Piping Supplies has seen many changes in the industrial pipe, valve and fitting industry during our 60 years in business. One of the more current trends is the use of Monel 400 flanges for saltwater applications. Piping systems which have traditionally used stainless steel are being converted to Monel 400. Here is why.

Monel 400 is a copper and nickel alloy invented in the early 1900’s. It has been found to have excellent corrosion resistance and can withstand exposure to acids well. Monel 400 does well under pressure and is relatively easy to weld. All of these properties make it a great choice for underwater drilling and for the Navy.

The alloy, Monel 400, is composed of 28 to 34% copper and at least 63% nickel with traces of manganese, silicon, iron, sulfur and carbon. Nickel makes this alloy strong and resistant to corrosion while the copper allows for conductivity and ductility. Our machinists find the machinability of Monel 400 to be only slightly tougher than stainless steel grades.

The Navy has been converting some of their piping systems to Monel 400 in recent years. The volatility of the worldwide nickel market has made this metal harder to obtain. That has driven costs higher increasing the overall price of shipbuilding. Hopefully the the increase in lifetime of these piping systems will offset the higher costs.

Monel 400 is the most recent favored metal for flanges in saltwater applications. The only thing for sure is that newer more exotic materials will be developed in the future. The expert machinists at Piping Supplies will be ready for whatever happens.

Recently our shop has been doing machine work for companies who provide us with the starting material. These companies are using Piping Supplies now because of problems with their current machine shop. We are told these other machine shops have not made delivery times as promised, have not performed the machine work up to their customers’ expectations, and are hard to get answers from. Basically, they are garage and not a professional machine shop.

Piping Supplies has been in business in New Jersey for over 50 years. It is easy to forget over time just how professional we are. This isn’t about blowing our own horn as much as it is about recognizing all we do right. There are several things we take for granted:

1. The machine shop is open Monday through Friday 7 AM till 4 PM throughout the year. That means material deliveries, order pick-ups, quotes and questions are dealt with quickly. With email, we can be reached during nights and weekends too.
2. We ship 98% of our orders correctly and on time. There are a lot of things that go into making this happen. Great material vendors who get us the raw steel we need on time. Employees who show up every day and care about the products they make. Constantly finding ways to improve and machine better and faster.
3. We have a quality assurance program which is approved by the highest level in the Navy for supplying nuclear submarine parts. Not only do we have the program, but we actually use it every day. Shortly we will be approved by the International Organization for Standardization, ISO, for their quality management system 9001:2015. Not bad for a small company.
4. Piping Supplies has been able to transfer a lot of the knowledge gained in the last 50 years as flange experts to the next generation of owners.

Everyone gets caught up in their own industries and businesses. It is easy to see only the problems we have and mistakes we make. It is nice sometimes to be recognized for how good our work really is and how much we do right. Piping Supplies is lucky to have customers who appreciate what we do and let us know it.