Latest News
April 21st, 2008
ATI lands large order for LNG regasification complex owned by Cheniere Energy.
ATI provided 16 large double acting actuatros on control valves for the offloading process at the Sabine River Liquid Natural Gas (LNG) Regasifaction plant. The regasifaction process required good controllability with high thrust; two features for which ATI actuators are well suited. Click here to read an article about the project. Read More »
March 31st, 2008
ATI hydraulic actuators and control units give pipeline operator peace of mind
ATI shipped fifteen hydraulic double acting actuators with newly designed control systems on each of the units. A Houston-based valve automation center approached ATI to design a system to actuate and control the valves on a hydrogen pipeline. The control system is designed to sense a change of 7 psi differential pressure in a pipeline operating at 915 psi which would cause the actuator to shut the valve. This is important because such an increase in differential pressure would indicate an increase in flow which may mean a leak downstream. Fast speed and fast response were critical in the design of these units. The end user inspected the final units and is very pleased to have ATI actuators and control systems on their pipeline.
March 1st, 2008
ATI Opens Second Facility in Houston
Automation Technology, Inc. (ATI), a designer and manufacturer of valve automation products and solutions, has opened a second facility in Northwest Houston. According to ATI President Cooper Etheridge, the expansion triples the company's production floor space and includes a 50% increase in staff. This expansion will reduce ATI’s product lead times and provide a more local support center for its customers.
The company's original facility in Industry, TX will continue to act as the engineering and fabrication hub, while the new Houston facility will handle assembly and testing, new product development and sales. The address for the new facility is: 4950 Cranswick, Houston, TX 77041.
November 17th, 2007
ATI launches new cushioned designed actuator product
ATI shipped its first cushioned actuator this month to a domestic valve company who will be installing it on their valve for final shipment to the Middle East. The ATI design team developed the new actuator with three main design parameters in mind: Long stroke capability, fast speeds (20 inches in 400 milliseconds), and adjustable rates of cushion. This last parameter is particularly important in creating different characteristic curves, according to VP of Products, Gary Robbins who led the design effort. In addition, the actuator uses an internally adjustable “plate” which reduces manufacturing variability and enables old actuators to be converted to cushion. Shane Michalcik, Design team leader, developed the plate concept in order to achieve a more flexible design.
This type of actuator is ideal for anti-surge applications which are used in LNG plants to protect and help control the compressors. Surge curves are are installed into the compressor control system and they rely on fast speed, but precise positioning. Fast speed protects the unit in the event of a surge while good controllability optimizes the efficiency of the compressor (i.e. too much gas recirculating is not energy efficient, too little may not fully protect the unit from a surge). The ATI actuator achieves this optimization in its design. For test results, see “Cushion.” Read More »