November 2010 Vol. 237 No. 11

Business Meetings & Events

NAPCA Summer Workshop Exceeds 135 Attendees

A near record enrollment exceeding 135 was announced at the Hilton Houston Post Oak Hotel on Aug. 19 at the summer workshop conducted by the National Association of Pipe Coating Applicators (NAPCA). The association, established in 1965, addresses the mutual concerns of the plant-applied line pipe coating industry and those firms that do business with the pipe coaters.

The keynote speaker was Don Briggs, president of the Louisiana Oil & Gas Association, whose topic was, “The Projected Effects of the BP Issue on the Gulf Coast and Gulf Drilling.” He put grim numbers behind the multitude of anecdotes concerning what an extreme effect the administration’s deepwater drilling moratorium has had on the Louisiana and Gulf Coast economies with the long-term potential for further damage to the industry.

The program kicked off with welcoming remarks by Merry Brumbaugh, NAPCA president and vice president of tubular products for L.B. Foster Company, Pittsburgh, PA. She then introduced NAPCA Managing Director Merritt B. Chastain, III, who saluted the sponsors of the many events conducted earlier this year during the association’s spring convention. He also listed recent additions to the membership rolls of the association and announced the death of NAPCA Hall of Fame member Stephen O. Carlson of Commercial Resins Company, Henderson, CO, after a sudden illness.

Chastain then turned the lectern over to Workshop Chairman Don Barder, president and COO, Liberty Coating Co., LLC, Morrisville, PA. Barder introduced Briggs whose presentation on the drilling moratorium was followed by a presentation from Kenneth Lee of the Houston office of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) of the U.S. Department of Transportation. In his presentation, “Line Pipe and Pipeline Integrity Specifications and Requirements,” he examined the work quality and operator qualification issues that have arisen recently during North American pipeline construction projects.

Next was a tightly focused discussion by Parashar (Perry) Sheth, manager of codes and standards, National Grid, Hicksville, NY, “Pipe Stenciling and Traceability.”

The morning session concluded with a blue ribbon contractor panel examining “Pipeline Contractor’s Opinion on Receipt of Coated Pipe.” This panel was moderated by Joel Chermak, general manager, Midwest Pipe Coating, Inc., Schererville, IN. The panelists included Mett Carroll, vice president, Pipe Line Constructors, L.L.C., Houston; Robert Bell, vice president, Price Gregory International, Inc., Houston; Harry New, vice president-U.S. Construction, Willbros USA, Inc., Houston; and Ralph Pendarvis, president, Associated Pipe Line Contractors, Inc., Houston.

After the lunch break, the coating members, the line pipe manufacturer associate members and pipe distributor association members had a choice of two workshops. One workshop featured “OSHA Regulation Update on Powder Coating Safety-Explosion Prevention and Fire Suppression Systems,” presented by Timothy Myers, Ph.D., P.E., principal engineer, Exponent, Inc., Natick, MA. The other workshop was “Line Pipe Manufacturers’ and Pipe Distributors’ workshop.” It was led by Rusty Fisher, chairman of the Line Pipe Manufacturers Committee and vice president-line pipe sales, Tubular Synergy Group, L.P., Addison, TX. The key speaker was Richard LeDuke, Stupp Corporation, Baton Rouge, LA. His topic was “Current Events of the API 5L Committee Germane to Line Pipe.”