Continuous Improvement Drives Product Re-Design [SLIDESHOW]

In the demanding and lucrative business of oil-and-gas drilling, a “hammer-union pressure transmitter” is a critical part of the effort to access the underground resource, specifically in process like cementing, fracturing, and acidizing. These are fine-tuned sensors must accurately and repeatably measure the hydraulic and pressure characteristics of drilling fluid in those severe conditions.

Withstanding mud, corrosion, vibration, humidity, temperature extremes—and the routine shock of hammer blows during installation—the units are critical to communicating with downhole measurement-while-drilling (MWD) tools to help ensure safety and efficiency in the production environment. The unit’s reliability is critical to the integrity of hammer-wing union fittings used in thousands of energy installations around the globe.

The leader in the sales of these components is the Viatran business unit of Dynisco, whose model 510 hammer union pressure transmitter has been an industry staple for years. With a number of competitors vying for position as a supplier in the oil-and-gas market, Dynisco decided to review the design of its core product. 

Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DFMA) software from Boothroyd Dewhurst (along with their own benchmarking, Lean, and Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) methodologies) helped Viatran execute the product redesign.