TEi’s comprehensive portfolio and engineering expertise are driving sustainable solutions in the UK
TEi Ltd (TEi) is a leading UK-based engineering construction organisation specialising in design, supply, repair, maintenance, and site installation in the power generation and petrochemical industries. With decades of industry experience and a wealth of knowledge, TEi works with clients to ensure projects meet ever-evolving construction regulations.
“Although we’ve been trading as TEi since 2004, our company history dates back to 1845 when we were known as Greens, Wakefield,” begins Alan Waddington, Managing Director. “Our founder, Edward Green, patented the boiler economiser and we continue to design, fabricate, and install economisers and pressure parts today. Our head office, metallurgical laboratory, and workshops reside on the original site in Wakefield.” 
TEi also has regional offices in Kent and South Wales to provide clients with local access to its complete product portfolio. It maintains specialist centres of excellence in engineering studies, mechanical and thermal design, heat exchanger tube services, metallurgical laboratory services, and welding development and training.
“We’re a specialist welding company with experience in major construction turnarounds, turnkey projects, and repair and maintenance frameworks,” Alan says. “We have an extensive range of services including a nationwide operations division, a UKAS-accredited metallurgical laboratory, a heat exchanger division, fabrication workshop, welder training school, and technical services division.”
The technical services division, which originates from the design and engineering office of Foster Wheeler Power Products and was incorporated into TEi after being purchased from Foster Wheeler in 1988, provides design, engineering, commissioning, and consultancy to a broad range of external customers and other divisions within TEi. The in-house design team offers pressure vessel design, piping design, pipe flexibility analysis, structural steel design, and on-site inspections.
In addition, TEi’s metallurgical laboratory conducts a broad range of tests on materials to customers’ requirements, as well as to national and international standards. The team’s wealth of experience spans failure investigations, metallurgical examinations and consultancy, in-situ testing, mechanical testing and weld certification, chemical analysis, corrosion testing, and heat treatment.
Cutting-edge processes
In early 2024, the business announced an investment in its metallurgical laboratory in the form of two additional items of equipment: a Siemens-controlled vertical milling centre and a centre lathe. Equipped with the latest technology, these machines represent TEi’s ambition to enhance its capacity and reduce machining time for test samples. The machines feature high-performance spindles with impressive speed capabilities, as well as faster tool changing to minimise downtime and optimise production flow.
The company also boasts a welding department, which maintains a close awareness of industry developments to provide cutting-edge welding solutions as new alloys and processes are created. With an on-site training school, welding engineers can fast-track procedures to suit project requirements and specific customer requirements.
Impressive milestone
Lastly, TEi’s YIMPACT heat exchanger services department is one of the UK’s specialists in main condenser condition assessment, inspection, refurbishment, and full retubing. In fact, the heat exchanger and condenser refurbishment division has carried out 95 per cent of all major condenser retubes within the UK in the last 20 years.
“We operate several framework contracts with key clients, including Drax, EPUK, ExxonMobil, and RWE to name a few; we work closely with all clients and our repeat agreements are testament to the strong client relationships we hold across the UK’s prominent energy infrastructure assets,” Alan reveals. “We’ve also been instrumental in installing OEM equipment for existing gas stations, bringing them back online to ensure national supply meets demand.”
With an integrated management system, the business strives to ensure that safety, quality, and environmental processes are managed effectively. Its leaders believe that corporate social responsibility is a continuous commitment to behaving ethically and contributing to economic development while improving employees’ quality of life. For instance, TEi champions the wider communities in which it operates by supporting schools, hospitals, and universities, as well as national charities like Prostate Cancer UK.
“We’re incredibly proud to have reached an incredible milestone – one million man-hours completed accident-free,” Alan states. “We’ve been developing a strong health and safety culture that is based on solid foundations of honesty and integrity. We’ve implemented a ‘Zero Harm’ policy that focuses on behavioural and occupational safety, occupational health, risk management, and process safety.”
Sustainability focus
TEi is an in-scope company to the Engineering Construction Industry Training Board (ECITB) to provide training to all employees. Each year, the business takes on new apprentices in partnership with the ECITB to raise the profile of engineering amongst younger generations. Alongside its state-of-the-art welding training facility, TEi has added a new training facility for pipefitters, erectors, and mechanical fitters to its portfolio.
In a press release about the opening of the new facility, TEi’s training and development manager commented: “The UK needs skilled craftsmen to keep us globally competitive and prepared for the challenges of the future. The welders, pipefitters, and erectors training at TEi will be the people making sustainable energy a reality, responding to climate change, and developing new ways to improve power station efficiency.”
As TEi looks to the future, it is likely that its operations will increasingly be dominated by demand for sustainable solutions. “With the current volatility in the energy market, we see TEi playing a vital part in the UK’s energy market,” Alan concludes. “We’re looking to invest further in our core capabilities and increase our on-site efficiency and productivity. We must ensure we’re using the latest technologies and consumables to deliver quality products to our customers.”