Process Skid Fabrication and Utility Modules
Skids and Modules, Across the Full Size Range
State Service Company fabricates process skids and utility modules at a 70-acre waterfront yard in Ingleside, Texas, from single-function skids through multi-level pre-assembled units. Piping, structural steel, electrical and instrumentation are installed and tested in the yard, and completed units load out by barge. Our process skid fabrication covers full EPC scope or fabrication only, depending on how the project is contracted.
Process Skids
Single-system packages with piping, controls and instrumentation complete.
Process Modules
Several systems integrated into one shippable, multi-level unit.
Utility Modules and PAUs
Utility, compression and treating scope off your critical path.
What We Fabricate
Process skids
A pipe rack is not steel with pipe laid in it. It is a working system that has to be assembled, joined and proven. Modular pipe rack fabrication does that work in the yard instead of the field.
Process modules
The pipe is cut, welded and coated to become a spool. Spools are joined into longer runs, set into the rack, then welded together so they become continuous lines and systems rather than loose sections. Each system is then filled with water and pressure tested in the yard to verify the integrity of the pipe and the joints across the whole run. Hydrotesting at this stage is what separates pipe rack module fabrication from structural steel supply.
Utility modules and PAUs
Pre-assembled units carrying utility, compression, treating, water or fuel gas scope. PAUs move that scope off the project critical path and out of congested site conditions.
Compression and treating packages
Everything in that sequence is field work if the rack ships as bare steel. Doing it in the yard means the welds are made at fixed stations by permanent crews, the tests are witnessed at ground level, and the rack that arrives on site is a tested system rather than a starting point. That is the result of pipe rack module fabrication done in the yard: pipe rack modules that arrive welded, tested and ready to set.
What Ships With a Skid
- Structural frame engineered for lift, transport and field tie-in
- Piping fabricated to ASME B31.3 and B31.8, with NDT and hydrotest
- Rotating and static equipment set, aligned and grouted
- Electrical distribution, cable tray, conduit and terminations
- Instrumentation, tubing and control panel integration
- Heat tracing where lines cannot freeze or condense
- Coatings and insulation complete
- Pre-commissioning and functional testing
- Material test report and traceability documentation
Skids arrive with tie-in points defined and tested, so field work is limited to setting the unit and making the connections at its boundary. A modular process skid manufacturer defines those boundaries early, as a core step in process skid fabrication, instead of leaving them to a field contractor.
Where a Skid Saves the Most
Scope that would otherwise be built inside an operating facility is the best candidate for a skid. Congested plots, live plants and remote locations all raise the cost of field labor and lower its productivity. That makes process skid fabrication most valuable on brownfield and remote projects.
A facility of comparable scope built conventionally carries six to eight thousand people on site. State Service performs the fabrication scope with roughly 1,300 people working in the Ingleside yard, and the yard does it more efficiently than the same work performed in the field. Every process equipment module built in the yard is scope removed from that site headcount.
Size is also less constrained than it is for a truck-shipped skid. Units load out across 2,000 linear feet of bulkhead directly onto a barge, so a skid does not have to be sized around road permits, overpasses or intersections. Barge load-out lets process skid fabrication follow the process design rather than transport limits. See the yard.
Specifications
| Specification | Value |
|---|---|
| Piping codes | ASME B31.3, B31.8 |
| Structural standard | AISC |
| Testing | Hydrotest, NDT, functional and pre-commissioning testing |
| Steel bulkhead | 2,000 linear feet, load-bearing |
| Barge envelope | 125 ft x 400 ft x 22 ft |
| Minimum access water depth | 16 ft |
| Route to Gulf of Mexico | 12 miles, no vertical restrictions |
| Oversize units | Units exceeding Intracoastal limits transit offshore |
| Traceability | 100% material traceability, heat number tracked |
| Piping fabrication shop | 10,000 sq ft, 6 stations, GMAW, GTAW and FCAW |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a process skid and a process module?
A process skid carries one system on a single structural frame. A process module carries several systems, often across multiple levels, integrated into one shippable unit. Skid describes the smaller, single-function end of the same continuum, and many buyers use skid for anything frame-mounted regardless of size.
What is a PAU?
PAU stands for pre-assembled unit. It is a utility or process scope built off site as a complete module so it can be set and tied in rather than constructed in the field. PAUs follow the same process skid fabrication and testing sequence as smaller skids.
Is the skid tested before it ships?
Yes. Piping is hydrotested and inspected, and the assembled unit receives functional and pre-commissioning testing in the yard before load-out. The same testing applies to every process equipment module we ship.
How large a skid can State Service build?
Larger than road transport allows, because units ship by barge. The barge envelope is 125 ft by 400 ft by 22 ft, and units exceeding Intracoastal limits transit offshore. Units at that scale are where waterfront process skid fabrication makes the biggest difference.
Can State Service work from owner-furnished equipment?
Yes. Equipment can be owner-furnished or procured by State Service as part of an EPC scope. Either way, State Service integrates and tests the complete unit as the modular process skid manufacturer.
Let's build your next project together.