Heat Exchanger & Tube Bundle Cleaning (Flex Lancing)
Clean the bundle in place. Keep the operator out of the line of fire.
Flex lancing pushes a flexible high pressure hose through tube runs a rigid lance cannot follow, so the deposit comes out and the bundle stays in place. PMI runs it manually or with an automated feed that keeps the operator out of the line of fire.
The record
- 50+ yrsin the field
- 6operating locations, Morgan City to Midland
- 24/7dispatch, 365 days a year
The problems this ends
A bundle pulled, trucked out and reinstalled when the fouling could have been cut out in place.
Rigid lances that stop at the first bend, so half the tube stays plugged.
An operator standing in line with a charged hose because nothing else is feeding it.
Exchangers back on line at reduced duty because the cleaning was called finished early.
A turnaround schedule waiting on a crane and a bundle puller before anyone can start.
Overboard drain lines and interconnect piping on a platform choked with trash and debris.
Scope of work
What you get
It reaches heat exchanger bundles, U bends, serpentine coils, cooling tower headers and process piping, because the hose takes the bend.Automated lancing runs the same water through a machine feed instead of a person. A PMI operator works the controls outside the exclusion zone while the feed advances and retracts the hose. We run both methods, and the choice gets made per job by the tube layout, the deposit and how much time the unit has.
Heat exchanger tube bundles
Shell and tube bundles lanced in place or on the rack, including the U bends a rigid lance cannot enter.
Process and utility piping
Straight runs, elbows and serpentine coils cleaned with flexible lance, with pigging where the line suits it better.
Offshore drain lines and interconnect piping
On offshore platforms, conventional flex lancing clears trash and debris from overboard drain lines and ICP (interconnect piping) across the facility.
Automated lance feed
A machine advances and retracts the hose while the operator runs the controls from outside the work zone.
Cooling towers, vessels and clarifiers
Distribution headers and piping lanced, and the surrounding cleaning handled by the same crew instead of a second contractor.
Job safety controls
Exclusion zones posted and enforced, whip checks on every connection, and remote operation wherever the layout allows it.
Isolation, ventilation and rescue
Lockout support, forced ventilation and standby confined space rescue on the same PMI ticket.
Water containment and reclamation
Wash water contained at the work area, with PMI's EC-AOP reclamation available on the same job where the volume justifies it.
Questions we get
Heat Exchanger & Tube Bundle Cleaning (Flex Lancing) FAQs
What is flex lancing?
High pressure water fed through a flexible hose instead of a rigid lance. The hose bends, so it follows tube runs and pipe geometry a straight lance cannot enter, and the deposit gets cut out from the inside.
When do we need flex lancing instead of a straight lance?
When the path bends. U tube bundles, serpentine coils, headers, and piping with elbows in it. Straight, accessible tubes do not need the flexible hose.
Do you have to pull the bundle?
Usually not, and that is the point of the method. The fouling comes out with the bundle where it sits, so you are not paying for a crane, a truck and a reinstall on top of the cleaning.
What is the difference between flex lancing and automated lancing?
The water is the same. The feed is not. In flex lancing a person advances the hose. In automated lancing a machine does it and the operator runs the controls from outside the line of fire. When both will do the job, the automated feed is the safer one.
What pressure do you run?
It is set by the deposit and the tube, not by a standard setting, and it is one of the first things we pin down when we scope the job.
How do you keep people safe around a live lance?
Exclusion zones posted and enforced, whip checks on every connection, remote operation wherever the layout allows, and nobody standing in line with a charged hose.
What else can you lance besides exchangers?
Process and utility piping, cooling tower headers and distribution piping, vessels and clarifiers, sumps and drains. Offshore, we flex lance overboard drain lines and ICP (interconnect piping) on platforms. Pigging is on the table where a line suits it better than lancing.
What happens to the wash water?
It is contained at the work area, and PMI's EC-AOP reclamation can treat it on site where the volume justifies it, instead of trucking it off.
Do you cover the entry and rescue side too?
Yes, on the same ticket. PMI crews are trained in confined space entry and confined space rescue, so a lancing scope that turns into an entry does not need a second vendor.
Tell us about the bundle.
Send the exchanger or the line, what is fouling it, and the window you are working with. We will tell you whether flex lancing, an automated feed or something else is the right call, and dispatch answers around the clock.
