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About Us

Why Choose Custom Design?

Sometimes an off-the-shelf or pre-engineered system is not the best solution to meet the objectives of a specific process.   

Typically, the need for a custom system is driven by a variety of factors such as: space constraints, existing utilities, interconnecting piping available for use, corporate plant specifications, or the simple demand that a process requires tight and accurate temperature control.  Other times it is simply driven by the desire to have Safe, Reliable Performance and the peace of mind that a custom-designed system will meet the factors that are most important to that specific customer.  

HEAT has specialized in engineering and fabricating custom process temperature control equipment from the beginning. We have the process knowledge and experience to help guide our customers to the best solution for their unique situation. 

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Custom Design – Endless Possibilities

Below are just some of the items that are considered when HEAT begins to develop a solution:

  • Is an existing temperature control system being replaced? 
  • Is an existing process being duplicated?
  • What are the most Important design factors?
  • What type of communication is desired for the control system? 
  • What are the positive and negative experiences that a customer has encountered with temperature control equipment?
  • Is there a plant specification or preferred brand list required for the project? 
  • Shall the heat transfer system be designed for a continuous or batch application?
  • If a batch application, how does the temperature control system need to work at each step of a process cycle? 
    • Initial process heat-up considerations
    • Process operations maintain considerations 
    • Final process cool-down considerations 
  • Does the process cause any endothermic (remove heat) / exothermic (add heat) reactions?  
  • Is the process designed around the use of a specific heat transfer fluid?
  • Are the minimum/maximum operating temperatures for the fluid suitable for the process? 
  • What are the minimum/maximum ambient conditions for cold start of the equipment? 
  • Does the sizing and selection of component/equipment need to be confirmed or evaluated? 
  • Have the heat transfer system, interconnecting piping, and user all been considered in the sizing of the heating/cooling loads? 
  • Seal-less or mechanical seal? 
  • Centrifugal or gear style? 
  • Is there a specific brand preference? 
  • What operating point is required for the pump? (Flow and pressure differential)
  • Is a secondary pump (back-up) needed?  
  • Is a low, medium, or high watt density designed heater needed for the application and fluid being used? 
  • Will an extended or non-extended terminal housing be necessary based on operating temperature and heat dissipation? 
  • Do the heater designs require TEMA style baffling to ensure crossflow across the element bundle to maximum heat transfer?  
  • What total fluid capacity should be used for the interconnecting piping, user, and the heat transfer system?
  • What minimum/maximum operating conditions need to be considered for the tank capacity sizing? 
  • Will the tank need to be pressurized? 
  • Has the NPSHr been considered in the elevation of the tank? 
  • Will a single or double expansion line be best for the application? 
  • Should the expansion tank be top-mounted on the system, or would It be better to remote mount the expansion tank in the field? 
  • Are there temperature & pressure limitations on the process equipment that need to be considered for the application? 
  • What heat transfer fluid temperature is required to achieve product temperature?  
  • How far away will the heat transfer system be from the process equipment? 
  • What size and how many feet of piping will be located between the heat transfer system and the process equipment? (Vertical and horizontal)
  • How much of a pressure drop does the external piping and process equipment create?  
  • Is the installation space limited? 
  • Is a modularized heat transfer system design needed to fit in the area? 
  • Are there flow limitations designed into the interconnecting piping and/or the process equipment?  
  • Does the control panel need to be located on a certain side of the skid? 
  • Is there space available to access the equipment for preventive maintenance? 
  • Will the expansion tank be visible from the operating location at the system control panel? 
  • Has initial start-up and fluid charging (filling) been considered with respect to the interconnecting piping and process equipment? 
  • Is there a configuration, arrangement or layout that works best for the design location? 
  • Are the flow connections needed for horizontal or vertical external connections? 
  • Is there a certain location of the system that all flow connections to enter/exit? 
  • Is flexibility needed to make changes during the engineering design process to ensure that the system will fit in the allocated space to fabrication?  
  • Is electricity, natural gas, plant steam, plant central thermal fluid be available for heating?
  • Will there be tower water, chilled water, city water, ambient air be available for cooling? 
  • Is plant air, nitrogen, etc. available for use on the system?  
  • Does the plant have a piping specification that needs to be followed? 
  • Is ASME B31 material and/or practices need to be considered? 
  • Is ASME Code required for vessels such as the heater, expansion tank or cooling exchanger? 
  • What will be the highest elevation of the piping in the overall process circuit? 
  • Are air bleed considerations being considered in the external piping system?  
  • Is there a plant insulation specification that needs to be followed? 
  • Is a wicking or non-wicking insulation required for the application and installation location?  
  • Is there a plant safety specification that needs to be followed? 
  • What safety considerations are required for the application? 
  • Are there safety interlocks external to the heat transfer system that need to be integrated into the design? 
  • Are OSHA, ASME, NFPA, NEC, UL, CSA required/recommended by the insurance company or the corporate plant standard for the process? 
  • Will the system be visible to the process line operator?  
  • Is it better to have the control panel mounted on the heat transfer system, or provided loose for field mounting? 
  • Will the equipment be controlled by an external PLC/DCS? 
  • What inputs/outputs are required for alarms and control of temperature control system?  
  • Indoor or outdoor installation? 
  • What is the minimum/maximum ambient air temperature around the system? 
  • Is cold start viscosity of the heat transfer fluid an issue? 
  • Will the system be located in direct sunlight? 
  • Will the system be mounted in a general purpose or hazardous area? 
  • What NEMA rating is required? 
  • Will control panel heating/cooling be necessary?  
Have Questions?

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