2016 – A Year of Progress
As we move forward in 2017, the CPCL team reflected on some of our achievements in 2016 and, given the wide range of projects on which we’ve been working, we decided to share some highlights with you.
Our Field Services team has grown considerably, with five new members of staff added in the last 12 months. Large multi-year contracts were secured with major utility companies, establishing a healthy base for our maintenance and monitoring activities in the UK. The team also worked closely with the Environment Agency to inspect and maintain the CP system on the Thames Barrier lock gates in London. And beyond these shores the team has had a busy year, one of the highlights being a DCVG survey of a 209km pipeline in Madagascar, which took the intrepid technicians over mountain and jungle terrains!
The company’s commitment to staff training and development continued in 2016. Five of our team gained ICorr Level 1 CP Technician accreditation, and three achieved ICorr Level 2 CP Engineer certification. Our Senior CP Engineer Dan Marshall was also recertified at ICorr Level 3. CPCL is therefore well equipped to deal with the increasing demand from industry that only certified engineers should undertake maintenance work on critical assets in the oil and gas sector. And as we gain new customers and enter new markets, our engineers have also undertaken customer specific training. CP Engineer Alessandro Bonetti completed offshore training for windfarms, an important market that we are supplying with both cathodic protection and marine anti fouling systems. He joins two other engineers certified for offshore work.
Our Transformer Rectifier department recorded some significant achievements during the year. The new Switch Mode Power Supply was launched and has sold in large quantities. Customers looking for an economical power supply for low power applications have chosen this for projects large and small, new and upgrades, ranging from CP in concrete to anti-fouling systems. Another first for the company was the manufacture of power supplies for the electro chlorination industry. These large power supplies used pressurized air to maintain a safe environment inside the TR, allowing them to be certified for use in hazardous areas. The company also produced its largest transformer rectifier to date, a 1000A unit which is being used to protect the steel piling on a new loading dock in the UK. A consistent theme throughout the year was the increasing demand for Remote Monitoring and Control systems. CPCL’s in house software capability and ‘RMCS ready’ TR design means that this is a low cost option when purchasing a TR. Customers are increasingly choosing this as a way of reducing their maintenance costs.
The sales department has also had a busy year and has grown accordingly. With new markets being explored and serviced, visits have taken the sales team to distant destinations such as Japan, South Korea, Indonesia and Australia, with the benefits of this investment quickly becoming apparent. And of course our Middle East team, based in Dubai, has found continued success with our CP design and material supply for many steel in concrete projects.
Cathodic Protection Co Ltd invests in its people, products and service. In doing so the company continues to grow, and with a successful year behind us we look forward to offering a first class service to our customers in 2017.