HCL Clamping Solutions designs and manufactures secure strapping systems that are ideal for offshore, subsea and downhole applications in a range of industry sectors, including oil and gas, renewables and Corrosion Protection. Based in the UK, it has a sales warehouse in Houston and distributors throughout the world serving an international client base.
The company’s primary products are Smart Tie, a heavy duty polymer cable tie, and Smart Band, a glass-yarn reinforced band that can be cut to length. However, as engineering manager Ben Beckett explains, these product lines cannot be sold as standalone items – they require high-speed pneumatic tools to support accurate, fast installation. Hence, HCL also sells a range of hi-spec Smart Installation tools to facilitate the fastening process.
“It had to be trial and error to get the torque and speed just right in that tool because it’s a complicated product,” explains Ben. “Smart Band has glass yarn running through it, whereas Smart Tie does not, so the two products have different stiffness and therefore behave very differently in terms of the way the motor stalls.”
The SM-FT 3000 is HCL’s premium installation tool, says Ben. The speed with which it can tighten and cut the Smart Band saves seconds every time, and this translates into significant financial savings when hiring expensive vessels for off-shore operations, for example.
A critical part of the tool’s mechanism operates with a pneumatic nutrunner, which HCL sourced from a US supplier until the supplier discontinued the product without notice. With only a few left in stock, HCL had to locate a replacement product quickly. An added difficulty was that the nutrunner required wasn’t standard issue – it needed precise adapting to perform the task required.
Modec understands the technical difficulty involved in developing a quality, precision tool and was therefore happy to support HCL in their trials.
“Modec were great for us,” says Ben, “because they have a vast range including many different gear box options, allowing small adjustments to the torque and speed, which really helped us with the fine-tuning.
“Also, they were free issuing the air motors for us to trial. This was an expensive exercise for Modec as they don’t place returned tools back into stock, and we went through quite a few before we got it right! But they were prepared to let us do it.”
“Previously we were using a right-turn nutrunner, which meant we had to rely on the tension in the band driving the motor in reverse to give the slack. With Modec, we’ve switched to a reversible nutrunner, and now it does a mini reverse to facilitate clamping. In short, we moved the goalposts part way through the project and, thanks to Modec’s support, we’ve been able to improve the quality of the tool as well.”
During trials, HCL’s engineers uncovered other performance issues and with Modec’s help were able to address these issues and actually improve the SM-FT 3000 tool.
“The difficulty is that if you cut the strap under tension, it reels back through really fast before the buckle can clamp it. So you need to slacken off before cutting off the excess band,” explains Ben.
HCL has placed a first order with Modec and is looking forward to an on-going relationship with a supplier that can meet its requirements.