NGA Fall Conference PHMSA s New Construction Inspection Requirements

Transcription

1 NGA Fall Conference PHMSA s New Construction Inspection Requirements Thursday, October 8 3:30-4:30 Mel Ciulla, Unitil

2 Amendment to 49 CFR PHMSA has delayed, indefinitely, the effective date of the amendment to 49 CFR (pertaining to construction inspection). PHMSA will publish a document in the Federal Register announcing a new effective date. The rule as it was written requires an independent inspection of construction tasks (no selfinspection). Since the issuance of the final rule, AGA has lobbied PHMSA to delay the rule, create a task group to address the concerns voiced by industry and state regulators, and move construction inspection oversight forward in a reasonable fashion.

3 Company Profile # of Gas Metered Customers = 77,000 # of Electric Customers = 100,500 Miles of Main = 1,350 Number of Services = 54,259 Miles of Transmission = 85 Number of Employees = 122 (gas) 400 total (gas, electric, central services

4 Agenda Challenges Highlights in Todays Presentation Electronic O&M Contractor Oversight/Training Inspector Training Inspection Process Audits Quality Management

5 Challenges In December 2008 Unitil acquired Northern Utilities. Customer base went from 15,000 to 77,000 overnight. Unitil began an accelerated main replacement program in both Northern Utility states. The amount of contractor crews performing work for Unitil doubled Unitil required a robust QA/QC program for contractor/company oversight Unitil required a new O&M in a short amount of time to incorporate all of the changes resulting from the acquisition.

6 Highlights Unitil electronic O&M procedures Contractor Oversight/Training Operation Qualification Management Expectations GPS Mapping Overview of Inspector Training Construction / Welding / System MAOP Construction Inspection Process Forms / 2015 Results / Remediation's Construction Audits Forms / Audit Process / Results

7 Quality Management Contractor Oversight Quality Management Quality Assurance Quality Control Procedural Manuals Training & Contractor Orientation Construction Inspections Construction Audits

8 Quality Management Starts with Quality Assurance Procedural Manuals Electronic field access, tied to OQ & AOC s Training & OQ Contractors are Required OQ through the NGA Regional Plan, (3) Day Contractor Orientation. Daily Tailboards Includes an O&M Procedure review and OQ Covered task and AOC Review.

9 Unitil O & M Manual

10 Contractor Training 2015

11 Operator Qualification Management

12 Unitil Operator Qualification Covered Tasks Tip Card

13 Unitil Operator Qualification Covered Tasks AOC's Tip Card

14 Tailboard Conference Plan Gas Daily

15 Tailboard Conference Plan Gas Weekly

16 Unitil/ Contractor Expectations GPS Mapping Unitil requires GPS observations to be captured at approximately 50 foot intervals along the main and at strategic locations. These strategic locations include tie ins, endpoints, service tees, all valves, butt fusion joints, welds, active and repaired leaks, test stations, points of inflection, and mechanical fittings. GPS data collection shall be recorded while any existing facility is exposed and visible to the GPS collector. GPS data collections equipment requires sub foot accuracy to ensure professional grade precision

17 INSPECTOR TRAINING 2015 Unitil MA / ME / NH

18 Quality Control Construction Inspectors Construction Inspectors Part of the construction group, Fully Operator Qualified, Mandatory Annual Training, Field Experience. Span of Control 1 to 4 Ratio (maximum), Included in project planning, also provides oversight and direction. Daily Inspections Electronic and tied to a daily work sheet, required remediation, monthly roll up reports to key Contractor & Company personnel.

19 Expectations System MAOP Validation

20 QA-QC UPC Construction Inspections (Deficiencies Found Remediated) 2015

21 Quality Control Welding Inspectors

22 Validate Welder Certifications

23 Welder Qualification Reports

24 Weld Map

25 Weld Map

26 NDT Report

27 Quality Control Compliance Audits Construction Auditors Part of the compliance group (independent), Fully Operator Qualified, Mandatory Annual Training, Field Experience. Span of Control (2) full time auditors cover (35) contractor crews & 6 to 10 Company crews. Also audit other O&M activities. Inspections Target goal of (2) audits per month for each contractor crew. Audit Checklist & Reporting Includes O&M Procedures, OQ Covered Tasks, Associated AOC s, Construction Activity, Safety (i.e. PPE, Traffic etc.)

28 2013/2014 Compliance Audits All Areas

29 2013/2014 Compliance Audits All Areas

30 New/Renewal Main Work Audit

31 New/Renewal Service Work Audit

32 Completed Service Inspections Audit

33 All Compliance Audits Are Forwarded To The Area Manager, Construction Supervisor, Distribution Supervisor, Director of Gas Operations and the Contractor Management Staff

34 Root Cause To Remediation Report Compliance Inspections All Areas

35 We Do Realize That We Will Never Be Perfect, But The Real Measure Is In How We Address Situations When They Arise - Unitil

36 AGA Contractor Oversight Round Table Minneapolis Minnesota Find Us Online Ed Connors Manager, Gas Compliance ?trk=tyah

37 Questions Late 1800's gas meter made by the D. McDonald & Co. in Albany NY. The porcelain pressure gauge was made by the American Meter Company. Measures 12.5" high & 8.5" in diameter. The meter is 3.5" in diameter 10 lbs