Man-watch Required

Just Another Heater Guy — A Fired Equipment Conversation

This week, we sit down with someone who describes himself as “just another heater guy” — despite more than 30 years working with fired equipment and helping shape industry practice along the way.

We talk about what it really takes to understand fired equipment beyond just tubes and refractory: burners, draft, O₂, CO, flame shape, tube condition, dampers, controls, inspection, thermography, troubleshooting and the process itself. 

More importantly, we get into why this is a discipline that can’t really be learned from a book alone — you have to get into the field, watch the equipment run, understand what “normal” looks and sounds like, and learn from what goes wrong. 

We also walk through a practical heater assessment: talking to operations first, checking combustion conditions, approaching the heater safely, looking at burner performance and flame impingement, and learning one of the simplest inspection lessons there is:

Look for what’s different.  

From burner tips installed backwards to glowing tubes, fired equipment specialists, rebuilds and the occasional trip to the “fired equipment lab,” this one is part technical discussion and part collection of lessons learned from decades in the field.

Because at the end of the day…

“A furnace is just a box with fire and tubes, man.”

Absolutely — I’d keep the description a little playful at the top, then make the technical value really clear.

Bill & Ted’s Excellent Corrosion Adventure — From Damage Mechanisms to RBI

This week, the boys go on an excellent adventure with not one, but two corrosion specialists — affectionately known as Bill and Ted.

We work our way through the integrity lifecycle, starting with corrosion control documents, corrosion loops and integrity operating windows, then following those inputs into damage-mechanism identification, inspection strategy and risk-based inspection. Along the way, Bill and Ted explain why a CCD should be a living document, how operating excursions can change what you believe about an asset, and why inspection plans need to evolve as new information is discovered.  Pasted text

The conversation also gets into age-related versus non-age-related damage, the importance of matching the inspection method to the expected damage morphology, and why good communication between corrosion, inspection, NDE, operations and engineering can make or break an integrity program. There are plenty of field stories along the way — from caustic systems and HIC/blistering to thermal mix points, inspection confidence and the occasional Alberta pothole analogy.  Pasted text

We also challenge a common misconception about RBI: it isn’t simply about extending intervals or reducing turnaround scope. Done properly, it should focus inspection where it matters most, improve confidence in the data, and sometimes even shorten an interval when the risk demands it.  Pasted text

So keep the rubber on the road, keep it between the lines, and join us for Bill & Ted’s Excellent Corrosion Adventure. 

There is no silver bullet in NDE.

In Episode 25 of Man-watch Required: The Inspection Podcast, Scott and Frank sit down with Mike Williams for a wide-ranging conversation about nondestructive examination, inspection technology, and how to choose the right method for the problem in front of you.

Mike brings more than a decade of NDE experience, beginning in rope access and progressing through conventional methods into asset integrity, advanced ultrasonics, data review, and inspection planning.  Pasted text

The conversation starts with the fundamentals — magnetic particle testing, liquid penetrant testing, and conventional ultrasonics — before moving into radiography, digital imaging, phased array, TOFD, corrosion mapping, EMAT, TFM, and other advanced techniques.

Along the way, we get into the practical side of NDE: cold-weather limitations, surface preparation, radiography source selection, high-temperature inspection, image quality, data interpretation, and the importance of understanding what each method can — and cannot — tell you.

One theme keeps coming back throughout the episode:

Know what you’re hunting for.

Because the newest, most advanced, or most expensive technique is not automatically the right place to start. Every method has trade-offs, and if someone claims a method has no limitations, there’s a good chance they just haven’t found them yet.  Pasted text

Sometimes the right approach is to cast a coarse net first, learn from the data, and then work progressively finer until you have the confidence you need.  Pasted text

The NDE toolbox is full. The real skill is knowing which tool to reach for.

🎙️ Episode 25 — Casting the Right Nets: Choosing the Right NDE Method for the Job

I think that title is the strongest one so far. It has a bit of personality, but the subtitle still tells a new listener exactly what the episode is about.

Just because you don’t own the equipment doesn’t mean you can ignore it.

In this episode of Man-watch Required: The Inspection Podcast, Scott and Frank dig into the world of third-party and rental equipment — and some of the questions that come with bringing temporary pressure equipment onto an operating site.

What documentation should be reviewed before the equipment ever arrives?

What happens when a rental vessel shows up with missing or questionable identification?

When is pressure equipment exempt — and more importantly, exempt from what?

We talk through real-world examples involving temporary pressure vessels, pressure piping, rental skids, mobile equipment and contractor-supplied systems, including a turnaround job that was delayed when the required information wasn’t available.

The conversation also gets into:

• Pressure equipment registration and inspection requirements
 • Temporary and mobile pressure equipment
 • Pressure piping and the 500-litre registration threshold
 • Equipment mounted on trucks and trailers
 • Overpressure protection and connecting piping
 • Documentation packages and pre-job verification
 • Understanding where jurisdictional boundaries begin and end
 • Why a “temporary” system can become complicated very quickly

One of the biggest takeaways?

Don’t wait until the equipment is sitting at the gate — or connected to your process — before asking whether it’s fit for service and compliant with the requirements that apply.

The contractor may own it.

The rental company may maintain it.

But once it’s part of your operation…

it can still become your problem.

🎙️ Not Our Equipment… Still Our Problem — Third-Party & Rental Pressure Equipment

#PressureEquipment #PressurePiping #MechanicalIntegrity #AssetIntegrity #Inspection #ABSA #Turnaround #PressureVessels #Reliability

What does it really take to get reliable temperature data from a fired heater using infrared thermography?

In this episode of Man-watch Required: The Inspection Podcast, Scott and Frank sit down with an experienced master thermographer for a deep dive into infrared thermography and its application to fired heaters and industrial equipment inspection.

Thermal imaging can look deceptively simple: point the camera, capture an image and read the temperature. In practice, getting meaningful data requires an understanding of the equipment, the environment and the many variables that can influence what the camera is actually seeing.

We discuss the fundamentals of thermography, including emissivity, reflected apparent temperature, camera setup and measurement technique, before taking the conversation inside the firebox and looking at the challenges of measuring fired-heater tube temperatures.

From refractory radiation and flame interference to viewing angle, operating conditions and thermal patterns, we explore why a colourful thermogram is only the beginning of the inspection.

We also talk about the importance of experience, repeatable inspection techniques, trending data over time and, most importantly, knowing how to interpret what you see.

Whether you're an inspector, thermographer, reliability professional, operator or simply interested in fired equipment, this episode offers a practical look at the science—and the judgment—behind infrared inspection.

And because apparently 90 minutes of thermography wasn't enough...

Stick around to the end for our newest Man-watch Required original:

“Certified Thermographer – It’s the Science, Baby.”

Because taking the picture is the easy part.

You still have to analyze it.

After a bit of a break, Man-watch Required is back!

In this short preview episode, we catch up on where we’ve been, what’s been happening behind the scenes, and what we have planned for the return of the podcast.

We’ve already been back behind the microphones recording new conversations with experienced people from across the inspection industry. Upcoming episodes will cover topics including thermography on fired heaters, nondestructive examination, third-party equipment, and more of the practical inspection conversations you’ve come to expect from the show.

This episode is a quick welcome back—and a preview of what’s coming as we kick off a new run of episodes released every two weeks.

Whether you work in inspection, integrity, operations, maintenance, or simply enjoy hearing real industry stories, we’re glad to have you back with us.

Man-watch Required: The Inspection Podcast is officially back.

Frank and Scott continue to talk Tank inspection with the father-son team Alex Jr. and Alex III from Ranger Inspections.

the conversation start out talking about floor scanning and equipment, proving up floor scans with manual UT,  and flows into cleaning of tanks for inspection,  the use of new tech for tank inspection, rope access inspections, reporting, tank repair and Alex jr shares some tank inspection stories.

You can check out Ranger inspections and the services they offer at:

https://rangerinspection.com/

Enjoy the episode and let us know if you enjoyed the show! reach us at:
Instagram- https://www.instagram.com/manwatch_required/
LinkedIn- www.linkedin.com/in/man-watch-required
Our website-  https://www.manwatchrequired.com/

The boys have been thinking API 650 storage tanks for a while now and got the perfect opportunity to talk with some specialists from Ranger Inspections. 

In part 1 of 2 Scott and Frank sit down with Alex Romano Jr, and his son Alex III  to start the discussion on API storage tanks. This episode kicks off with a bit of storage tank history, and details about external tank inspections and methods. 

It doesn't take long to figure out that storage tanks are a critical piece of equipment in the  production of energy and vital to plant operations. 

You can check our Ranger Inspections and the services they offer at their website:
https://rangerinspection.com/

Dont forget to subscribe / follow the podcast on your faviorte podcast app to stay up to date with the latest episodes. Drop a review if you feel inclined!

You can listen to the episode on our website as well:
https://www.manwatchrequired.com/

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This week Frank is joined in studio by Mike Diachyshyn- General Manager and Chief Inspector of Sharptail Inspection Services. 

They Discuss the process of starting an inspection company from scratch and how Mike took his vision of what an inspection company should be to a reality.

You can contact Mike for information or to procure his services at:
https://sharptailinspection.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/company/sharptail-inspection-services/

You can also listen on our website:
https://www.manwatchrequired.com/

Hit the boys up if you have any questions 
[email protected]

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In this week's episode the team sits down with Warren Tessari from Maverick Inspection to talk about the weird and wonderful. This episode is perfect for those hesitant to change or have that fear of technology. The team discusses some of the advancements in the RVI space, where they see the technology going and how it can be leveraged as a complement to current inspection methods. There may even be some entertaining stories shared along the way. 

For more information on Maverick Inspection and the services  they provide visit:
https://www.maverickinspection.com
https://www.linkedin.com/company/maverick-inspection-ltd
https://www.facebook.com/MaverickInspection

As always you can also listen to this and all other episodes on our website:
https://www.manwatchrequired.com

If you happen to have a question for the Man-watch Required team hit them up at: 
[email protected]

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