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Success stories
Affinity Test Services Breaking ground in Malaysia with a pioneering real-time X-ray inspection technique How is Affinity Test Services thriving?
The solution
Affinity Test Services has managed to break the mould in the field of inspecting for corrosion under insulation (CUI) in Malaysia. Up against a well-established method which oil and gas operators had relied upon for decades, the company is starting to reap the rewards of a persistent marketing and demonstration campaign that has seen it win over the minds of many. Today, it still stands as the only non-destructive testing (NDT) company in Malaysia that has acquired real-time Xray inspection capabilities.
To establish itself in the market and make inroads, Affinity has been engaged in a prolonged awareness generating exercise ever since it acquired this technological capability around five years ago.
The challenge Malaysian firm Affinity Test Services first entered the country’s oil and gas market a decade ago. A provider of asset integrity management services, including routine plant online inspection, turnaround inspection, fitness for service assessment and non-destructive testing, the company stands as an important partner for operators seeking to remain compliant with health and safety regulations in a range of important areas. Central to its offering has been sustained investment in real time Xray, a pioneering and new method to inspect the problem of corrosion under insulation across oil and gas assets. However, as with many incumbent techniques and ways of doing things, especially in traditionally conversative markets such as this, transitioning to new methods is not always an easy sell. If an existing method isn’t broken, why fix it?
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EIC Survive and Thrive
An immediate point in the company’s favour is that the problem it is helping to solve is a common one faced by oil and gas asset operators. Indeed, corrosion under insulation is typically caused when insulation becomes wet. This can happen for several reasons – water ingress beneath the weather barrier (jacketing), moisture condensation from steam tracing leaks, cooling tower drift or ambient air in humid and windy climates. Traditionally, the most common way to inspect for CUI is to cut plugs in the insulation that can be removed to allow for ultrasonic testing. However, where Affinity differentiates from conventional methods lies in the fact that radiography (Xrays) can be applied to detect corrosion without requiring the removal of insulation. Although the benefits of utilising this technology are clear, especially in regard to cutting asset downtime, achieving buy-in during the early years was extremely challenging. Not only did operators generally prefer to open the insulation cladding and perform visual inspection with their own eyes, but the Xray technique Affinity was bringing to market was also untested and unproven in Malaysia, with no track record to help lure prospective customers.
2023