The Pressure Pipe Inspection Company (PPIC) is a supplier of large-diameter water and wastewater pipeline condition assessment and leak-detection services in

Mississauga, Ontario Mississauga ( ), historically known as Toronto Township, is a city in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is situated on the shores of Lake Ontario in the Regional Municipality of Peel, adjoining the western border of Toronto. With a popul ...

. It specializes in identifying damaged pipeline sections to protect infrastructure investment, locate leaks, reduce risk and ensure environmental compliance. Its services include: :* Prestressed Concrete Cylinder Pipe (PCCP) condition assessment :* Metallic pipe condition assessment :* Plastic and PVC pipe condition assessment :* Leak detection :* New pipeline commissioning :* Pipeline locating and mapping :* Wastewater force main condition assessment

History

The Pressure Pipe Inspection Company was established by Dr. Brian Mergelas Founder and CEO of PPIC
{{webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141205035358/http://sowc.ca/node/189 , date=2014-12-05 in 1997 after he received his

Ph.D A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, Ph.D., or DPhil; Latin: or ') is the most common Academic degree, degree at the highest academic level awarded following a course of study. PhDs are awarded for programs across the whole breadth of academic fields ...

. in physics at Queen's University in Kingston,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

. During his time at the university, he studied under Professor David Atherton, who would help steer Mergelas toward his future career. In the late 1980s, Atherton had been approached by the water sector to examine some challenges with large diameter pre-stressed pipe rupturing, along with corrosion on the pre-stressing wires. Atherton was asked to act as an international expert in pipeline inspection technology to determine if something could be done to inspect the distressed water pipe. From there, Atherton began research and developed a new technology called Remote Field Transformer Coupling (RFTC). RFTC offered water supply system managers information on the location, distribution and number of wire breaks in their pipeline infrastructure. While Mergelas was working on his degree, he studied

technologies Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, science, ...

pertaining to the oil and gas sector and performed pipeline inspection work for oil and gas transmission pipelines. However, Mergelas eventually shifted his interests to water pipeline inspection after he became intrigued by the opportunities the

industry Industry may refer to: Economics * Industry (economics), a generally categorized branch of economic activity * Industry (manufacturing), a specific branch of economic activity, typically in factories with machinery * The wider industrial sector ...

and Atherton's RFTC

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, science, ...

presented. With RFTC as a base, Mergelas began PPIC in 1997 as a means to help utilities assess the condition of their infrastructure in hopes to preserve pipelines, save money and retain valuable water resources.

Acquisition by Pure Technologies

On August 13, 2010, Pure Technologies Ltd. (“Pure”) (TSX:PUR) announced that it had concluded the purchase of The Pressure Pipe Inspection Company ("PPIC") for up to CAD$34.9 million in cash and common stock of Pure. Pure Technologies Ltd. is an international asset management technology and services company which has developed patented technologies for inspection, monitoring and management of critical infrastructure. On November 1, 2018, Pure Technologies Ltd. (“Pure”) (TSX:PUR) announced that it had concluded a sale of the company to

Xylem Inc. Xylem Inc. is a large American water technology provider, in public utility, residential, commercial, agricultural and industrial settings. The company does business in more than 150 countries. Launched in 2011 as the spinoff of the water-relat ...

for CAD $9.00 per share in cash, representing an enterprise value of CAD$509 million, or USD$397 million.

References

About the Pressure Pipe Inspection Company
. Pressure Pipe Inspection Company.
History of the Pressure Pipe Inspection Company
. Pressure Pipe Inspection Company.
Pure Closes Acquisition of PPIC
. Pure Technologies Ltd.
Xylem completes acquisition of Pure Technologies
. Xylem Inc. Companies based in Mississauga Companies established in 1997