Pipeline pigging specialist iNPIPE Products is targeting international growth with the launch of its new non-intrusive Mag-TRAX™ Magnetic Pig Signaller.
An evaluation by an oil and gas company in South America has already led to an initial order for multiple units.
Developed and manufactured by iNPIPE at its North Yorkshire headquarters, Mag-TRAX enables operators to detect and monitor the passage of pigs without cutting into or welding equipment onto pipelines.
Instead, the signaller is clamped to the pipe externally and detects the magnetic field generated by a suitably equipped pig as it passes. It can be quickly installed, removed, and repositioned, making it particularly suited to contractors moving between pipeline projects.
The technology can be used across the pipeline sector, including liquid and gas pipeline applications, where pigs are routinely used for cleaning, maintenance, and inspection. iNPIPE also operates a service centre in Aberdeen supporting customers across a range of sectors.
Mag-TRAX was launched following extensive development and trials at the company’s Brompton-on-Swale facility.
Managing Director Simon Bell said: “Mechanical pig signallers have been part of the industry for decades and our intrusive signallers continue to be widely used and specified because they’re proven, reliable and effective.
“Some projects require a signaller that operators or contractors can install quickly, without welding or penetrating the pipeline.
“Mag-TRAX offers that flexibility, while its digital capabilities provide operators with precise data. It can self-calibrate and remotely triggered, making it particularly useful where information needs to be fed back to a control room, as well as monitored directly in the field.
“The initial response has been extremely encouraging. Our customers are impressed with its performance and simplicity and are ordering multiple units, which gives us real confidence in its international potential, particularly as iNPIPE can supply both intrusive and non-intrusive systems together with the cleaning tools, giving customers the convenience of sourcing these products from one proven supplier.”
Available as a portable battery-powered unit or permanent 24V DC version, the bidirectional Mag-TRAX can store up to 99 time-stamped events of passage, with data viewed on its LCD display, downloaded to a PC, or transmitted to a SCADA control system.
Suitable for pipelines from two to 72 in. in diameter, it uses digital signal processing to distinguish a passing pig from background interference and can detect through carbon steel, stainless steel, and specialist alloys up to 60mm thick.
When multiple units are integrated with iNPIPE’s Phoenix™ Debris Mapping Tool, operators can monitor its progress and ensure it is travelling at the optimum speed.
The new technology complements iNPIPE’s established intrusive pig signallers, which are welded to pipelines and use a mechanical trigger activated as a pig passes. Together, they form part of the company’s wider range of pipeline pigging, maintenance, isolation, and testing equipment supplied to customers worldwide.
