BelGAS, a division of Marsh Bellofram and a leading provider of gas pressure regulation products, continues to advance its quality assurance efforts with the success of its P200 Regulator Automated Test Bench. Developed in-house and powered by proprietary Automated Regulator Testing Software (ARTS), the bench has been in operation for nearly two years and has more than doubled testing throughput—paving the way for additional automated testers now in development across the facility.

Designed and programmed by BelGAS’ continuous improvement engineers specifically for P200 Series regulators, this automated test bench replaces the traditional “dunk test” with a dry, software-driven process. By eliminating water immersion, BelGAS has removed the risk of premature corrosion while creating a cleaner, faster, and more consistent testing method that ensures every regulator meets exact performance standards.

The move away from water-based testing also brings new visibility into regulator performance. “Eliminating the dunk test makes the process cleaner and helps operators catch internal issues they might not have before,” said Gage Niedermeyer, manufacturing supervisor. “It gives us a better look at what’s going on inside each unit so we can be confident every regulator that leaves our floor meets our quality standards.”

The bench performs a comprehensive range of evaluations including output, lockup, drift, relief, leakage, and flow to verify regulator integrity and functionality:

•    Output: Confirms the regulator setpoint
•    Lockup: Ensures the internal seat seals tightly to prevent internal leakage
•    Drift: Detects pressure changes over time to ensure stable setpoints
•    Relief: Validates the unit’s ability to relieve excessive downstream pressure
•    Leakage: Checks external connections for tight, leak-free seals
•    Flow: Confirms the regulator meets flow requirements for its configuration

The ARTS platform allows operators to input orifice size and spring range, after which the software automatically adjusts inlet pressure, performs the test, and records results locally for full data traceability.

“Beyond its standard testing capabilities, this bench also allows operators to implement custom presets per specific customer requests,” said Tyler Katich, continuous improvement manager. “Once applied, those custom presets can be tested and verified in real time on the system display.”

With precision, repeatability, and automation built in, the P200 Automated Test Bench has significantly reduced human error and streamlined production while strengthening BelGAS’ commitment to innovation, precision, and quality.
“Our continuous improvement engineers really led the charge on this project, developing an automated system that improves accuracy and ultimately helps us better serve our customers.” said Jon Kaufman, BelGAS business unit manager.

For more information about BelGAS and its full line of gas pressure regulation solutions, visit https://belgas.net.