Decoding the alphabet soup of certifications and other paths to effective inventory management
Above: After recently achieving ASTM approvals, Wheatland’s small diameter A53 SureThread or ERW pipe can be stocked to meet grade B standards
August, 2023- Decoding the alphabet soup of certifications and other paths to effective inventory management
Often a customer requires his steel pipe order meet a myriad of specifications from ASTM to API; from UL to FM Global; and from ANSI to UPC. Having a better understanding of these industry standards can help service centers better manage their steel pipe inventory.
“Most pipe, whether domestic or imported, is made to ASTM International standards,” says Greg Maurer, director of technology services and quality assurance for Wheatland Tube Co. “Adhering to ASTM is a self-certification. It’s up to the producer to assure compliance: there is no requirement for third-party validation of the material or the production facility under ASTM,” Maurer explains, referring to the standards organization formerly known as American Society for Testing and Materials.
In contrast, several industries require robust third-party audits to confirm compliance. For example, UL 852 is the UL Standard for Safety Metallic Sprinkler Pipe for Fire Protection. “In order to identify a pipe as meeting UL 852 standards, the producing pipe mill will be audited by representatives from Underwriters Laboratories at a minimum of once every quarter,” Maurer notes.
Automated warehouses, part of a $30 million capex project at Wheatland, are helping the pipe mill meet a goal of loading each truck within 15 minutes.
Audits are performed at a similar frequency by FM Approvals, a third-party certification organization focused on testing property loss prevention products and services. FM 1630, for example, is the standard for fire prevention, specifically for Steel Pipe for Automatic Fire Sprinkler Systems. “FM auditors visit our location quarterly to validate compliance with drawings and other requirements,” Maurer continues.
A division of Zekelman Industries, Wheatland Tube—through its 18 locations— produces a wide range of steel products including standard pipe, energy tubulars, fire sprinkler pipe, mechanical tube and electrical conduit.
Maurer points to several other third-party verifiers, including the National Sanitation Foundation and American National Standards Institute (NSF/ANSI), that approve material used for the conveyance of potable water— through NSF/ANSI 61. For tube used in the energy sector, American Petroleum Institute (API) leads the certifications charge.
“Maintaining API certification, once achieved, is a thorough process that involves annual audits of the manufacturing facility’s quality system, capabilities and product compliance. These audits, on average, are a full week in duration and there may be multiple auditors on site for each audit. Most pipe does not get produced to API requirements,” stresses Maurer.
Adhering to third-party reviews and audits implies a higher level of quality. “Our operators understand the API certifications and are accustomed to producing pipe that meets these high specifications. From a process control and overall quality standpoint, these standards translate to all our products,” explains George Rabideau, vice president of sales for Wheatland Tube.
Pipe exits the UV curing system, part of an industry-first black UV coating from Wheatland Tube.
WELDED VERSUS SEAMLESS
Wheatland recently secured ASTM approval to certify its continuous weld (CW) small-diameter type F pipe to A53 grade B. Now a service center can stock Wheatland’s small-diameter A53 SureThread or ERW pipe and meet grade B standards. “Having this certification for small-diameter pipe can help address availability concerns for customers. This gives the service center more options, particularly in pipe under 2-inch OD, where in the past the predominant option for grade B was only seamless,” says Maurer. “Some imports only certify for grade A. At Wheatland, we are seeing the market move toward grade B. This new approval is a way for service centers to stock less inventory and still meet market need.”
AUTOMATED INVENTORY MANAGEMENT
Another tool to help service centers is Wheatland’s automated inventory management (AIM), which has been in place at sister company Atlas Tube for several years. In 2019, this capability was made available to Wheatland customers. The tool looks at service center inventory by line item and forecasts demand. “Wheatland receives a daily inventory fi le from AIM customers. When a line item goes below a minimum (set by the customer), we are prepared to fill this demand quickly. If a service center specifies a 45-day inventory on a specific SKU, for example, AIM detects when this level drops below the minimum and we put the SKU into our shipping plan or on our next rolling,” explains Rabideau. If the service center is using AIM, the shipping or rolling updates happen automatically. With AIM, the task of forecasting higher volume items is simplified for the service center.
“Service center personnel can dedicate their time to something more profitable. Through an automated inventory management tool, service centers can free up floor space and operating cash while reducing stockouts and overall inventory,” states Rabideau.
AUTOMATED WAREHOUSE
A recent $30 million capital project at Wheatland was also devised to ease inventory burdens. “A few of our locations now have fully automated warehouses. Pipes are bundled, then conveyed onto 60- foot-tall racks. Prior to shipping, warehouses consolidate the load to a staging point, then onto the transfer table. From there the order is loaded on the flatbed. Our goal is to load trucks within 15 minutes,” says Rabideau. “Because our internal storage and inventory systems are optimized, all our pipe can be loaded indoors, so the pipe is pristine when it leaves our site,” he adds.
A similar automated warehouse is now operational at the Wheatland/Western Tube conduit manufacturing factory in Rochelle, Illinois. The next mill slated for the upgrade is Warren, Ohio, followed by Sharon Tube in Sharon, Pennsylvania.
Two more automated warehouses are on the drawing board for the plant in Wheatland, Pennsylvania. “Through our customer portal, service centers and distributors can easily track the status of their order, including whether the order has loaded and the truck location. It’s important that service centers leverage all the tools from a mill or supplier to help optimize their operations,” Rabideau suggests.
COATED AND GALVANIZED LINES
Improved surface condition is not limited to whether steel pipe is stacked and loaded indoors. Wheatland has also invested in new coating and galvanizing lines for pipe to withstand material handling concerns. “Wheatland has introduced an industry-first black UV coating on its pipe, replacing lacquer or waterbased coatings. The process is more robust and environmentally friendly, with zero VOCs. Our UV coated products stand up to material handling and deliver better corrosion protection,” explains Rabideau
When a customer’s inventory falls below a set minimum, AIM detects this drop and puts the SKU into Wheatland’s shipping plan or on the next rolling
Wheatland has offered galvanized standard pipe for several years. The producer recently updated these manual lines with a $60 million investment in two automated galvanized lines at the Rochelle mill (electrical conduit) and the Wheatland, Pennsylvania, location (standard pipe, sprinkler pipe and conduit). “The process achieves more consistency and better surface quality in our galvanized product,” says Maurer.
The ASTM specifications were recently updated for galvanized standard pipe and sprinkler pipe, explains Rabideau. Wheatland’s automated galvanized lines address these new specifications.
“The specification calls for a clean interior pipe surface without any inclusions that could compromise the corrosion protection of the zinc coating. We use high-pressure steam to blow out the inside of the pipes. I challenge any other steel pipe producer to achieve the same level of interior pipe quality,” he says.
NONSTANDARD LENGTHS
The commercial construction market has increased the volume and size of warehouse facilities. “As warehouses have gotten bigger, so have the sprinkler pipe orders with a lot of repeatability in the length of pipe branch lines,” says Rabideau. Standard lengths for such applications have historically been 21 feet. “In some projects, we are seeing branch line orders less than 21 feet. If the fabricator can work with the installer to determine the optimal length of these branch pipes ahead of time, Wheatland can book these custom lengths off of rolling. We should be able to fulfill orders for nonstandard lengths with a four-week notice,” says Rabideau.
Producing these custom orders in non-standard lengths can save labor required to cut down a longer pipe, while reducing scrap and lowering overall material cost. “Wheatland also ships pipe with grooves on both ends, which can further reduce labor. At Wheatland, we are all about finding ways to help our customers work more efficiently, meet industry standards and manage inventory more effectively,” notes Rabideau.
Wheatland Tube Co., 800/257-8182, http://wheatland.com/
