For the first time, RCP is offering a 2-day workshop on Pipeline Pressure Testing. RCP personnel have established themselves as industry experts, designing, implementing and validating pressure test programs for various operators. Recent PHMSA advisories and pending regulations will soon mandate pressure tests for operating gas and liquid pipelines that have not previously been subjected…
May 2014
Send us your tired, your poor, your huddled masses of Pipeline Samples, yearning to breathe free.
Is your pipeline company merging? Divesting? Moving? Are old hands retiring, and clearing out their offices? No matter the reason, if you have interesting pipeline samples that need a new home, please let us know. We do training frequently, and would like to have physical pipe samples of corrosion, cracking, welding defects, seam defects, etc.…
Spring/Summer Conference Schedule
Have you registered and confirmed your reservations for these upcoming conferences? RCP and RCP Integrity Services will be attending. We hope to see you there! AGA Operations Conference 2014 May 20 -23, 2014 Omni William Penn, Pittsburgh, PA The annual AGA Operations Conference is the natural gas industry’s premier gathering of natural gas utility and…
RCP Integrity Services Adds More Experience to its Roster
Sheri Baucom recently joined RCP Integrity Services as Project Manager. Her experience in the industry will be an asset in providing InLine Inspection (ILI) total project management to our clients. Her areas of expertise include: In-Line Inspection, pressure testing, cathodic protection, corrosion analysis, Direct Assessment (External Corrosion DA, Internal Corrosion DA, Stress Corrosion Cracking DA),…
Pipeline 101 Website Revision Live
API and AOPL have overhauled an educational website about liquid pipelines. Available at www.pipeline101.org and www.pipeline101.com, the site addresses foundational questions: Why Do We Need Pipelines? How Do Pipelines Work? Where Are Pipelines Located? Are Pipelines Safe? How Can You Help With Safety? The site discusses the different types of pipelines, the products they transport,…
Ohio Public Utilities Commission Pipeline Safety Regulation Updates
The Ohio Public Utilities Commission has recently updated their pipeline safety regulations. The new regulation requires that “gas gathering/processing plant pipeline operators shall comply with the applicable pipe design requirements of 49 CFR 192(C), as effective on the date referenced in paragraph (D) of rule 4901:1-16-02 of the Administrative Code, for all gas gathering pipelines…
Texas Workshops on Regulation of Class 1 and Rural Gathering
House Bill 2982, 83rd Texas Legislature directed the Railroad Commission to regulate gathering lines in Class 1 and rural locations based on risk. The Pipeline Safety Division will be hosting a series of workshops, conducted by Polly McDonald, Director of the Pipeline Safety Division, to discuss the implementation of this new responsibility. The workshops will…
PHMSA Class Location Workshop
[Docket No. PHMSA-2011-0023] The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) held a public workshop on April 16th to explore whether applying the integrity management (IM) requirements beyond high consequence area (HCAs) would mitigate the need for class location requirements. Locations along gas pipelines are divided into classes from 1 (rural) to 4 (densely populated)…
NTSB Report on PHMSA’s State Pipeline Safety Program
[Docket No. PHMSA-2011-0023] The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has published their report on PHMSA’s state pipeline safety program, as a result of a previous recommendation related to the San Bruno incident. NTSB assessed PHMSA’s (1) policies and procedures for managing its State Pipeline Safety Program, including guidelines to participating States, and (2) oversight of…
PHMSA Pipeline Fines Break Record in 2013
The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) proposed $9.78 million in civil penalties against pipeline operators for alleged violations of federal law in 2013 – the highest yearly amount of proposed penalties in the agency’s history. Of the $9.78 million in proposed civil penalties for 2013, 22 cases representing $1,532,300 have been resolved. There…
PHMSA Notice Gas Distribution Annual Report Revisions
[Docket No. PHMSA-2013-0004] PHMSA is preparing to request Office of Management and Budget (OMB) approval for the revision of the gas distribution annual report currently approved under OMB control number 2137–0522. In addition to making several minor changes to the report, PHMSA will also request a new OMB control number for this information collection. Some…
PHMSA Advisory Bulletin ADB-2014-02: Lessons Learned from the Release at Marshall, Michigan
[Docket No. PHMSA-2014-0020] The Department of Transportation/Pipeline Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) issued an Advisory Bulletin to inform pipeline operators about the deficiencies identified in Enbridge’s integrity management program, control room operator training, and public awareness program which contributed to the accident at Marshall, Michigan. NTSB’s report on the Marshall, Michigan incident noted the probable…