Equipment Installation

What this service is

Replacement and new installation of industrial process equipment on operating and greenfield sites. Scope covers removal of obsolete units, rigging and placement of new equipment, welded tie-ins to existing piping, and hand-over to commissioning.

This is the middle-ground between pure mechanical contracting and pure piping work. Equipment installation needs both — lift planning and rigging on one side, welded tie-in integrity on the other. We run the welded side under our standard ISO 3834-2 quality framework and coordinate with mechanical and rigging specialists on the lift side.

Scope

Typical equipment installation scope:

• Drawing and isometric review, tie-in identification
• Pre-installation inspection of incoming equipment
• Removal of existing unit — unbolting, cutting piping, de-isolation from supports
• New unit placement coordination with lift contractor
• Tie-in welding to existing piping
• New piping fabrication for tie-ins where required
• Pressure testing of tie-in spools
• Test pack delivery for commissioning

Equipment types we’ve installed or replaced:

• Heat exchangers (shell-and-tube, plate)
• Pumps and pump bases
• Filters and separators
• Small vessels and columns
• Process piping manifolds
• Furnace components (where turnaround window permits)

How it works on operating facilities

Live-plant equipment installation has higher risk than greenfield — you’re cutting into operating lines, typically during a short outage window or a partial plant isolation. Our approach:

1. Scope and isolation verification — confirm what’s isolated, what’s drained, what’s purged, who signs the PTW
2. Pre-cut visual and UT survey — existing pipe wall thickness measured to confirm weld prep integrity
3. Cut and remove — clean cuts, prepared bevels, no damage to adjacent piping or supports
4. Placement and alignment — lift coordinated with rigger, new unit set on existing supports or new base
5. Tie-in welding — per WPS, with 100% VT, NDT per client spec
6. Post-tie-in pressure test and system leak check
7. Handover to commissioning

Every step is logged and the handover pack includes before-and-after documentation so the plant’s inspection team has a clear audit trail.

Codes and standards

• ISO 3834-2 — Welding quality framework
• EN 13480 — Metallic industrial piping
• PED 2014/68/EU — Pressure equipment compliance for classified tie-ins
• ISO 45001 — Safety management system
• ASME B31.1 / B31.3 — Where applicable per plant code
• Plant-specific isolation and PTW procedures — adopted per project

Materials and processes

Same material coverage as our core piping work — carbon steel, 304/316 stainless, duplex 2205, and alloys on project-specific qualification.

Processes: 141 TIG for precision tie-ins, 135 MAG for fill passes, 111 SMAW for site repair and positional where MAG isn’t practical.

Where we’ve delivered this service

• St1 Refinery, Sweden — installation of new process equipment and associated piping systems (Phase 3 of the three-campaign St1 programme, March–April 2025)
• Arctic Paper, Sweden — dismantling of obsolete equipment and installation of new units at operating paper mill facility
• INOVYN, Sweden — replacement of process equipment during chemical plant shutdown

→ See all 9 projects

Frequently asked

Do you do the heavy lifting yourselves, or is that a separate contractor? Lifting and rigging for heavy equipment is typically coordinated with a specialist rigging subcontractor (Mammoet, Sarens, or a regional lift company). We handle the welded side — cuts, tie-ins, pressure testing — and coordinate schedule with rigging.

Can you handle bolted (non-welded) equipment installation? Yes, as part of a combined scope. Bolted flanges, gasket installation, torquing to client spec is standard. We document torque sheets per client QC procedure.

Do you handle equipment inspection (dimensional check, pressure vessel inspection) before installation? Visual and dimensional yes. Formal pressure vessel inspection (PED, ASME Section VIII compliance) typically requires an authorized inspector (AI) or notified body — we coordinate with that party but don’t replace them.

What about vibration monitoring or alignment after installation? We deliver to aligned and ready-for-commissioning state. Post-commissioning vibration monitoring is a plant or specialist-contractor scope.

Can you execute equipment replacement during running plant operation (no outage)? Only for non-process-critical equipment where isolation is complete (e.g. a standby pump, a parallel filter). Process-critical replacements always require a plant outage window.

Request a quote

Tell us the equipment type, tie-in scope, expected outage window, and standards. We’ll respond within one business day with approach, crew composition, and welding coordination plan.

CTA: Request a Quote Secondary: Send Us Your Drawing Package