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GPA
eBrief - October 2007
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preferring a hardcopy may download one here
Below is an outline of eBrief
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complete text of articles is provided in the next section
Headlines
GPA Board says it's time to step
up
Action Items
- A time for recognition - GPA Awards Program accepting
nominations
- Venezuelan Gas Processors Association announces its Call for
Papers
Strategic Planning
- Technical Committee re-structuring updates
- GPA places an emphasis on education
Tech Talk
- Get involved
- Technical publications for purchase
- Errata available for 2177-03
- Engineering Data Book Registration
Job Listings on the GPA/GPSA Career
Center
Reminders & Upcoming
Events
- Please return 2008 Cooperative Research Program
ballots today
- Sporting Clays sponsorship opportunities are still available
for the 2008 GPA Annual Convention
- Convention pre-registration to arrive in December
GPA Board says it's time
to step up
As many of you are aware, the Legislative and Regulatory Affairs
Committee (LARAC) Strategic Task Force submitted a formal recommendation
to the GPA Board of Directors that GPA take a more visible and proactive
role in its efforts to support the ever-changing midstream industry.
The primary actions required within the recommendations were: enhanced
federal advocacy representation, more focused grassroots advocacy
in the seven state midstream heartland (TX, OK, CO, KS, NM, WY,
LA) and the addition of a full time staff person dedicated entirely
to legislative, regulatory and safety issues.
Since the approval of the new position at the June
board meeting, GPA offered to fund the additional staff person by
re-directing current resources. At the October board meeting, the
Executive & Finance Committees recommended that GPA ballot our
members to increase annual dues in order to sustain the new staff
function and achieve the stepped-up state and federal advocacy initiatives.
The motion was unanimously carried to ballot GPA members for a dues
increase in order to meet those goals.
Over its 86-year history, GPA has been successful
in managing industry affairs with a small professional staff and
a corps of dedicated volunteers from member companies serving on
committees. But with today's more diverse membership that transcends
every boundary of the midstream industry and regulatory matters
that change hourly instead of monthly, now is the time to properly
finance the premier gatekeeper for our industry - GPA.
To approve a dues increase of any kind, it must
ultimately be voted on by GPA membership through a formal ballot
process. GPA members will receive a ballot package with additional
details next month.
As an association, we have to pull together to make
this successful. We appreciate your support and encourage you to
contact us with questions.
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ACTION ITEMS
A time for recognition - GPA Awards Program
The GPA Awards Program is one of the most visible means by which
the association meets an obligation "to more fully develop
the gas producing and processing industry." These awards are
also tangible, public evidence of appreciation by the industry,
the association and industry colleagues to those individuals who
have contributed significantly to the advancement and development
of the light hydrocarbons industry.
This is an invitation for you to submit nominations
for the Awards that will be presented at the March 2008 GPA convention.
Nominations for any award category may be submitted at any time
by anyone associated with the gas processing industry. However,
to assure consideration for next year's presentation, nominations
should be received no later than Nov. 15. For additional information,
including past recipients, go to http://gasprocessors.com/awards.html.
The nomination should be submitted to Johnny Dreyer
and must contain the nominee's biographical information and a detailed
summary of the achievements and/or industry contributions appropriate
for the particular award category:
- Hanlon - is the most prestigious recognition
of GPA and highest honor of the gas processing industry. It is
one of the ranking awards of the petroleum industry.
- Katz - recognizes
outstanding accomplishments in gas processing research and technology
and for excellence in engineering education.
- Citation for Service - awards individuals
who have made significant contributions to the advancement of
the gas processing industry, usually through the GPA organization
or its committees.
- Recognition - honors those whose careers
include a long association with the gas processing industry whose
relationships have been marked by the integrity and cooperative
spirit that is characteristic of the gas processing fraternity.
- Committee Leader of the Year - recognizes
outstanding leadership of a GPA committee or subcommittee, which
has led to the advancement of the gas processing industry during
the previous year.
- Committee Volunteer of the Year - honors
outstanding committee participation and significant contributions
to the advancement of the gas processing industry during the previous
year.
Venezuelan Gas Processors Association announces its Call For Papers
The Venezuelan Gas Processors Association (AVPG)
announces its Call for Papers for the "XVIII International
Gas Convention" to be held in Caracas in May 2008. Please
submit a 300-word abstract, including title and author(s) by Nov.
30, 2007. Complete company or institution name, mailing address
and e-mail address, phone and fax numbers should be included with
the abstracts. Final papers selection will be made by Jan. 31, 2008,
and final manuscripts and presentations will be due by Feb. 28,
2008.
Abstracts and other information should be directed
to Carlos Camera, AVPG
technical vice president and technical committee leader.
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STRATEGIC PLANNING
Technical Committee re-structuring updates
The LNG technical section has effectively fulfilled the task for
which it was created and, as a result, will be eliminated upon the
Technical Committee Restructure Task Force's recommendation. All
future LNG issues will be handled by remaining technical sections
or on an ad-hoc basis.
The task force is also reviewing the Facilities
Design, Operations & Maintenance and Product Specifications
sections (also known as Section A, M and C, respectively) with a
mission of providing better focus and stimulating more participation.
These sections have the potential to add tremendous value to GPA,
and the key to tapping into this value is plain and simple: we need
to attract more participation.
The Analysis and Test Methods, Product Measurement
and Handling and Technical Data Development sections (Sections B,
H and F, respectively) have good direction and well-defined, maintained
deliverables, and meetings are generally well attended. These sections
will, for the most part, continue with little change.
GPA invites every member to visit our Web site,
choose a technical section that best suits your expertise and attend
that section's meeting. Without strong representation throughout
the Technical Committee from all member companies, GPA cannot truly
provide adequate value.
GPA places an emphasis on education
The Education Initiative Task Force was created to enhance the recruitment
and development of new talent that we all need to sustain current
business and manage future growth. The task force has focused on
three distinct areas with respect to education: universities, technical
schools and young professionals' training.
- Spreading the good word about GPA at universities
This group has been tasked with the challenge of keeping engineering
students and the like apprised of midstream energy opportunities.
The group first set out to create a means of communication with
students. Henry Galpin, Pioneer Natural Resources, presented the
team with a PowerPoint presentation he's used for several years
to accomplish the same task. Henry gave an online walk-through
of the presentation to GPA volunteers interested in speaking to
colleges and universities about the industry. If you have an interest
in presenting to your alma mater, contact Kenny
Wheat.
- GPA reaches out to technical schools
Technical schools provide an enormous amount of talent to the
industry and GPA member companies, so this subcommittee has set
out to enhance and broaden the relationships between GPA and technical
schools. A program was developed by EnCana and partners to accomplish
similar goals, and this group has discussed developing a partnership
with that program.
- "With age comes wisdom," and GPA
shares it with young professionals
This group is working on finding new ways to provide training
and education to the existing young professionals workforce (ages
25-40) in the midstream industry. The subcommittee plans to coordinate
and host various GPA-certified educational programs to help young
professionals gain the industry knowledge needed to advance their
careers. Look for information about an exciting new opportunity
geared toward young professionals at the 87th GPA Annual Convention.
The session will provide a great opportunity for those in the
25-40 age range to gain valuable knowledge. The convention brochure
should arrive in early December.
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TECH TALK
Get involved
In recent years, member company participation for GPA's Technical
Committee and its sections has dramatically declined. Without proper
representation from member companies, only a handful of individuals
have been carrying the load of an extremely important facet of GPA.
All companies benefit from this committee's work, and we'd like
to take this opportunity to ask that you consider serving on one
of the committee's technical sections. Read below to learn more
about recent technical section activities, and visit the GPA
Web site for further information. You may also call or e-mail
Kenny Wheat, associate director of technical services, to learn
about the commitment and benefits of getting involved in a technical
section: (918) 493-3872.
Technical sections
For more information on items below, contact Kenny
Wheat.
Section A - Facilities Design
- New online forum - The Facilities Design section
recently created a new online forum allowing members to ask questions
and share facilities design-related information with industry
peers. At this time, the forum is open to committee members only
but will be open to all GPA members soon.
- New facilities equipment design guidelines -
The section is in the process of creating facilities equipment
suggested guidelines as a helpful "getting started"
reference for member companies.
Section B - Analysis and Test Methods
- GPA's Annual School of Gas Chromatography - This
section is responsible for organizing the popular sell-out school
for 34 years. The 35th annual School of Gas Chromatography will
be held Aug. 4-8, 2008, at The University of Tulsa, and it's not
too late to get involved. Look for registration information on
the GPA Web site in December.
Section C - Product Specifications
- GPA fractionation grade specifications - The
ballot for the long-awaited fractionation grade specifications
recently passed and will be published and available for purchase
in the very near future. Read more.
- Possibility of future Y-Grade specifications
- The Product Specifications section is investigating the need
for Y-Grade specifications in the industry. A subcommittee has
been formed, and a matrix is being developed. If it's determined
that the need for these specifications exists, development will
begin soon after.
Section F - Technical Data Development
Section H - Product Measurement and Handling
- GPA 2172 revision - The section's revision of
GPA 2172: Method for Calculation of Gross Heating Value, Relative
Density and Compressibility of Natural Gas Mixtures from Compositional
Analysis was balloted earlier this year and unanimously approved
with comments. The section is addressing those comments and will
have revisions ready to publish soon.
Section M - Operations and Maintenance (O&M)
- Roundtable discussion regarding O&M issues
- In order to better define its role within the industry, the
section will host a roundtable discussion at next year's GPA Annual
Convention. This format will enable discussion from industry peers
about the most important issues facing the industry.
Technical publications available for purchase
- TP-15: A Simplified Vapor Pressure Correlation
for Commercial NGLs
TP-15's latest revision addresses errors of equations 1, 2 and
3 of the publication and includes minor formatting changes. The
revision has been approved and implemented into API MPMS Chapter
11.2.5 and ASTM's equivalent Technical Publication.
- TP-27: Temperature Correction for the Volume
of NGL and LPG
TP-27 is an extension of GPA Technical Publication TP-25 (1998)
to include SI (metric) units. The predecessor of this Technical
Publication, TP-25, was developed to unify temperature correction
factors used in custody transfer of NGLs and LPGs but was limited
to a 60°F relative density range of .3500 to .6880 and did
not include SI unit correction factors. TP-27 was developed to
include the correction factors for base temperatures of 15°C
and 20°C with density ranges of 351.7 to 687.8 kg/m and 331.7
to 683.6kg/m respectively. All text from TP-25 as approved, however,
is included without technical change, making TP-25 still viable
for English unit applications.
Successfully balloted - GPA Fractionator Product
Specifications
The majority of industry specifications were surveyed to find common
characteristics in order to establish the six new Fractionation
Grade Specifications: ethane, ethane/propane mix, propane, iso-butane,
natural butane and natural gasoline. Existing GPA specifications
will not be eliminated. The approved specifications will be published
and available for purchase in the near future.
Now being balloted - GPA 2145-08: Table of Physical
Constants for Hydrocarbons and Other Compounds of Interest to the
Natural Gas Industry
GPA 2145 is updated about every five years with the assistance of
the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Numerous
changes to the values have been updated to provide full thermodynamic
consistency among all properties. This was accomplished through
consistent use of properties derived with the equations of state
underlying the NIST REFPROP database. Properties derived with these
equations of state are inherently thermodynamically consistent.
The REFPROP database is painstakingly maintained and updated by
professional staff members at NIST and Dr. Eric Lemmon. With the
release of these updates, GPA and NIST (REFPROP/TRC) values would
be in accord with the American Petroleum Institute and the Design
Institute for Physical Property Data.
Errata available for 2177-03
It was brought to GPA's attention that GPA 2177-03 contained a typographical
error. Page seven of the document contains a table showing a comparison
of concentration to repeatability. It should read "concentration
to reproducibility." Please check the errata link located on
the GPA home page on occasion
to make sure your book has the latest information.
Engineering Data Book Registration
We want to help you ensure that your Engineering Data Book is up
to date, but sometimes we receive registration cards that are illegible
or incomplete, which makes it difficult for GPA to send errata notices.
Please check the errata link located on the GPA
home page on occasion to make sure your book has the latest
information.
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Job listings on the GPA/GPSA
Career Center
Additional information on these positions is available at http://careers.gasprocessors.com
Applications
Engineer - Clark-Reliance Corporation
Chemical
Process Engineers - Washington Group International
Gas
Midstream Consultant - R.W. Beck Inc.
Gasification
Engineer - URS Corporation
Gasification
Project Manager - URS Corporation
Pipeline
Engineer - URS Corporation
Project
Manager, Pipeline - URS Corporation
Sales
Manager, Natural Gas Production Equipment - Arrow Engine Co.
Senior
Engineers - Gas Technology Institute
Senior
Engineer II - DCP Midstream
Senior
Pipeline Designers - URS Corporation
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REMINDERS & UPCOMING
EVENTS
2008 Cooperative Research Program Reminder
Ballots for the 2008 Cooperative Research Program were distributed
to official representatives of production-based members in mid-September.
As a reminder, please return your executed ballot to the GPA office
by Oct. 31. It is very important that each company return their
ballot - remember an unreturned ballot is a negative note on the
entire program!
If you are a non-production based member of GPA
or GPSA and would like to support the 2008 research program through
a commitment, contact Kenny Wheat.
Sporting Clays Sponsorships
Sporting clays events have become popular venues for networking
and client entertainment. Since the first Annual Convention clay
shoot was held two years ago, this event has continued to draw an
even larger number of participants and spectators, year by year.
The third consecutive Convention shoot will be held on Sunday, March
2, 2008, and GPA is offering a number of sponsorship opportunities
ranging from $50-$600. For more information, contact Kenny Wheat.
Upcoming Events
November
6 - GPAC/PJVA Conference (Full Day), Westin, Calgary
8 - North Texas GPA Annual Meeting, Ellison Miles Geotechnology
Institute, Brookhaven College, Dallas, Texas
8 - Rocky Mountain GPA Chapter Meeting
14 - Houston GPA Monthly Luncheon with Scholarship Awards Announced
22 - Europe GPA Conference, London, United Kingdom
27 - GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) Chapter Executive Committee
Meeting, Bahrain
28 - GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council) Chapter 2nd Specialized Seminar,
Bahrain
December
4 - Midcontinent GPA Christmas Dinner, The Beacon Club, Oklahoma
City, Okla.
5 - GPAC Q4 Meeting (half-day), Metropolitan Centre, Calgary, Canada
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