Even if your Alberta pipeline operation is just ten years old, your installation has seen thousands of days of use. While your company might be deploying the very best maintenance protocols, it might be time to look at upgrading, renovation, or replacement to bring operations up to date.
Why?
Several reasons.
In just ten years, new materials and technologies have become available to not only extend the life of pipelines, but that can increase capacities without compromising safety. This isn’t the Wild West, and understanding why regulation exists, then getting out in front of it is becoming the way for small energy companies to compete.
Size Matters
Unlike the big players, smaller energy companies have a size more suited to agility and flexibility. Instituting changes is not a titanic task requiring all hands on deck, but a matter of memos, training, and meetings. Working with a contractor for your upgrades and new construction is a matter that is more personal than the multinational bidding process. If you start now, your upgrades and construction could be ready to go by spring, then up and fully on-line by autumn.
Fat and Sassy vs. Lean and Mean
During the boom, companies spent their money like it was going to go out of style tomorrow. As everyone knowns, the booms nevr last – but nobody expected the bust to come so fast. The best bet for choosing a contractor is transparency and a track record of delivering on-time and in-budget projects. Remember that going with the low bid doesn’t always guarantee that it’s going to stay low cost. Overruns, errors, and delays can pad out that bare-bones bill to fat-and-sassy status. Work with the best in the field, and find out how much can be saved by doing it right the first time.
