Procedure 10-1 Transportation of Pressure Vessels

The transportation of a pressure vessel by ship, barge, road, or rail will subject the vessel to one-time-only stresses that can bend or permanently deform the vessel if it is not adequately supported or tied down in the right locations. The shipping forces must be accounted for to ensure that the vessel arrives at its destination without damage. 

It is very frustrating for all the parties involved to have a load damaged in transit and to have to return it to the factory for repairs. The cost and schedule impacts can be devastating if a vessel is damaged in transit. Certain minimal precautions can avoid the costly mistakes that often lead to problems. Even when all precautions are made, however, there is still the potential for damage due to unforseen circumstances involved in the shipping and handling process. 

Often vessels are transported by multiple means. Thus there will be handling operations between each successive mode of transportation. Often a vessel must be moved by road to the harbor and then transferred to a barge or ship. Once it reaches its destination, it must be reloaded onto road or rail transport to the job site. There it will be offloaded and either stored or immediately erected. A final transport may be necessary to move the vessel to the location where it will be finally erected. At each handling and transport phase there are different sets of forces exerted on the vessel that must be accounted for. 

Here are some eireumstanees that would allow for more than two saddles to be used or for a speeial loeation of two saddles  

Shipping saddles should be designed with the vessel and not left up to the transport company. In general, transportation and erection contractors do not have the capability to design shipping saddles or to check the corresponding vessel stresses for the various load cases. 

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