Published: October 27, 2026
Technical Contributor: Christian Herrild, Director of Growth Strategies
You may have heard that Teel treats its gas pipe like a medical device. The basis of that claim is twofold. First, we use of Sikora X-ray inline measurement technology during gas pipe extrusion to ensure our products are within specification, a technology often used in medical extrusion where extreme precision is vital. Second, before opting to use Sikora X-ray devices, we completed detailed validation testing to confirm the measurement device was capable of detecting defects.
What is Sikora X-ray Measurement?
A Sikora measurement system passes an X-ray beam through a product during extrusion and toward a detector on the opposite side, allowing it to capture multiple dimensions, such as outer and inner diameter, wall thickness, concentricity, and ovality. The system then uses an advanced algorithm to determine measurements.
This highly precise method of collecting multiple aspects of quality data is especially useful for medical extrusion because those products, given their frequently thinner walls, softer materials, and complex geometry, can be more susceptible to deformation and require especially careful monitoring. Thus, Sikora X-ray technology is widely used in medical tubing extrusion as a continuous, non-contact quality measurement system (including at Teel).
Its introduction to gas pipe extrusion is fairly new and brings the same multifactor, non-contact measurement advantages, giving our customers added confidence in the quality of our gas pipe.
Why and How Does Teel Use Sikora Technology?
Teel uses Sikora equipment to measure wall thickness to detect areas that are out of specification. Of particular interest in this market is small diameter gas pipe with outside diameters <2 inches. These products tend to run at higher line rates and have thinner walls, so they are more susceptible to line interruptions causing issues with wall thickness. However, all of Teel’s gas pipe extrusion lines, including large diameter lines, are fitted with the equipment as a standard quality control measure.
How Does Sikora X-Ray Technology Work in Gas Pipe Extrusion?
The X-ray system eliminates external factors that can affect the precision of other measurement systems, such as the need for calibration or water, providing an accurate, non-contact, 360° measurement of the pipe.
The Sikora measuring system uses high voltage to generate X-rays, so it operates without isotopes or any nuclear source, and radiation can be stopped merely by shutting off the device. The X-rays allow a manufacturer to “look through” the pipe and see the transitions from air to the pipe wall and the resulting absorption of the X-ray beam for evaluation. Inspection of the wall is enhanced by regression analysis and curve fitting. By measuring multiple points around the pipe and using an analysis based on the mathematical model of an ellipse, the minimum wall of the pipe can be determined in 360°. This technology does not require any coupling media like water and operates without any calibration or offset, meaning no outside factors, like water quality or temperature, will influence the measurement and its accuracy. This eliminates noise from defects like bubbles on the pipe surface or in the measurement tank, as can happen with ultrasonic.
But how is the Sikora system’s accuracy validated, and has Teel collected any data to demonstrate it? Stay tuned for answers to these questions in future posts.
Learn more about Teel’s gas pipe capabilities here.