TPT January 2016

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Industry News
18 January 2016
OptaSense finalist in global awards
OPTASENSE has been recognised
for its contribution to pipeline leak and
intrusion detection by being shortlisted
for a prestigious international award. The
company has been recognised in the
ASME Pipeline Systems Division Global
Pipeline Awards for the innovative use
of its award-winning distributed acoustic
sensing (DAS) system on Colombia’s
Bicentennial oil pipeline.
The judging panel recognised
OptaSense’s unique use of a single fibre
system to provide both leak detection
and intrusion detection on the country’s
largest pipeline. The 235km first phase
of the pipeline was completed in 2012
and has a diameter of 36-42", with a
capacity of 450,000 barrels per day
(bpd) of crude.
The integrated DAS solution works
across multiple functions via a single
fibre optic cable that effectively ‘listens’
to the pipeline in order to provide
detailed data about its current status.
Any changes to the condition of the pipe
are fed back through an interrogator unit
in real time, allowing users to identify
and address issues early and maintain
the highest level of pipeline integrity and
product throughput.
Leak and intrusion detection are vital
to maintaining pipeline integrity and
production maximisation in the oil and
gas industry. The pipeline was closed
in 2014 due to third party attacks on
it, costing the Colombian economy
thousands of barrels per day in lost
deliveries.
OptaSense executive director Magnus
McEwen-King said, “This award not only
recognises the innovative use of fibre,
but also the engineers of Ecopetrol and
OptaSense who have jointly worked
to deliver real improvements to the
integrity management process of the
Bicentennial pipeline.
“This nomination is a further
acknowledgment of our leading position
in South America, and highlights our
commitment to continued growth in the
region. Our award-winning technology
has a proven record of reducing the
costs of asset ownership and providing
life-long intelligence through highly
effective monitoring, thereby reducing
incidents and extending asset life.”
The annual awards ceremony aims to
recognise pipeline technology innovation
processes in phases such as research
laboratory, field applications, technology
incubators, and development of markets
for new products, and is open to all
companies.
OptaSense – UK
Website:
OptaSense executive director
Magnus McEwen-King
Upgraded double blade
flying shear from Italy
WHEN Adda Fer designed its first
double-bladed flying shear ten years ago
the idea was to market a machine that
would use the best available technology,
meeting the demand of pipe producers
for a shear that cut slowly with extreme
accuracy, no burr on the cut, high
performance, versatility and ease of use.
Several upgrades have been applied
to the flying shear created by Adda
Fer that have allowed the company
to optimise the initial design with
significant modifications in all its parts,
using components that keep up with
technological evolution.
The current configuration of the
double-blade flying shear DB10 has
cutting heads mounted on two columns
with brushless motors on the X and Y
axes, independently controlled. This
allows any type of profile (round, square,
rectangle and irregular shapes) to be cut.
A clamp arrangement very close to the
cutting area ensures closure of the tube,
which minimises deformation. Blade AC
motors with vector control ensure the
optimum torque under any condition, and
are capable of cutting common to high-
resistance steel grades with HSS blades
or TCT inserts.
The easy-to-use control software
allows optimisation of parameters and
cutting paths, and is also able to capture
all useful working data.
Siemens Sinamics drives are mounted
on the flying cut-off, and the control logic
of the board is managed by Simotion with
Profinet cabling.
The software is developed on two
levels: the first, PLC, is made by the
tool Simotion Scout, while the second,
the supervisor’s touchscreen, is made
with the new development environment
Siemens Simatic TIA WinCC Comfort.
The operator’s interface graphic pages
are designed to allow users a rapid
takeover of the machine after start-up.
Interactive diagnostics allow the operator
to immediately identify the cause of
any operational stop or anomaly of the
system. The alarm/failure signals follow
a logical sequence, avoiding irregular
indications. The alarms are also saved
in the database for diagnostics and
maintenance.
AddaFer will show the latest flying
cut-off DB10 at Tube Düsseldorf 2016 –
Stand 6D02.
Meccanica Adda Fer Srl – Italy
Fax: +39 035 4946564
Email:
Website: