Pipeline Integrity Specialist

Job Overview

Job Category

Business and Operations Support

Sectors

Education

Environment

Office only

Average Salary

$96,000 to $132,000

About This Career

Nobody likes imagining the worst-case scenario, but that’s exactly the job for a Pipeline Integrity Specialist. With most of the oil and gas industry’s products moving through pipelines, it’s a Pipeline Integrity Specialist’s job to think about all the ways that those pipelines could fail, then find ways to make sure that the worst case never happens.

In the Canadian energy industry, the majority of oil and gas products are moved by pipeline. Preventing pipeline failures is of utmost importance for protecting people and the environment.

Pipeline Integrity Specialists perform various engineering and technical analysis of pipeline systems. They plan, develop and implement pipeline integrity management plans in compliance with the company’s policies and procedures and applicable federal and provincial regulations.

A Pipeline Integrity Specialist typically works within an integrity team and often is required to travel, working with field operators and specialized contractors such as non-destructive testers to oversee integrity inspection programs.

In this occupation activities may include:

Assessing loss of containment threats and developing a pipeline integrity management plan.
Providing timely technical support and analysis necessary to support operational or project execution issues.
Working with operations and engineering to ensure the management of change process is understood and followed with regard to integrity and corrosion mitigation equipment and programs.
Monitoring and reporting on key performance indicators.
Managing, providing oversight and continuously improving pipeline integrity management plans. This may specifically include conducting inline inspections and repairs and chemical inhibition, cathodic protection, depth of cover and geohazard assessments.

Education

A four-year bachelor’s degree in engineering or equivalent technical diploma is typically required

Certifications

Preference may be given to employees who have their non-destructive testing certification by Natural Resources Canada

Additional Requirements

In-depth knowledge of applicable industry Codes, Standards and Regulations related to pipeline integrity (e.g. CSA Z662, NEB’s Onshore Pipeline Regulations and Damage Prevention Regulations) would be considered an asset
Specific health and safety certifications may be required, determined by location of work and company requirements

Pipeline Integrity Specialists need to have knowledge that goes as deep as a safely designed pipeline system. They need to understand industry codes, standards and regulations, along with their company’s unique safety policies and procedures. They also need to understand the engineering of the pipeline itself – how its metal can corrode and how methods like chemical inhibition and cathodic protection can protect it in the long term.

Pipeline Integrity Specialists also need to be constantly learning, assessing the work that’s been done and working to make every subsequent project the best it can be.