Resource optimization and QC at LK Pex

The Swedish pipe manufacturer LK Pex primarily produces PE-Xa products for both heating and drinking water applications, and their production is running around the clock. In their in-house laboratory, they conduct quality control tests for the commercial products as well as supporting tests for material development and product approvals.

“We sell quality-controlled products used for pressurized applications with high demands for regular testing and inspections”, says Laboratory Engineer Mikael Hjort.

The main market is the Nordic countries, but LK Pex also has customers in other parts of Europe and the USA. Since there are no harmonized global or European regulations for these piping systems, there is a lot of administrative work involved in handling various product approvals. Since 2020, LK Pex has been using Pipeson Certification Manager to streamline the administration.

“Before we had Pipeson, the management of approvals was largely manual work. Today, I receive reminders when it’s time to take action, and I always feel that things are under control. It’s also convenient to have all documentation in one place, especially when we have third-party inspections or when we receive customer inquiries.”

Optimizes the use of resources

Åsa Linder works as a Development and Product Manager, and is responsible for the technical aspects of the commercial products and also for material and product development. She uses Pipeson Analyzer to coordinate, document, and evaluate pressure tests, and she appreciates the ability to directly transfer data between LK Pex’s pressure testing system and Pipeson’s system.

“It is easy to compare different tests with each other, and against various standard curves, or use models available in the system to perform lifetime calculations. Pipeson Analyzer allows me to stay up-to-date with various evaluations and facilitates working more proactively”, says Åsa.

LK Pex also conducts numerous tests at external test institutes, and previously they mostly received results via interim and final reports. With Pipeson’s software, they have greater ownership of the testing process, as they can access current data for ongoing tests at any time.

“With Pipeson’s help, we have the opportunity to detect any anomalies at an early stage, which is a significant advantage in development projects. We can choose to make adjustments, conduct additional tests, or halt the process, ensuring that we allocate our resources efficiently.”

“I also appreciate that we received assistance in entering our historical data during the implementation, making it easy and efficient to get started and work with the system. And if there is ever an issue, we can always contact Pipeson and receive prompt assistance.”

About LK Pex

LK Pex is located in Ulricehamn, Sweden, and specializes in the development, manufacturing, and sales of plastic pipes designed for heating and drinking water applications within buildings as well as in district heating. The products are primarily cross-linked PE-Xa pipes, which offer a combination of high flexibility and strength, and PE-RT and pipe-in-pipe solutions.

LK Pex is a part of LK, a family-owned Swedish company group that was established back in 1910. The various LK companies now have customers world-wide in the heating and sanitary industry. The guiding principles for LK are curiosity, fearlessness, long-term thinking, and doing it with joy. We continuously learn and improve – always with the aim to simplify our customers’ everyday lives and contribute to an even smarter future.