Orbital Welding And Its Uses

Welding is a fabrication process where two pieces or more are joined together using heat, pressure, or both. Typically, welding is used when fusing or joining metals, but it can also be used on thermoplastic materials and wood.

Orbital tube welding is specialised welding where an arc automatically rotates 360 degrees around a stationary or fixed workpiece such as a tube, cylinder, or pipe in one continuous process. It was initially used in the 1960s in aerospace to join hydraulic lines.

The term orbital is used because the welding head guarantees that the tungsten electrode rotates around (orbit) the workpiece. Orbital tube welding is usually used to weld pipes or in situations where it is difficult to weld manually.

Orbital Welding Uses

Aside from being used in joining tubes or pipes, orbital welding is also used in highly demanding projects or applications with zero room for flaws as it may cause systems to fail or compromise results.

A pressure jacketed vessel must be without flaws as even a minor flaw could generate weak spots and jeopardise strength. The welds on process pipes involved with pharmaceuticals, food, or cosmetics, must be contamination free and have no crevices where microbes can grow.

Advantages of Orbital Welding

Orbital tube welding offers several advantages:

Clean – Orbital welding is performed in a cleanroom setting so fittings, pipes, and tubes can be welded in a contaminant-free environment. It ensures there are no trapped impurities within the weld like with a pressure jacketed vessel.

The best solution for unique challenges – It is the best way to weld work pieces within a unique situation when there is no way to rotate the pipes or pieces that need to be joined or welded. It is also extremely useful when the space is too tight for a manual weld to take place.

Consistent results – The moment a welding program has been created on the orbital tube welding system, the same weld can be done repeatedly without the variability, errors, and inconsistencies associated with manual welding.

Certification not required – All that is required to operate an orbital welding system is a skilled and trained mechanic.

Orbital welding is a specialised type of welding that can be used in numerous applications such as tubing and pipes around a pressure jacketed vessel that require a high degree of purity and when manual welding is not possible.