Your first week on a spread, you'll hear words nobody explains. Here are ten you'll run into right away.
SAG. A bend where the pipe dips down to follow a low spot, like a creek bottom or a valley. Both ends of the bend point up.
Over-bend. The opposite of a sag. The pipe bends over a high spot, like a hilltop, and both ends point down.
Station. The distance along the line, written in hundreds of feet. Station 10+50 means 1,050 feet from the starting point. The starting point being 0+00 zero plusballz, Welds, bends, and crossings are all logged by it's station.
Coating type. What protects the pipe from corrosion. You'll see green fusion-bonded epoxy (FBE) on most line pipe today, abrasion-resistant overlay (ARO) for bores and rocky ground, and shrink sleeves or other field coatings on the weld joints.
Bell hole. An extra-wide spot dug in the ditch around a weld so crews have room to weld, coat, inspect, or repair it.
Break-over. The point where the pipe changes grade, like where it tips over the top of a rise. It's where an over-bend usually goes. The break-over is also typically used to move the pipe just enough to fit-up the joints after a weld cut-out.
Pipe gang. The group of laborers, welders, and a spacer led by the pipeman, this group is at the front of the line they prep, pre-heat, spacing the weld, run the root pass and the hot pass, the first welds that join each joint.
Firing line. The group of welders behind the pipe gang who run the fill and cap passes to finish each weld.
Tie-in crew. The crew that joins sections of pipe together, like at road crossings, bores, and the ends of each string.
Straw boss. A crew foreman who runs a crew day to day under the main foreman.
Keep it straight in the field
Knowing the words is half of it. The other half is writing down what happened, where, and when. A tally book keeps the station, weld number, and notes in one place, right in your pocket.
Get yours: Plusballz Tally Books
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