Case Study
A 12-inch water intake pipeline with submerged and buried sections required integrity assessment, but conventional pigging was impossible due to the lack of upstream isolation and receiver infrastructure. Intero engineered a tethered bi-directional ultrasonic inline inspection solution, enabling full inspection coverage without excavation, dewatering, or environmental exposure.
The Challenge
The client needed to inspect a critical 12-inch water intake pipeline connected to a centrifugal pump and retention pond. The pipeline included both submerged and buried sections beneath a dike, creating major accessibility challenges. Conventional inspection methods were not viable because the system had no upstream isolation. Any failure between the intake and the pump isolation valve could have caused uncontrolled drainage of the pond, creating environmental and operational risks. In addition, the pipeline had no receiver setup, making standard pigging impossible.
Intero performed a feasibility assessment and developed a tailored tethered ultrasonic inline inspection (UT ILI) method designed specifically for the pipeline’s operational constraints. A temporary launcher was installed at the pump location after pump removal, allowing the inspection tool to be safely deployed into the pipeline through a sealed pack-off system. The tethered, bi-directional inspection tool provided full operational control throughout the process, enabling safe forward deployment and controlled retrieval without requiring downstream access or permanent system modifications.
The inspection was completed successfully with full coverage of the targeted 80-foot pipeline section, including the submerged intake and buried dike crossing. The project was delivered without excavation, dewatering, or environmental impact, while producing high-quality ultrasonic metal loss data for a reliable integrity assessment. After completion, the pipeline system was fully restored without permanent modifications, minimizing downtime and operational disruption.