Hill Engineering Blog

Happy Birthday to the Contour Method!

by Adrian DeWald

Today marks a major milestone in the field of residual stress measurement. The contour method, one of the most useful and advanced residual stress measurement techniques, was first successfully implemented on this date (August 16th) in 1999 by Mike Prime at Los Alamos National Laboratory. The most significant feature of the contour method is its ability to generate detailed two-dimensional residual stress maps like the one shown below. Please join us in wishing the contour method a very happy 17th birthday! Continue reading Happy Birthday to the Contour Method!

Opening Up with the Interns

by Robert Pires

Every summer, Hill Engineering hires university students as interns; aiming to give them insight into industry jobs and provide them with the experience they’ll need to develop their careers post-graduation. We pride ourselves on involving interns in projects which utilize and further explore the concepts they have learned in school. In the past, we’ve had many positive outcomes from our internship program. The interns have delivered fresh perspective on our projects and a few have even transferred to full-time employment at Hill Engineering. This year, we welcome three students into our summer internship program. Continue reading Opening Up with the Interns

International Light Water Reactor Materials Reliability Conference

by Adrian DeWald

Hill Engineering is presenting about residual stress in welding as part of the EPRI International Light Water Reactor Materials Reliability Conference and Exhibition. The objective of the conference is to gather the leading domestic and international nuclear engineers, materials scientists, and vendors in a forum for discussing and reporting the latest research regarding the reliability of materials in Light Water Reactor Vessels and their components. Hill Engineering’s presentation will include a summary of recent work on residual stress measurement for an excavate and weld repair mockup. The abstract text is presented below. Continue reading International Light Water Reactor Materials Reliability Conference

We love planes

by Robert Pires

The dawn of the airplane changed the way we humans viewed the world. In a relatively short amount of time, travel across oceans was reduced from a month or more onboard a sea vessel to a few hours in the air. Getting from one side of the country to the other no longer meant spending days on a train, but a quick flight across state borders. It’s easy to see why planes were welcomed so eagerly into modern society.

But beyond convenience, have you ever taken the time to just consider the technology behind airplanes and what they are capable of? Continue reading We love planes

ASME 2016 Pressure Vessels & Piping Conference

by Adrian DeWald

Hill Engineering is proud to deliver a presentation as part of the David Smith Memorial Symposium at the upcoming ASME 2016 Pressure Vessels & Piping Conference. The presentation delivered at PVP2016 will include a summary of recent work on residual stress measurement for an excavate and weld repair mockup that was performed in collaboration with EPRI. This novel work will help the industry address issues related to residual stress in welding. The abstract text is presented below. Continue reading ASME 2016 Pressure Vessels & Piping Conference

International conference on residual stress

by Michael Hill

Hill Engineering is proud to deliver a keynote presentation at the upcoming 2016 International Conference on Residual Stress. The presentation delivered at ICRS2016 will include an overview of the opportunities and challenges related to the effect of residual stresses on the performance of aircraft structure. The abstract text is presented below. Continue reading International conference on residual stress

Welcome Robert Pilarczyk

by Adrian DeWald

We would like to welcome Robert (Bob) Pilarczyk to Hill Engineering. Bob has worked in the United States Air Force A-10 ASIP office (Hill Air Force Base) for the past 10+ years, most recently as the group leader of a team responsible for the structural integrity of the A-10 fleet. In this role Bob functioned as the division technical expert in the field of aircraft structural integrity, structural analysis, and fatigue analysis for the purpose of solving unusual and difficult strength, fatigue, fracture, corrosion, and design challenges for the A-10 weapon system. Continue reading Welcome Robert Pilarczyk

Hill Engineering opens new facility

by Adrian DeWald

Hill Engineering, LLC, answering strong demand for its residual stress measurement, fatigue analysis and design, and residual stress engineering services, today opened a new facility in Rancho Cordova, CA. The newly renovated building will feature a combination of laboratory, research and development, and office space; all of which are important as Hill Engineering works tenaciously to meet the needs of our current projects while at the same time keeping an eye towards innovation and new opportunities. The move provides Hill Engineering with additional space to house our growing team of experts. For more information, please visit hill-engineering.com. Continue reading Hill Engineering opens new facility

Residual stress measurement inside a welded pipe

by Adrian DeWald

The inner diameter of pipes is a critical location for design and performance assessment. Corrosion, fatigue, and stress corrosion cracking often attack the pipe inner diameter, which can lead to leakage and possible failure of the system. Tensile residual stresses in welded pipe joints can have a significant impact on structural integrity and performance because they accelerate crack initiation and growth. In engineering design, understanding the magnitude and distribution of residual stresses on the pipe inner diameter allows accurate structural assessment and planning for inspection. Measuring residual stress on the pipe inner diameter is challenging and provided a unique opportunity to express our commitment to innovation. Continue reading Residual stress measurement inside a welded pipe

Groundbreaking for new facility

by Adrian DeWald

Hill Engineering would like to announce the groundbreaking on our new facility. This marks an important milestone in a year-long process to evolve and grow our infrastructure. Our new facility will provide us with additional space, which will allow us to be more responsive to new opportunities in residual stress measurement and fatigue engineering. Furthermore, the facility has been carefully designed to provide an optimal environment for advancement of our precision testing laboratory. We are looking forward to the Grand Opening in early June, 2016.

Construction will be performed by DesCor Builders a licensed general contractor based in Northern California. Our construction superintendent, Al Candela is pictured below. We know that you and your team will do a great job!