Danos Fabricates Boarding Valve Skids for Shell Appomattox

GRAY, La. – Danos has successfully completed the fabrication of three boarding valve skids and one service line skid for Shell Offshore Inc.’s (Shell) deep-water Appomattox facility. Requiring approximately 12 months to complete, the project engaged four Danos service lines, including project management, fabrication, coatings, and automation.

“Delivery of this project marks Danos’ entry into the module fabrication market,” said Mark Danos, vice president of project services. “We are proud that Shell chose us as their contractor for this critical component of the Appomattox project.”

The skids, weighing in at approximately 160 tons each, were fabricated at Danos’ 120,000 square-foot facility in Amelia, La. Coordinating the complex, customer-furnished items required extensive planning and support from each of the company’s service lines, especially its project management team.

Key design elements of the modules included 12,200 psi design pressure and 350˚F operating temperature requirements. The API 15K psi piping system consisted of 4130 material overlaid with Inconel 625. All welding was completed on the project with less than 0.45 percent weld-repair rate. Indoor humidity-controlled painting habitats were utilized. The project was delivered on budget and was performed safely with no lost time due to accidents or injuries.