Key-Rex® Well Head & Wellhead Flange Security Nut | Can Crude Oil Theft Be Stopped?
Feb 05, 2021
Security nuts in the Oil & Gas Industry aren't working very well. Bryce Security Fastener developed their own Key-Rex® Wellhead & Flange Security Nut to mitigate the damages done and assets lost when the Christmas Tree components are ruined as a result of theft/tampering.
The corruption of crude oil theft continues to plague Nigeria's national economy, but it's also a problem affecting every nation who's involved in oil production. The problem stems about as deep and wide as Africa's vast landscape of natural resources. At this stage, a grand-scale effort from the International community will need to happen in order to reduce the billions of dollars lost in assets each year. Until that happens, anyone involved in the security manufacturing sector should try and help. For oil companies not involved in the black market exchange themselves, the best thing they can do is invest heavily in security measures; mulitple layers of them. Many companies have tried replacing the 2H Hex Nuts secured throughout the Wellhead Flange and Christmas Tree components with high-level security nuts. That seems like a logical place to start, however most of these security attempts have failed.
Why are the Current Security Nuts Used for Well Heads and Wellhead Flanges Failing?
There’s a handful of companies who have their own version of security nuts specifically made for wellhead flanges and more areas in the Oil & Gas Industry. The problem isn’t that these security nuts aren’t good, the problem is the sophistication of the thieves. Industrial Lathes, Mills, and special molding techniques are used to copy the design of security nuts and then defeat the security of wellhead flanges. If the design can’t be duplicated, then the nut will be damaged in a way that compromises the whole Christmas Tree component. Well Head and Christmas Tree components are extremely expensive to replace and this is a big issue for oil companies.
Bryce Security Fastener designed the Key-Rex® Wellhead Flange Security Nut with some defense tactics that other security nuts don’t have:
- The dual patented, complex design of Key-Rex® can’t be exactly duplicated on a Lathe, Mill or by using molding techniques.
- Ease of use. The Key-Rex® Wellhead & Wellhead Flange Security Nut is installed/uninstalled using the same tool by any user on a Pipeline System. There are no requirements to purchase special tools to install or uninstall.
- The Key-Rex® Wellhead & Flange Security Nut has the same high torque values as specified for standard wellhead/pipeline nuts. Since the torque tension is the same, there’s no drop-off in hold. The hold of the Key-Rex® Nut is strong and can’t be removed without the exact matching tool. No other security nuts can boast these high torque values.
- Testing shows the Key-Rex® Nut is recoverable after an attack. Even if the keyway is damaged by a chisel, the nut can still be removed. This saves the Christmas Tree from being ruined, disassembled, or compromising the whole component.
Additional Layers of Visible and Hidden Security Provide the User with The Following Benefits:
- Outer Rotating Shroud That Spins and Protects
- It is made from heavy impact steel and can withstand repeated blows of a sledgehammer.
- It is hardened to repel hacksaws.
- The Inner Protector Nut has Billions of Different Patented Keyway Patterns
- Each customer can buy their own licensed, unique keyway where only that Customer’s tool can install/remove their own nut.
- The whole nut is patented along with the keyway process. This means each licensed user is patent protected and receives their own patented Key-Rex® Wellhead Flange Nut.
- The keyway is designed to shear unauthorized removal tools.
- Removal depends on a zero tolerance, which is only supplied by the perfectly matched driver.
- The inner protector nut is hardened beyond the hardness of most removal tools.
- We strongly recommend the tool to install/remove the nut only be accessible to authorized personnel.
- The Security Top Cap Adds Another Layer of Protection
- The extra hardness and holding power help keep the inner protector nut clean from debris.
The Key-Rex® Wellhead & Wellhead Flange Security Nut is both an Anti-Theft and Anti-Tampering device. It not only prevents theft of components, but it’s designed to deter and hamper any efforts to compromise or damage these components. Bryce Security Fastener isn’t a standard security screw manufacturer. We design and develop custom security screws, bolts, and nuts to meet the high-level security demands of Commercial, Industrial, and Government operations at risk of losing valuable assets. We understand we can't solve the multi-faceted problem of crude oil theft, but we're invested in using our machines and unique cold heading techniques to try and help.