Pharmaceutical Business review

Petroleos Mexicanos Opts For Netherlocks’ Faith Partial Stroke Testing Systems

Pemex is a Latin American enterprise, and one of the few oil companies that operates the entire production chain from source to market, with a yield of over 3m barrels per day in 2006.

Partial stroke testing is of major importance to end users, as an important safety step to ensure that an ESD valve will operate as intended, when needed. All valves can become worn or stuck over time, so something as vital as an ESD must be tested frequently in order to meet SIL standards. A partial stroke test enables testing without halting process flow, meaning tests can be carried out more easily and more often, which should then also create a more reliable ESD system.

The mechanical nature of the Faith system ensures that the specified degree of opening is not exceeded during the test. The Netherlocks’ device can also be used to block the actuator to perform maintenance on the ESD during production.