Swagelok Ltd. helps out local Isle of Man community When Swagelok Ltd. heard the Isle of Man Hyperbaric Medical Facility was in need of new valves and regulators to continue to operate efficiently, Dave Hester, general manager, did not hesitate to offer a helping hand. The facility, which is substantially publicly funded, relies on additional donations to assist in its operations. “We are always looking to give back to the community that supports us so much,” said Hester. “We offered to investigate new possibilities and ended up helping them configure and manufacture an entire new manual control panel for the facility.” The facility was built in 1992 to treat decompression sickness and acute medical conditions that benefit from increased levels of oxygen in the blood. It is also used to accelerate the healing of sports injuries, especially soft tissue wounds and un-united fractures. The facility has two chambers: one able to treat up to six patients at a time, the other chamber up to 12 patients at a time. Generally patients receive treatment for one hour a day, several times a week. Swagelok engineers worked with David Downie, operations manager, Hyperbaric Medical Facility, to recommend replacement regulators for a manual control panel for the air supply that would make daily operations easier and more efficient. Once the requirements were defined, the engineers investigated numerous ideas and configurations for a panel build using a 3-D computer aided design (CAD) package. “The design is absolutely brilliant,” said Downie. “We have an average of 60 people using the chamber daily and with the new Swagelok system, we know we can reliably pressurize and depressurize the system with a flick of a switch or turn of a knob.” The entire panel was manufactured and assembled at the Swagelok Isle of Man plant before final installation in the control room by Hyperbaric Medical Facility staff. The panel replaces an electronic one that was fitted in the late eighties and now allows both chambers at the facility to be operated within the control room by one operator. Products used in the panel assembly were donated by Swagelok Manchester, the authorized sales and service center for the island. Since installation in January 2010, the panel has been used nearly 6,000 times without breakdown or maintenance. Swagelok Ltd. is the Isle of Man operation of Swagelok Company, a leading provider of fluid system technologies. Its manufacturing helps to complete the company’s piping and regulator product offering for the oil, gas and petrochemical industries. From the Isle of Man facility Swagelok also serves local niche markets that require quick turn-around on high added value and specialised products. Headquartered in Solon, Ohio, U.S.A., Swagelok Company is a major developer and provider of fluid system solutions, including products, assemblies, and services for the semiconductor, research, instrumentation, pharmaceutical, oil and gas, power, petrochemical, and alternative fuels industries. Its manufacturing, research, technical support, and distribution facilities support a global network of more than 200 authorized sales and service centers in 57 countries. For more information about Swagelok, visit the company’s Web site at www.swagelok.com. Ends