The effects of bad pigging on your pipeline

It’s very important that the vast majority of pipelines – no matter how long, short, simple or complex they may be – receive regular pigging and inspection to ensure that they are fully operational and fully efficient at safely transporting product to the end user.  Pigging has caught on as the most efficient and cost-effective method of ensuring that piping is fully inspected and rendered clear from any harmful debris or nuisance blockages – and to do so regularly most certainly keeps your pipe networks operating as they should be – with no risk to the overall running of your day-to-day business.  However, some pigging practices may not get the results you are looking for – and if your pipeline hasn’t been pigged in a while, if at all, it’s high time you considered a pigging programme to clean your pipeline to optimise operating conditions.

The importance of cleaning

Pipelines that regularly experience wax build up or heavy fluid that can cause blockage and debris will often be the trickiest to try and inspect via pigging.  Debris, dirt and other matter that could impact upon the quality of your inspection score – as well as the quality of any future pigging – and it is therefore important that an advanced clean is implemented at all times if your pipeline has not been pigged on a regular basis.  Even better – if your pipeline has been subject to a particularly poor pigging regime in recent history, or if you have left debris and wax to scale up over time, there has never been a better opportunity for you to move towards effective pigging that does the business on a one-time basis.

Good pigging practices will allow you and anyone in charge of the prospective pig to analyse exactly what you’re working with – meaning that the tell-tale signs of bad pigging or poor upkeep can largely be picked out and, in most cases, completely eradicated.  It’s always important to understand quite what an effect bad or infrequent pigging can have upon your pipeline – it not only drives down the quality of your pipe network for product to flow through freely in future, but it also impacts on how well future pigs are likely to perform.  This, obviously, also goes without saying that the impact upon your day-to-day business could be seriously knocked by a blocked or inefficient pipe system.

The benefits of good pigging

Pigtek insist upon comprehensive pipeline details before all pigging work we carry out – so that we may be able to ascertain the quality of your pipe network before sending down any bespoke models to eradicate any damage caused.  Unique pigs designed and built to fit your pipelines are essential – and without a good idea of what the damage looks like ahead of getting started, you will run the risk of wasting a good pig – and, time and revenue for your firm.

Call Pigtek Ltd today on +44 (0) 1246 850220 or email us with an extended query if your pipeline is in need of a little TLC – and we will inspect and build the bespoke pigs your company needs to continue delivering as and when your customers need you the most.