pipestoppers® Division at Huntingdon Fusion Techniques HFT® design and manufacture a range of Mechanical and Inflatable Pipestoppers® and Plugs to suit every application. Their newest addition to the Inflatable Pipestoppers® Range is the Pancake Stopper, for applications where insufficient length of pipe is available for the regular Cylindrical or Spherical Stopper. Ron Sewell, Chairman at HFT® said: “With their low profile, the Pancake Stopper can fit into a pipe end that may be directly on an elbow or just inside a flanged neck on a casting. Other applications include blocking pipe ends to keep gases inside or to keep debris and vermin out. • Inflatable Rubber Plugs: a wide diameter range and are tough, durable, can withstand chemicals and hydrocarbons, for higherpressure applications, with a long life. The Pipestoppers® Division also manufactures a range of Mechanical Stoppers and Plugs for industrial and domestic plumbing operations, water drainage systems as well as offshore operations. These Mechanical Stoppers are negatively buoyant for sub-sea work and can be used in all kinds of pipes and other vessels where there are orifices to be sealed or blocked. The Pipestoppers™ Division of HFT® also provide Pipe Freezing Systems that make ice plugs inside pipes, to stop the flow of liquids so that maintenance can be carried out on valves, etc. This technique avoids the draining of a complete pipe system t