Tue, January 15, 2013
The 2013 PRCI Research Program has been initiated and we would like to thank the volunteers leaders from the member companies for their hard work and dedication. Below is the 2013 Technical Committee leadership roster. Committee members are a crucial part of PRCI’s operating model, a partnership between members and staff that has produced industry defining research for over 60 years.
Compressor & Pump Station
Corrosion
Design, Materials & Construction
Measurement
Operations & Integrity
Underground Storage
PRCI’s 2013 Program addresses a spectrum of research needs and opportunities covering nearly every aspect of pipeline operations.
PRCI’s Pipeline Program Technical Committees held their Fall 2012 meeting in Los Angeles, CA from October 30 to November 1, 2012. The Fall meeting of the Pipeline Program Technical Committees is the annual event where the 2013 research program is initiated and the projects and programs approved and funded through the PRCI annual ballot voting process are fully developed and initiated. The meeting was attended by more than 130 representatives of the three Technical Committees that make up the Pipeline Program, including Corrosion, Design, Materials, and Construction, and Operations & Integrity. The 2013 ballot vote resulted in more than $8 million being allocated to projects in the Pipeline Program Technical Committees. Members can view documents and presentations from the meeting in PRIME via the following links: Operations & Integrity; Design, Materials & Construction; Corrosion.
The Fall 2012 meeting has now established the basis for the 2013 program and work is underway for the implementation of the technical programs. The 2013 ballot included fudning for a number of major initiatives and programs, and PRCI is aggressively addressing several major programs in the Pipeline Program Technical Committees, including inspection and management of Mechanical Damage, enhancements and improvements to ILI technology, strain-based design, pipeline leak detection and continuing work on the Right-of-Way Automated Monitoring Program (RAM Program).
Consistent with most PRCI Pipeline Program Technical Committee Meetings, several workshops and project team meetings were scheduled in association with Fall 2012 meeting, capitalizing on having a substantial number of pipeline professionals and Subject Matter experts convened in one location. These meetings and workshops were focused on ongoing projects and programs that were continuing in 2013 and received substantial support through the ballot voting process. Separate meetings were held to discuss the ILI Enhancements and Improvements Program (NDE-4) and the continuing work on Wrinkle Bends and the tools developed through PRCI R&D related to management of wrinkle bends.
PRCI acknowledges the support and sponsorship of PRCI member, Southern California Gas Company, for making the meeting a success. Also at the meeting, PRCI recognized two PRCI member companies, Marathon and TransCanada, for the significant contributions and support for R&D programs (read more).
PRCI Honors Brian Woodhouse
At the Fall 2012 PRCI Pipeline Program Technical Committee Meeting Los Angeles, CA, PRCI honored Mr. Brian Woodhouse of National Grid for his numerous years of dedication and support as a member of PRCI’s Technical Committees and as a leader in the industry that championed pipeline R&D. Brian retired form National Grid in December 2012 and the Fall 2012 meeting was his last PRCI Technical Committee meeting. Brian’s contributions were significant and his expertise, candor, and sense of humor will be missed at PRCI. Brian is a trusted and valued colleague for PRCI and will be missed by his peers and PRCI staff. In recognition of PRCI’s appreciation for Brian’s commitment, contributions, and years of support for the pipeline industry, a plaque was presented to Brian and a toast was made in his honor. PRCI wishes Brian all the best in his retirement from National Grid.
The Compressor and Pump Station Technical Committee met October 25-27, 2012 in Munich, Germany. The meeting was graciously hosted by PRCI member, GE. The meeting provided technical updates on all of the Committee’s ongoing projects, and project teams were formed for the newly-approved 2013 items. Two major programs were allocated continuing funds: Compressor Station Air Toxics (NESHAP) Compliance, and Zero/Zero, which focus respectively on formaldehyde and VOC compliance and developing the capability for operators to achieve zero emissions exceedances with zero unit outages. Additionally, an ad-hoc meeting was held to further refine the future direction for onboard diagnostics (OBD) for compressor engines. The winter meeting will formally kick-off the 2014 planning process and will be held jointly with the GMRC planning and steering committee. PRCI Members can view the meeting minutes and presentions in PRIME.. The meeting included tours at Hoerbiger, LEISTRITZ PUMPEN , GE, HUG Engineering, MAN Turbo & Diesel, and ABB. Ideas for several new research projects were generated during these tours.
The Measurement Technical Committee met on October 9-11, 2012 in Salem, MA. The meeting reviewed the newly approved projects for 2013, the status of ongoing projects, and provided members with final presentations on High Pressure DP Transmitter Calibration, the first phase of Determining the Effect of Thermowell Temperature Measurement on Orifice & Ultrasonic Flowmeters in Gas & Alternate Methods of Accurate Temperature Measurement, and Enhanced Diagnostics for Orifice Meter. Discussion also centered on defining the work to be performed under the measurement of non-traditional gas supplies program, developing a new program for liquid measurement issues, and finding a replacement contractor for the development of a liquids measurement uncertainty analysis tool. PRCI Members can view the meeting minutes and presentions in PRIME.
The Underground Storage Technical Committee met November 13-14, 2012 at the offices of Enterprise Products in Houston, TX. Presentations on the Cement Degradation Mechanisms study, the downhole MFL performance study, and the API Storage Field Recommended Practices initiative were provided. The largest project in the Storage program, Brine String Integrity, was discussed at length due the challenging conditions at the host site that have frustrated the initiation of the work. It was agreed to proceed with the project (which required subsequent concurrence of the Board Executive Committee) if it could be opened up to solicit the participation of non-PRCI members with significant interest in salt cavern development and operation. The minimum cost to participate would be $100,000. A recent Gasunie test of the instrumentation developed for this project was very successful, with appreciable information about the movement of the brine string being gathered."