Mechanical Services Piping company, Australian Piping Solutions (APS) was recently contracted to install the polyethylene pipework for a chilled water HVAC system at the Gatton Correctional Facility Extension in South Queensland. Once the extension is complete, SQCC will be classed as a ‘mega-prison’; the extension alone will create over 1000 additional cells.
Fundamental to the QA system implemented by APS on the project was the FUSION ASSIST app by FUSION GROUP. The free app is aimed at utility and industrial, gas and water network engineers and is made up of four key elements which help to specify, select, and record the installation quality and GPS location of an asset.
The app uses a QR/barcode platform providing data on each installed asset and gives the opportunity to review the quality of the installation. This, combined with a unique GPS pin location and a picture of each installation ensures complete, accurate and auditable records of every installation. Data can also be exported into standard data formats for integration into existing systems.
APS was able to utilise the app’s features to underpin the twenty-year warranty that they must provide on the integrity of their workmanship.
At Gatton, APS worked as a specialist subcontractor to VAE who designed the HVAC system at SQCC and has overall responsibility for its construction and commissioning.
The pipework used on the HVAC system ranged from 355mm to 180mm on the ring main, reducing to 63mm within the SQCC buildings. The system is centred on a ring main that services all areas of the Extension.
At the core of the APS QA system is the weld number. This is manually written on the joint by the operative, is captured both visually and numerically as part of the Fusion Assist data collection process and is also referenced in the output weld record from the electrofusion box. The weld numbers also feature as GPS datum points which help to create the installation map.
The APS operative uses a Fusamatic fitting to create the joint. Once pipe scraping and alignment are completed, the operative can either use the automatic welding parameters activated by the Fusamatic pin, scan the welding parameters barcode on the Fusamatic fitting, or enter the setting manually. At Gatton, APS used an industry standard electrofusion control box and extracted the weld data using weld analyser software.
Once the weld has been completed the operative marks the fitting with the welder serial number, the unique generated welder log number, his qualification ID number and the date and time of weld completion.
The operative then opens the Fusion Assist app and scans the standard 12176 traceability barcode which is available by virtually all world-class electrofusion fitting manufacturers. With a Fusamatic fitting, the operative is also prompted to capture the QR code which forms part of the fitting label. The QR code further extends traceability as it provides traceability down to the raw materials and operator that manufactured the fitting.
The Fusion Assist app further prompts the operator to capture images of the joint weld which become part of the joint record.
Finally, the operative answers straightforward questions relating to weld number, scraping, and clamping. There is also a series of simple visual quality checks e.g. Have the fusion indicators extended? Are there signs of plastic melt outside the joint?
APS extracts the Fusion Assist data as an Excel CSV file and generates a weld map from it. The APS team also captures a video of the completed pipeline.
According to APS Managing Director Ian Commons-Fidge, Fusion Assist has provided APS (and its clients) with, ‘…a single source of truth’:
“Before embracing Fusion Assist, we would typically take a series of photos and try to tie them back to the work undertaken. There was a degree of variability in the images captured and, with manual record keeping, a degree of erroneous data capture.
“The Fusion Assist app imposes disciplines on the site teams, provides consistency from a data capture and presentation perspective, and stands as a ‘…single source of truth’. It also greatly simplifies the data collection and reporting process.
“At Gatton it is a requirement that we warranty our work for twenty years and Fusion Assist gives us the confidence to do this.
“The best thing from a management perspective is that, with Fusion Assist reporting, the client can almost ‘feel’ the quality. The quality, productivity and commitment of the APS workforce, combined with Fusion Assist reporting, has definitely helped us win new packages of work at Gatton.”
