Nicholas Duggan, Chief Technology Officer, The Carto Group, UK, explains how GNSS improves the speed of locating buried assets. Every year thousands of new gas pipelines are installed, and field engineers must record data on the pipeline components including the pipe segments, connections, asset type, pressure tolerance and personnel. Details down to individual welds are captured and entered into a geographic information system (GIS) database to support utility operations and asset management. In many cases, the data must be recorded before a pipeline is buried. Utilities use the data to identify pipes in the field with potential problems. Global navigation satellite system (GNSS) technology has become the go-to for collecting this data quickly, easily, and accurately. Keeping a database of buried assets is a crucial element for renewing, maintaining, and locating pipelines. Collecting the data requires speed and the ability to capture locations in difficult conditions. The data supports utility operations and asset management and can be shared with other utilities and public agencies when necessary. Utilities can utilise the collected data to find pipe in the field quickly to identify potential problems efficiently.
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