Abstract: An apparatus for winding steel ribbon around a vessel inner shell having forward and rearward ends to construct a pressure vessel includes a vessel support and rotation mechanism, a vessel elevation adjusting mechanism, tracks for supporting and guiding the vessel support and rotation mechanism, a carriage having rail track engaging mechanism for traveling along the track on at least one side of the vessel inner shell, and a ribbon pulling mechanism mounted on the carriage for delivering the ribbon to the vessel inner shell under ribbon tensile loading to pre-stress the vessel. The apparatus preferably additionally includes a locking mechanism for locking the vessel support and rotation mechanism to the track, after the vessel support and rotation mechanism is positioned at forward and rearward ends of a given vessel inner shell. The vessel support and rotation mechanism preferably includes several vessel support roller sets in the form of annular members rotatably mounted on tracks.

Abstract: The specification discloses an apparatus and process for beading the projecting ends of heat exchange tubes to a header or tube sheet of a water heater. The apparatus comprises an expandable mandrel having outwardly movable jaws supported around the forward end of a spindle. The mandrel is adapted to be inserted into a tube and to be expanded outward to tightly grip the inside of the tube near the header and to expand the tube against the header. An annular beading head having an annular beading groove is supported around the spindle rearward of the jaws and is adapted to be moved forward to engage the groove with the projecting end of the tube to force the end of the tube radially outward and against the side of the header.