FALLS CHURCH, VA — (Marketwire) — 09/26/11 — Curtiss-Wright Flow Control Company announced today that its DeltaValve business unit is celebrating the 10th anniversary of the installation of its first DeltaGuard® bottom unheading device, the world–s first fully automated and fully enclosed coke drum unheading device. The current number of DeltaGuard fully automated systems sold is 476 worldwide.
The first installation of the DeltaGuard system was September 20, 2001, at the Chevron Salt Lake City refinery. Since then, DeltaValve has developed similar technology for fully automated coke drum top unheading. In the system–s 10-year history, not a single recordable safety incident related to the valve has occurred. Previous to this, accidents and even fatalities were not uncommon.
“Curtiss-Wright is a worldwide leader in delivering unique solutions that ensure safety and improve operating efficiency within the oil refining industry. Our innovative DeltaGuard unheading device has proven to be superior technology,” said David J. Linton, President of Curtiss-Wright Flow Control Company and Co-Chief Operating Officer of Curtiss-Wright Corporation. “With hundreds of installations worldwide in service during hundreds-of-thousands of combined coking cycles, our delayed coking products have steadily gained an industry-leading reputation for providing unparalleled safety and increased reliability while minimizing maintenance costs and processing time.”
During the opening of a coke drum — an action called “unheading” — steam and coke at extreme temperatures can be present. The DeltaGuard system safely opens and closes the top or bottom of a coke drum during the delayed coking process. Unlike traditional unheading systems, the remotely operated DeltaGuard device creates a totally enclosed, fully automated coking system, from the top of the coke drum down to the coke pit, eliminating certain risks that were inherent with the traditional coker unheading process.
Curtiss-Wright Flow Control specializes in the design and manufacture of highly engineered valves, pumps, motors, generators, electronics, systems and related products for the commercial nuclear power industry, oil and gas processing facilities and a range of critical military programs. Its innovative, high-performance products play an integral role in our nation–s defense and in the safe, efficient operation of power plants and other industrial sites worldwide. Based in Falls Church, VA, the company has more than 3,400 employees worldwide and is the Flow Control segment of Curtiss-Wright Corporation. For more information, visit .
DeltaValve, a business unit of Curtiss-Wright Flow Control, is a world leader in delayed coking solutions. Headquartered in Houston, TX, the company designs, engineers, and manufactures a complete line of industrial products for the delayed coking and flow control industries. For more information, visit
Contact:
Sharon Dey
(703) 286-2011
David Anderson
DeltaValve
(801) 718-5060