Ferret Industries (FPK) started out distributing an innovative hand-held hose, tube and pipe cleaning system for small diameter lines (6.35-50.8 mm) for the growing hydraulic machinery industry. According to the company, 20 years ago some companies were still flushing out hydraulic lines with substances like trichloroethylene, which has been banned for some time.
The hand-held system proved to be a very successful product, so when the opportunity arose, FPK started to manufacture the system in 1999. FPK’s cleaning system has now become an industry standard for cleaning small lines and is still the backbone of its business today.
As FPK grew, the company has seen the need for cleaning larger diameter water, oil and gas pipelines. Most of the larger pigs (up to 1,524 mm) came from overseas and, being a bulky and relatively light product, they are very expensive to ship or air freight into Australia. While FPK does not make the high density and hard poly-coated or disc-type pigs, the company has developed its PolyFerrets® that are made from open-cell polyurethane foam. They are cut from a solid block of polyurethane using a computerised dust-free oscillating blade-cutting machine. Because they are cut and not molded, this gives FPK an advantage to make any size PolyFerret® to ±2 mm diameter with varying lengths depending on customers’ requirements.
FPK makes three densities for larger pipelines – light (15 kg; M3), low (27-29 kg; M3) and medium (36-42 kg; M3). As the gas industry is expanding rapidly in Queensland, the Northern Territory and Papua New Guinea, FPK’s Poly Ferrets® are now used extensively in the hydrostatic testing process. The company can also add scourer wrapping or spiral scourer and/or pull ropes and washers.
Recently, the company secured a supply contract with the MCJV in relation to its contracted coal seam gas pipeline projects with Australia Pacific LNG and Queensland Curtis LNG. Other new customers include Murphy Pipe and Civil and Leighton Contractors.
The Australia Pacific LNG Project is one of Australia’s leading energy resource projects and involves development of Queensland gas fields in the Surat and Bowen basins, construction of a 530 km high pressure gas transmission pipeline, and gas processing and wharf terminal facilities on Curtis Island, near Gladstone.
It is exciting times for the pipeline industry in Australia and FPK will continue to provide its clients with great customer service in the coming years.
For more information visit www.ferretindustries.com