February 3rd, 2012
The Offshore Oil & Gas industry takes us to remote parts of the world that provides unique challenges and dangers. Our offshore customers, Noble, Rowan, and others require our engineers to go through BOSIET training. The BOSIET (Basic Offshore Safety Induction and Emergency Training) program at the Marine Survival Training Center in Lafayette, LA is a three day course that introduces marine offshore hazards, safety techniques and equipment, and basic sea survival.
BOISET Training Program
Recently, one of our engineers, Adam Przybilla, went through this training. The first day of class started with an introduction to helicopter safety and escape. The class covered the equipment required for helicopter transportation and the procedures to survive the hazards that can be encountered while taking a helicopter to an offshore installation. Every student wore a full transit survival suit, aviation flight jacket and a re-breather. A helicopter simulator was used to place the student in a position of an over-turned helicopter in the water. The level of difficulty progressed through the six “dunkings”. The last “dunking” involved the helicopter simulator rotating upside-down under water and to escape the student had to push through an emergency exit while engaging and relying on a re-breather.
BOSIET Firefighting Training
The remaining training experiences focused on firefighting, self-rescue and sea survival. Each student experienced the difficulty in climbing into an inflatable life raft in water and the discomfort associated with being lifted out of water by a hoist.
The knowledge and experienced gained in the three day class prepares our personnel for situations and hazards that are common in the offshore industry.
We are prepared and ready to support our offshore customers on a moment’s notice anywhere in the world.
Tags: adam przybilla, BOSIET, cable tension, firefighter training, offshore oil and gas
Posted in Line Control Systems | No Comments »
February 3rd, 2012
We are frequently approached to provide custom load cells, load pins, instrumented shackles, tension links, and compression load cells for a wide variety of applications.
Half the fun of our job is learning about our customers’ businesses, the way they make a living, their unique applications and how load sensing can improve safety.
In the last year, we have been approached to provide load sensing on:
- A six winch dry-dock in Russia
- The lowering of a 750,000lb Oil & Gas tree to the bottom of the GOM
- Seismic vessels in Norway
- Tug boat owners in the UAE, in the UK, and in Eastern Canada
- Pipe-lay barges in Nigeria, GOM, and Peru
In terms of measuring line or cable tension, we will often supply a running line tensiometer (or cable line-rider) with a load pin pre-installed. Here is link to our line riders.
In other applications, our customers may have an existing sheave that we can help instrument.
Recently, a dry-dock operator came to us and wanted, for the first time, to install tension measurement on the dry dock maneuvering system. Because they were using large diameter poly rope and they had existing turning sheaves with fixed wrap angles, we provided replacement load pins to retrofit the sheave axles.
Here is an image of the 130,000lbs pins. They were approximately 12” long x 7” in diameter and weighed almost 65lbs each. Despite their size they are sensitive enough that a couple of lbs of pressure will register in their mA output.
If you have a unique application, give us a call.
Load Pins
Tags: 000lbs load pins, 130, custom, dry dock, dry dock manuvering, instrumentation, instrumented shackles, line riders, measurement, system, tension links, tension measurement, unique load pins
Posted in Line Control Systems | No Comments »
December 14th, 2011
The current Measurement Technology NW website has served us well for several years now, but it’s about to get a much needed makeover. The new website, which should be ready to “go live” in early 2012, is still just a bunch of whiteboard drawings and ideas looking for a place to call home – but even at this early stage it’s exciting to fast-forward and imagine how these ideas will play out on the new site. There will be more images and product demonstration videos, better connections between our products and the test standards they support, and ways to search for client laboratories that offer testing services (in case an equipment purchase is not yet in your company’s plans). There will be information on equipment rental plans, at least one new product introduction, and a few other new features that will make it easier for visitors to navigate through the website and find the information they’re looking for.
Newton and his thermal manikin family are already looking forward to moving day, so keep an eye on this blog for new announcements as the website design work moves forward. I should note that our partner in this project is Williams-Helde Marketing Communications (www.williams-helde.com), a Seattle agency selected not just for their creative expertise but because they also have a hyphen in their website address! Our partnership was clearly meant to be.
Tags: MTNW, new, website
Posted in Thermal Measurement | No Comments »
November 9th, 2011
Our Founders
Measurement Technology NW, founded October 15, 1986, designs and manufactures precision biophysical instruments for evaluating the thermal comfort of textiles, garments, protective apparel, seats, beds, and dynamic thermal environments such as aircraft, truck, and automobile interiors.
Our company’s growth into the thermal comfort testing industry began in 1988, with delivery of a Thermal Hand manikin system to USARIEM (United States Army Research Institute of Environmental Medicine) which was used to test gloves and protective handwear for soldiers. This project not only helped USARIEM advance the science of soldier protection, it also launched Measurement Technology NW into the thermal comfort test equipment business. Expertise gained through the development of the Thermal Hand manikin allowed MTNW to win research contracts for other thermal comfort testing equipment and, as they say, the rest is history:
1988 – Thermal Hand Manikin
1994 – Guarded Hotplate System
1996 – “Bo” Heat Pipe Thermal Manikin
1999 – “Newton” Articulated Thermal Manikin
2001 – “ADAM” 126-zone Sweating Thermal Manikin
2005 – “NEMO” Submersible Thermal Manikin
2006 – “HVAC” Automotive Manikin System
2011 – Flame Test Manikin System
Next – IPEMS Robotic Thermal Manikin
Since 1986 Measurement Technology NW has installed over 250 manikin and hotplate systems, making us the industry’s most experienced source for advanced thermal testing equipment – now and for the next 25 years to come!
Tags: 25 year celebration, 25 years, beds, biophysical instruments, Flame Test Manikin System, garments, Guarded Hotplate System, IPEMS Robotic Thermal Manikin, MTNW, protective apparel, seats, textiles, thermal comfort, Thermal Hand Manikin, USARIEM, “ADAM” 126-zone Sweating Thermal Manikin, “Bo” Heat Pipe Thermal Manikin, “HVAC” Automotive Manikin System, “NEMO” Submersible Thermal Manikin, “Newton” Articulated Thermal Manikin
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November 9th, 2011
November 7, 2011. Seattle, WA. Measurement Technology NW (MTNW) announces successful implementation of its running line tensiometer technology with the US Army Corp of Engineers Dredge Potter. MTNW collaborated with C&J Offshore and Ockerman Consulting to ensure the mooring line monitoring project was successful from the initial design to the final installation and commissioning.
The US Army Corp of Engineers Dredge Potter is based near St. Louis and is charged with keeping the Mississippi passable. The Potter is a 240’ diesel electric vessel with a draft of 7’6″. It was recently retrofit during a deckhouse rebuild with a new haul winch and head hoist control system in 2011. The USACE contracted with Jensen Maritime Consultants (a Crowley company) and Ockerman Consulting to design the control system. C&J Offshore systems from Anacortes, WA were contracted to manufacture consoles and install these new controls. Ockerman Consulting chose MTNW’s Line Control Instrument RL-20175K 3-sheave running line tensiometers (RLTs) to monitor 2 mooring/hauling winches with 1.125″ wire rope with a peak tension requirement of 84,000lbs.
USACE Dredge Potter II
“The MTNW line riders installed quickly and easily. The RLTs are obviously built for a rugged environment and will have many years of service,” said John Ockerman, Owner, Ockerman Consulting. “The displays are intuitive and easy to work with. If you look at the whole bridge control console, from analog sweep meters to the standard PC HMI, the MTNW LCI-90i bright display jumps out at you from across the bridge.” The RLTs are integrated with the Dredge Automation Systems and Shipboard Integrated Control & Monitoring Systems. This system’s architecture provides real time and historic data to the ship’s engineers and dredge production performance data remotely to USACE headquarters.
Dredge Potter Controls
“MTNW RLTs are being used more frequently for mooring monitoring because our design provides a smaller footprint and rapidly deployable solution for retrofitting existing winches,” said Tom Rezanka, Managing Director of MTNW. “We can deploy on virtually any winch, with an installation time measured in hours, not weeks or months. In every environment, our customers are interested in monitoring and data-logging possible points of failure; and the mooring lines are a critical part of any dredge operations .”
Rezanka explains, “This is MTNW’s first installation on a dust pan dredge on the Mississippi. Our RLTs are frequently used to monitor pipe lay barges for offshore oil & gas installations around the world. We are pleased to be supporting the USACE here in the USA.
Measurement Technology NW, a Seattle, Wash. based company, provides a wide range of precision winch monitoring and control products, including the LCI-90i and LCI-80 (winch displays), WinchDAC (winch monitoring software), running line tensiometers or line riders, and much more. Look for MTNW at the Workboat Show, New Orleans, November 28 – Dec 1, 2011 (Booth 2566).
Contact us! Call us at 206-634-1308, or send an email to lci@mtnw-usa.com.
Running Line Tensiometer on Dredge Potter
Tags: dredge, dust pan dredge, LCI, LCI-80, LCI-90i, Line Rider, line riders, mississippi river dredging, mooring line tensiometer, mooring monitoring, MTNW, Running Line Tensiometer, St. Louis district, Workboat show
Posted in Line Control Systems | No Comments »
October 11th, 2011
Delmar RLT
Measurement Technology NW (MTNW) implemented its running line tensiometer (RLT) technology with a Samson synthetic rope in an offshore mooring monitoring project engineered by Delmar Systems. This implementation is MTNW’s first use of tension measurement technology with 2”+ synthetic ropes.
Recently, Delmar Systems was contracted to moor an offshore supply vessel (OSV) to a major offshore platform in the Gulf of Mexico. The OSV is being used as a support vessel while dive operations are conducted. The OSV is using a three-point mooring system consisting of two stern hawser lines attached to the platform and a bow mooring line attached to a preset suction pile foundation in 2,900 feet of water. The mooring system had to be as robust as possible while still maintaining ease of handling and rigging by the vessel crew.
To achieve a higher Maximum Breaking Load on the OSV bow mooring line while maintaining deck maneuverability, Delmar chose Samson’s AmSteel-Blue HMPE rope made of high modulus polypropylene (HMPE) as the bow winch line. An MTNW RL-20175K running line tensiometer provided tension measurement for the bow line. During the design phase of the project, MTNW thoroughly tested and calibrated the RLT using the specified 2¼” AmSteel-Blue rope.
“This is MTNWs first use of an RLT to measure tension in a major synthetic mooring line of this large diameter,” said Tom Rezanka, managing director of MTNW. “Our RLTs are more commonly used to measure the tension of wire rope, but synthetic lines have different mechanical characteristics under load. We were able to collaborate closely with the R&D engineers at Samson. The monitoring system was fully tested, calibrated and witnessed on an ABS-certified test bed with the resulting accuracy identical to wire rope applications. The trend in mooring is lighter and stronger, which will require increased use of synthetic ropes and new, modern technologies to monitor them. Our sensors and systems are proven to work with any lines.”
“Both the AmSteel-Blue winch line and MTNW’s RLT have been working flawlessly together and have played a vital role in the success of the project,” said Dillon Shuler, engineer at Delmar Systems. Rezanka explains, “MTNW RLTs are being used more frequently for mooring monitoring because our modern design provides a rapidly deployable solution for retrofitting existing winches. We can deploy on virtually any winch, with an installation time measured in hours, not weeks or months.”
“Since the Macondo oil spill, we have seen a significant increase in interest from risk managers and lifting/rigging engineers for determining line and cable tensions in all environments,” said Rezanka. “If it can be monitored, alerted on, and data-logged to a computer it needs to be. Our solutions support the increasing safety requirements for offshore operations and allow project managers to sleep better at night.”
Original article can be found at: http://www.marinelink.com/news/approaches-offshore340216.aspx
Tags: cable tension, delmar, Line Tension, MTNW, RLT, Running Line Tensiometer, Samson synthetic rope, tensiometers, tension measurement
Posted in Line Control Systems | No Comments »
October 11th, 2011
Newton at ITMA 2011
Newton had an excellent trip to Barcelona, Spain for the ITMA 2011 textile exhibition. As a booth companion, I can say he was definitely the strong, silent type – not much for conversation but quite popular nonetheless. Sharing the spotlight with Newton were Measurement Technology NW’s SGHP-8.2 sweating hotplate (skin model), and our new RPP (Radiant Protective Performance) device for assessing a fabric’s resistance to radiant heat energy.
All these items garnered significant interest and proved that ITMA is the premier show for the textile industry. To call it a huge exhibition is an understatement. It was a full 8 days long, with attendance totaling well over 100,000 people. Every facet of the textile industry is represented: from raw materials, to finished goods, to everything in-between.
Next up for MTNW is the IFAI Expo in Baltimore (October 25-27), where Newton will put on a repeat performance. The SGHP-8.2 unit we had on display at ITMA remained in Europe, but at IFAI it will be replaced with our TPP (Thermal Protective Performance) device.
Interested? Come on by! You’ll find Measurement Technology NW in Booth 2509.
Tags: exhibition, ITMA, ITMA 2011, measurement technology northwest, MTNW, Newton, SGHP, SGHP hotplate, sweating manikin, textile, thermal manikin
Posted in Thermal Measurement | No Comments »
August 19th, 2011
With the end of summer quickly approaching, your MTNW team is hurrying to complete preparations for the ITMA show in Barcelona, Spain(September 22-29) and the IFAI Expo in Baltimore, Maryland (October 25-27).
At ITMA, Measurement Technology NW will be displaying a 26-zone Newton sweating thermal manikin with physiological control model, a SGHP-8.2 sweating hotplate, an RPP (Radiant Protective Performance) device, and, hopefully, a TPP (Thermal Protective Performance) device. For those of you traveling to Barcelonafor the big ITMA show, you’ll find Measurement Technology NW in Hall 2, Booth A164.
At the IFAI Expo, we plan to display the 26-zone Newton sweating thermal manikin with physiological control model, an RPP (Radiant Protective Performance) device, and the TPP (Thermal Protective Performance) device. We may include some other items too, but until final decisions are made you’ll just have to find a way to deal with the suspense. October is a beautiful time of the year to be on the East coast, and if attending the IFAI Expo is part of your travel plans you’ll find Measurement Technology NW in Booth 2509.
Oh, and we have new booth display banners too!
New Booth Display Banners
Tags: 26-zone, Baltimore, Barcelona, IFAI Expo, ITMA, Maryland, Newton, physiological control model, RPP, SGHP, Spain, sweating, sweating guarded hot plate, thermal manikin
Posted in Thermal Measurement | No Comments »
July 22nd, 2011
As our blog readers may recall from past postings, Measurement Technology NW has a much-appreciated tradition of “celebrating the wins” by hosting lunch for employees whenever a new thermal order has been completed and shipped off to the customer. However, the 110% team effort that was behind our first Flame Test Manikin and Burn Chamber shipment (to Donghua University, Shanghai, China) called for something more than your typical in-house lunch. The kind of dedication and perseverance shown by our project engineers and techs could only be properly rewarded with something flame-related… like a Hawaiian pig roast!
The requirements were simple. Wear a Hawaiian shirt and be ready to eat! Our talented machinist Brian Welch is also a pig-roasting connoisseur, and thanks to his watchful eye over the 10-hour roasting period, this particular pig was moist, delicious, and reduced to a pile of scraps by the time lunch was over.
For more information on the Flame Test Manikin and Burn Chamber system installed at Donghua University, keep an eye out for our next thermal newsletter, coming soon!
Tags: burn chamber, donghua university, flame test system, MTNW, pig roast, thermal manikins
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June 22nd, 2011
While Newton was busy showing the crowd at VTMS 10 how comfortable he was, Measurement Technology NW was preparing other thermal test equipment for the big Techtextil 2011 show in Frankfurt, Germany. We had a SGHP-8.2 sweating guarded hotplate on display at the Mesdan S.p.A. booth, and the device generated a great deal of interest from textile labs and companies who evaluate the thermal insulative and evaporative properties of fabrics. In fact, by the end of the show the SGHP-8.2 had been sold to Carvico S.p.A. in Italy – a fabric testing lab for high performance bicycle apparel.
After the show and before my flight home I saw one of Frankfurt’s more unique sights: the “Beer Bike”. A human-powered beer bar, five seats on a side, each seat with a set of bicycle pedals underneath. If you were thirsty and a seat was open all you had to do was run alongside, hop onto the seat, and start pedaling while the driver/bartender served you a beer from the keg in front!
It was a memorable example of German efficiency – a place to have fun, drink beer, and work off the calories, all at the same time.
Tags: beer bike, comfort manikin, display, human simulation, Newton, techtextil 2011, thermal manikin, thermal simulation
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