Designed as a hybrid event, the 17th Pipeline Technology Conference and its exhibition attracted 659 participants from 49 different countries, including delegates from 70 pipeline operators and 53 exhibiting companies.
After two years of ptc Remote, hundreds of industry professionals – representatives of operators, technology and service providers, researchers, public services – were finally able to meet again directly in Berlin. They demonstrated from 7-10 March 2022 latest achievements, developments, and offerings in the industry, thereby consolidating the status of the ptc as one of the most prestigious international meeting places for exchange in the pipeline industry.
The two managing directors of the EITEP Institute, Marian Ritter and Dennis Fandrich opened the event by thanking the chairman of the ptc advisory committee Dirk Strack together with all committee members, the speakers, sponsors, exhibitors and participants who took the opportunity to finally meet again in Berlin.
Reacting to Russia’s attacks on Ukraine, the keynote speech given by Bengt Bergt, member of the Committee for Climate Protection and Energy of the German Bundestag, was dedicated to the topic “Security of Energy Supply in Times of Crisis: Short-Term Measures and Long-Term Implications” and gave insights into the current plans in German energy policy.
The program of the 17th Pipeline Technology Conference was enriched with its panel discussions which covered current challenges of the industry: cyber security, decarbonization, the issues of public perception and the shortage of skilled workers. Another important panel discussion covered the consumer point of view, where specialists from thyssenkrupp, Evonik, Nikola and en2x discussed future perspectives for pipeline-based infrastructures. However, the core of the conference was again the technical sessions with more than 100 different presentations.
Accompanying the conference, as always, was the ptc Exhibition with 53 exhibitors presenting their latest products and developments and inviting people to talk to them. The exhibition hall was the central meeting point for all participants with plenty of opportunities to talk, get to know each other and exchange ideas.
On the first evening of the exhibition, the ptc get-together, the big exhibition party, took place, with some of the exhibitors enriching the event with food and drinks. Furthermore, the GSTT Award for trenchless construction was awarded.
The last evening of the event was, as always, the ptc Dinner Invitation, this year featuring excerpts from the Beatles musical “all you need is love” and a seated dinner for 156 attendees.
Following the integration of NO DIG Berlin into the framework of ptc, more operators of municipal networks have come to Berlin this year to find out about current developments in the field of trenchless technologies.
The participants were very happy that they finally had the opportunity to meet in person again. Richard Price, Integrity Manager at British Pipeline Agency: “A great event and a great venue. This was an interesting and thought-provoking conference and presented a wide range of valuable topics.”
The ptc 2022 was successfully held under strict corona regulations. The organizer, the EITEP Institute in Hanover, hopes that these will no longer be required for the upcoming ptc 2023: The 18th Pipeline Technology Conference and Exhibition will be held in Berlin from May 8-11, 2023.