A Once In A Decade Chance

Always looking for ways to improve processes, Dave Drorbaugh II played a key role early in his career as a lead project manager at a metal processing facility. Dave was responsible for tactical and strategic process oversight, production forecasting, and project support. During that time, the facility conducted a major shutdown to rebrick one of their metal processing furnaces. The work required access to a 40 ft tall, 22 ft diameter vertical shaft. Time was tight, which meant Dave did not have the luxury of exploring alternative work platforms. In the end, the team decided to go with conventional scaffolding built off of a hanging static platform. The scaffolding system got the job done, but Drorbaugh and his team were aware there were more efficient options available.

A decade later in 2023, with furnace overhaul again scheduled, Drorbaugh, now a business unit manager at RECON Engineering & Construction, had the opportunity to participate in a full shutdown with the same smelter. The timeline of this project allowed the RECON team to improve upon previous efforts by commissioning a custom solution to increase access and safety for the refractory reinstallation project.

Scaffolding in 2014

In 2014, the project required removal and reinstall of refractory in the lower half of the furnace shaft. The unit has a life cycle of 8 – 10 years. As a result of the long wait between projects, each shutdown is a new challenge where the team completing the project needs to consider new technology or methods, while remembering lessons encountered during prior rebuilds. The tight timelines in 2014 meant that there was insufficient time to explore nontraditional installation options. The project ended up relying on several levels of scaffolding and a static platform and faced multiple challenges.

The complexity of the scaffolding structure, including juggling a variety of pipes, hardware, boards, and other materials, meant setup required multiple shifts. The team also found that they could only reliably utilise two layers of scaffolding before the static platform started to sway and deflect. This was a workable solution for repairing the lower half, but adding height or weight would destabilise the entire structure, making it unsafe for crews.

When it came time to remove the scaffolding structure, the sections needed to be removed via a small, 1 by 1 ft port. However, removing swing scaffolding in this manner would put timelines at risk, with any delays resulting in six-figure production losses. In the end, the team decided it was more efficient and cost-effective to simply leave the framework in the furnace and melt it away.

“Scaffolding really became our only option 10 years ago. But we had a lot of logistical issues,” Drorbaugh said. “It became something of a loose end. But, with a longer timeline and a larger repair scope, RECON decided to look for a safer, more viable option for the 2023 shutdown.”

Suspended platform in 2023

For the 2023 shutdown, the metal processing facility planned a complete redesign of the furnace shaft, creating more shell work and the need to do a full refractory reinstallation. When the facility contacted RECON, Drorbaugh knew, with more time, he could come up with a more financially beneficial installation option for the project than the scaffolding used in 2014.

In the years following the shutdown a decade earlier, the RECON team continued looking for ways to make refractory removal and reinstallation faster and easier. When given the opportunity to participate in the 2023 shutdown, the team’s prior experience and knowledge of Bricking Solutions, an equipment manufacturer specialising in custom refractory installation equipment, paid off.

RECON knew the team needed a stable, safe equipment platform and started looking into custom-built options. This naturally took them to Bricking Solutions. For this project, Bricking Solutions custom engineered a suspended platform with a 24 ft (7 m) diameter. Bricking Solutions worked with RECON to provide the facility with specs and an official rated capacity. The base metal processing facility agreed the addition of a suspended platform was the best option for the job.

“We were looking at ways we could potentially improve upon what was done 10 years ago, something faster and quicker that facilitated parallel work fronts, that sort of thing. From a safety standpoint, the suspended platform was a turnkey engineered solution instead of something homegrown. We were able to purchase and roll it out,” Drorbaugh said. “We submitted this product in our use plan for approval. Because there was documentation and it came on letterhead, it made the approval process more straightforward and gave our team the confidence to get to work.”

The first step in getting the facility ready for the suspended platform, roof prep, was simple and required minimal setup. The facility already had a beam framework in place. All the RECON team needed to do was set the support beams on top of the existing framework and tack them down.

The EZ lift platform is made of high-strength 6061-T6 aluminium, providing the same strength as steel at a third of the weight. More importantly, the modular construction means pieces are easy to manoeuvre, weighing 40 lb (18 kg) or less, and fit through a 22 in. (560 mm) diameter access hole. The pieces easily passed through available access ports, allowing for rapid, straightforward assembly.

The pin-together construction greatly reduced the number of components and tools required for erection and allowed complete platform assembly in about three hours.

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