Ductile Iron Pipe- End Capping Presented to: MAG On: March 3, 2010 Presented by: Joseph Bacik Senior Sales Engineer American Ductile Iron Pipe Co./American Spiral Weld Steel Pipe Co.
merican Cast Iron Pipe Company merican Cast Iron Pipe Company èFive entities: American Ductile Iron Pipe, American Steel Pipe, American Flow Control, American Centrifugal, American SpiralWeld Pipe èADIP/ASWP manufacturers pipe and fittings for the water and wastewater industry. èDuctile manufacturing is located on 1800 acres in Birmingham, Alabama since èSpiralWeld Steel Pipe Plant located in Columbia, South Carolina èFounder, John J. Eagan, willed ACIPCO to his employees in It is now held in a trust for the employees. è Recognized in the past by Fortune’s “100 Best Companies to Work For in America ”
American Cast Iron Pipe Co.
Purpose: To show that there is not an effective way to cap or wrap end of ductile iron pipe.
Agenda Why end capping is considered. To discuss the different attempts at end capping of ductile iron pipe. To discuss the economics behind end capping. Alternatives to End Capping. Questions
Why End Capping? AWWA C-200 Steel pipe requires the ends of the pipe to be capped or covered prior to shipment. Bacterial contamination levels inside pipe Prevent small animals from getting into pipe. Protect cement lining
Why End Capping- AWWA C-200 Steel Pipe Transporation/Delivery
Why End Caps- AWWA C-200 Steel Pipe AWWA C-200 requires that the pipe ends be sealed and that a bucket of water be put into the pipe prior to shipment. This is not required by AWWA for Ductile Iron Pipe. The water helps maintain a moist environment to help cure the lining in Steel Pipe. In contrast, DIP is placed in special climate controlled environments to cure lining prior to leaving the factory. Steel Pipe Cement Lining is more than twice as thick as DIP cement Lining. The sealed ends are not intended to keep the pipe clean for Steel Pipe. In fact, holes are placed in the steel pipe plastic wrapped ends so it does not fly off during transportation
Steel Pipe End Caps (Cont) On Steel Pipe, the ends of the tape wrap, special paints or cement mortar coatings on the OD of the pipe is held back at the spigots. This allows for the wrap to adhere to a smooth metallic surface allowing for a more secure attachment.
Ductile Iron Pipe
Bells that protrude in various odd shapes Cement Lined- Autogeneous Healing Rough exterior peened pattern. In contract steel pipe and PVC have smooth exterior.
DIP- End Capping Rough Exterior- Does not allow for a secure attachment by taping or banding. To even try to close the ends of pipe, something would have to be inserted into the spigots or bells and held by friction. As mentioned before, cement lining is cured prior to leaving the factory. Therefore, no additional curing needs to take place during transportation or storage
Examples of DIP End Caps
Foam End Caps Bell cap worked fairly well Spigot end cap- Glued foam onto a plastic board Desert climate affected the integrity of the glue and caused 2 pcs of debris Spigot end cap “weathervaned” or fell out of pipe.
Examples of DIP End Caps
“Dog Bowl” End Caps Made from an extruded plastic material Due to desert temperatures fluctuating overnight, the expansion and contraction of the caps rendered them useless. End Caps caused excess debris on jobsite Contractor had to replace the end caps every morning.
Other Things to Consider For purposes of keeping the pipe clean, the additional cost to provide end caps or plastic wrap outweighs any additional disinfection of pipe. End Caps and plastic wrap causes additional debris on the jobsite and surrounding areas. Capping or wrapping prior to shipment opens the manufacturer and trucking companies up to liability concerns. There is even debate as to whether the plastic wrap or end caps are DOT approved.
Economics of DIP End Caps Foam Plugs –6”- $11.70/set –8”-$12.46/set –12”- $16.66/set –16”- $25.50/set
Economics of DIP End Caps “Dog Bowls” –24”- $37.40/set
Suggested Manufacturer’s Alternatives to End Capping DIP Loads can be tarped during delivery and on the jobsite. Contractor can hose down the pipe prior to installation Require contractor to look into the pipe and remove any debris or object that got into the pipe. Require contractor to cap off the line at the end of every day so that nothing gets into the installed pipeline Additional disinfection of the line, if necessary
Conclusion There is not an economically effective way to individually cap off the ends of ductile iron pipe. Ductile Iron Pipe presents many obstacles to end capping. There are other alternatives to capping the pipe ends.
Questions?
Thank You Joseph Bacik Senior Sales Engineer American Ductile Iron Pipe /American Spiral Weld Pipe