ITF Technology Street
Innovation & technology developments in the global gas, oil and energy industry.
Pipeline Engineering and Supply Company Ltd (PE)
AMPL (Automatic Multiple Pig Launching System)
With the support of ITF and funding secured from four member companies, Pipeline Engineering and Supply Company Ltd (PE), have designed and carried out field trials on AMPL, a new multi pigging tool, which utilises existing pipeline equipment and retro-fit’s it with a loaded cassette of multiple pigs which can be launched independently, as required, with minimal human intervention.
The key requirement was to improve reliable fl ow assurance techniques through pigging and improve the HSE actions surrounding the manual operation of pig launching, which can be a time consuming and risky process. The cleaning of pipelines through pigging is essential to remove debris and prevent the corrosion of pipes in order to maintain the production fl ow.
In response to an ITF call for proposals on production capacity and effi ciency, PE designed a multi pig launcher that does not require the use of complex kick lines, valves or release fl aps. Existing launchers often require an external power supply, human intervention and can cost substantially more to run when parts are added. AMPL addresses all of these challenges by utilizing the existing pipeline equipment and automatically launching the pigs, as required, with minimal human intervention, which ultimately reduces the manual workforce hours. This has a positive knock-on effect for operational costs as well as lessening the risks associated with health, safety and environmental factors.
The pig launching is controlled by mechanisms built into the pigs
rather than the launcher itself, meaning the technology also negates
the need for human intervention and signifi cantly reduces the
labour intensity and risks involved in regular pigging activities.
The AMPL technology is now in its final stages of development. Successful fi eld trials have been carried out in Montrose, Scotland, and PE has received their first order from a US company for daily pigging. Ultimately, AMPL will be suitable for use on remote land based locations, such as desert pigging stations, unmanned platforms, subsea launchers for commissioning and tie-ins and standard pipelines that require frequent pigging.
There will be a reduction in operational costs as there is no need to load the individual pigs into the launcher for each pigging run, therefore saving time and work force hours. The technology will play a major role in improving HSE requirements delivering safe, cost and time efficient pipeline pigging solutions to the oil and gas industry.
