The
pigging
mission
Bruce Knowlton, CDI, USA, Apache Pipeline Products, Canada,
provides an overview of specialised pigging tools that have
been designed to meet the ever-increasing needs of the pipeline
industry.
B
eneath our soil and waters, an estimated
3 million miles of pipelines conduct petroleum,
natural gas, and other materials as diverse as
cosmetics and foodstuffs all across the globe. Like
all transportation systems, pipelines are subject to wear and
tear. To keep this diverse payload moving along safely and
efficiently, a rigorous preventive maintenance programme is
necessary. This regimen is likely to begin and end with the
pipeline pig, a device that has radically evolved since the
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