Engineering Services

RCP engineers provide clients with decades of engineering design, project implementation, project management, pipeline integrity, operations, process safety, security, and risk management experience.

Having worked for some of the largest oil and gas operators around the world, RCP experts are routinely called upon to solve asset management problems that require a high degree of sophistication in order to help our clients understand and effectively respond to issues and risks that are not easily defined or quantified.

MAOP Reconfirmation

PHMSA has announced they will be splitting the Safety of Gas Transmission and Gathering NPRM into three separate rules.

The long-awaited first of three gas transmission and gathering pipeline rulemakings was published in the Federal Register on October 1, 2019.  This rulemaking addresses several congressional mandates, dating back to the 2011 reauthorization legislation and addresses several NTSB recommendations following the PG&E San Bruno accident.  The effective date of the rule is July 1, 2020, with several requirements that extend out as much as 15 years to complete.  This is a significant rulemaking and RCP can help operators to integrate the new requirements into their integrity and MAOP programs accordingly. The rule will be called the Safety of Gas Transmission Pipelines: MAOP Reconfirmation, Expansion of Assessment Requirements, and Other Related Amendments, and addresses the following items:

• 6-month grace period for 7 calendar-year reassessment intervals
• Seismicity threats related to integrity management
• MAOP exceedance reporting
• Material verification, MAOP reconfirmation, & amendments related to §192.619
• Non-HCA assessments and MCA definition
• Related record provisions

RCP has been a market leader in providing MAOP Validation Services for over 20 years, including over 100,000 miles of gas and liquid pipeline analysis and support.

Whether you are just starting your MAOP validation efforts, not sure what to do next, or need help finishing, RCP has a wealth of experienced engineers and support staff to help you understand and comply with the MAOP Reconfirmation, Expansion of Assessment Requirements Rule.

Pressure Test Services

RCP’s personnel have established themselves as industry experts with over 1,000 on-site pressure test validations and 200+ years of combined experience designing, implementing and validating pressure tests for pipeline operators. Services include:

Pressure Test Standards and Plans

• Develop pressure test standards and procedures
• Review, update and consolidate company’s existing pressure test standards and procedures
• Create standardized test plan templates

Design and Certification of Pressure Tests

• Assist in the design of pressure test projects
• Develop and review test plans for upcoming tests
• Provide on-site inspection support and certification of pressure tests
  

Training and Records Review

• Conduct generic or customized pressure test training
• Review of prior test records in preparation for an audit
• Review of pressure test records in preparation for purchase of an asset
  

Leak Detection Capability Evaluation

Hazardous Liquid Pipeline Operators are required to have a means of detecting leakage on their pipelines and perform periodic review of their leak detection capabilities. The methodologies used for leak detection cover a wide spectrum of technologies and processes and are based on a number of different detection principles.

RCP engineers have an in-depth understanding of all applicable state and federal leak detection requirements, advisory bulletins, inspection protocols and referenced standards, as well as how they apply to pipeline design, operational procedures, leak detection methods, risk analysis and mitigation strategies.

RCP Leak Detection Capabilities Evaluations (LDCE) provide a comprehensive gap analysis an assessment of an operator’s Leak Detection Program (LDP), and Leak Detection Systems (LDS) that includes; LDS selection methodology, performance targets, metrics, and KPI’s, testing, control center procedures, alarm management, training, and leak detection equipment maintenance reliability.

Emergency Flow Restriction Device Analysis

RCP’s process for conducting EFRD studies to determine the need for installation of an EFRD starts with establishing the benefit threshold criteria that installation of an EFRD must satisfy in order to justify installation. Such criteria may include requirements such as minimum 50% reduction in quantity released, HCA no longer affected by quantity released and/or a significant reduction in the consequences of the spill.

RCP then evaluates key factors as described in §195.452(i)(4) such as pipeline profile, swiftness of leak detection and pipeline shutdown capabilities, potential release volume, location of nearest response personnel and specific terrain between pipeline segment and HCAs to determine if the benefit threshold factors are satisfied and make a recommendation regarding installation of the EFRD.

Relief Valve Capacity Evaluation

Built on decades of engineering experience and evaluating relief valve specifications and capabilities, RCP has developed a comprehensive Relief and Regulator Valve Capacity tool that includes a data set with over 5000 relief and regulator valve configurations that our SME uses to help evaluate the capacity of relief valves being specified as well as the impact of upstream and downstream piping on capacity. RCP also uses the tool to store our clients relief valve and piping configuration data to make documenting annual testing and/or capacity calculation/checks easy, consistent and accurate.

Uprate Studies

RCP provides technical support to produce an uprate plan, as required by CFR 49 Part 192 code. The plan provides the documentation and required tasks, required by code, to increase current maximum allowable operating pressure (MAOP). RCP has a comprehensive checklist that is used to verify all of the regulatory requirements are addressed. The final deliverable includes a completed checklist along with copies of records or notations used to validate closure of each item.

Conversion of Service Plans

RCP Conversion of Service Plans address all key elements of a pipeline conversion plan, according to federal pipeline safety regulations including any risks posed by the new products and plans to be taken to ensure the safety of pipeline, during the conversion phase as well as ongoing integrity management once the line is placed in service.

Defect Analysis and Repair Plan

RCP engineers can provide defect analysis and repair recommendations which include characterization of the defect and root cause analysis based on the operators or third-party measurements of the defect. RCP then presents specific repair recommendations based on Industry Standards and operator specific procedures. Integrity management regulations also require that a lesson learned process be implemented and similar defects that could exist in non-covered segments be analyzed and repaired as well. As Root Cause Failure Analysis (RCFA) is deployed with the help of different analysis techniques, prioritizing root causes, identification and development of solutions for root causes, and remediation recommendations become the basis for the development of a Remedial Work Plan (RWP) to repair defects, associate appropriate P&M measures and prevent recurrence.

Root Cause Failure Analysis

RCP provides clients with concise engineering analysis of failures. Utilizing scientifically proven techniques such as forensic investigation, TapRooT®, fault tree, event and causal factor analysis, RCP conducts a comprehensive review of documents, photos, interviews and field observations to determine causal factors relating to both the direct cause and root cause(s) of the event.

Summaries of interviews and conclusions based on the findings are used to formulate recommendations. The recommendations become the basis for the development of a Remedial Work Plan (RWP), which details the activities and processes necessary to prevent recurrence.

RCP final reports detail the methodology utilized, findings for each of the techniques employed, summary of SME discussions and recommendations based on the discussions and findings. Report attachments will include details of interviews, causal factor summaries and reference document log.

Engineering Specifications

RCP has extensive expertise developing reference manuals that provide detailed specifications for various maintenance activities that include appendices of common abbreviations, definitions, forms, specific design rules, etc. Sample contents of these Engineering Standards include:

Repair / Modification Specifications for:

• Codes & Industry Standards
• Preparation for Repairs
• Qualifications of Materials, Procedures, and Personnel
• Permissible Permanent Field Repairs
• Inspection and Test of Repairs
• Pipe Movement
• Branch Connections and Hot Taps

Guidelines for Pipeline Paint, Coatings, and Inhibitors:

• Paint System Considerations
• Coating Maintenance, Storage, and Handling Considerations
• External Coating Inspection Equipment and Activities

Cathodic Protection Specifications for:

• Industry Standards
• Calculations
• Testing & Measurements
• Close Interval Survey Procedures
• Supplemental Procedures
• Cathodic Protection Installation and Repair
• External Corrosion Procedures
• Rectifier and Equipment Lists

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