Get access to revolutionary pipe-plug technology today

The inflatable Scorpo pipe-plug is a new generation pipe-plug which has been designed according to TANIQ's mathematical approach and manufactured fully automated using Scorpo Robotics. The result is a pipe-plug which uses the fibers more efficiently (up to 75% less fibers) and can therefore be thinner and lighter than conventional designs.

 

 

Optimised and automated Pipe plugs made with proven technology

The design of the pipe-plug comprises a cylindrical section with end caps on both sides. The transition sections from the cylinder to the end caps can have different shapes. The pipe-plug shares it design with conventional products and consists of a inner rubber liner, rubberised reinforcement and rubber outer layer. A distinct difference is however, that the reinforcement layers are constructed of individual cords which are integrally wound on the product body in a continuous fashion. Due to individual cord design and placement,  the product consists of the exact required amount of cords in each layer. This results in a highly efficient and consistent reinforcement construction, without any seams from overlapping plies or folding at the flanges. After automated placement of the inner rubber liner, the reinforcement cords are placed. Where after the product body is covered with a rubber protective outer layer. Using TANIQ's technology, the reinforcement design of pipe plugs had been drastically improved. Automation using robotics has shown to be up to 80% faster then hand-made products. The robotic cells delivered are suitable for production of pipe-plugs up to 2.5 m in length and up to 2.0 m in diameter.

''Make a 220-400 mm pipe-plug with only 230 grams of aramid reinforcement?''

 

Historically, the production of reinforced rubber products has been a manual process, relying heavily on skill and extensive experience. This introduces three areas of production risk. Firstly, manual material application can result in inconsistency and inaccurate placement of reinforcements as the operator varies the amount and orientation of the reinforcement-sheets. Secondly, the cords in the sheets cannot correctly be aligned with the stresses, wherefore additional reinforcement material is required. Thirdly, the tapes are not always applied with the same tension. Most important of all, production speed is limited by human capabilities and requires extensive training and product knowledge. All these risks are eliminated using TANIQ's approach.

 
 
 

Scorpo pipe-plug specifications

The production times for pipe-plugs made with Scorpo Robotics for small and large sizes is up to 80% faster than alternative production processes. The table below gives an overview of production times for a common size range. The presented production times comprise the time to apply all rubber and reinforcement layers, plus the final pressure tape layer. Preparation of the mandrel, vulcanization time and product demoulding and finishing are not included. 

 
 
 

Manufacturers using Scorpo pipe-plug technology