PIPELINE

In era World War II, pipelines were used to feed other modes of transportation such as rail transport or water carriers. Pipelines are limited in the markets they serve and very limited in the commodities they can haul. Pipelines are the only mode with no back-haul. Pipelines also are unidirectional with products that only move in one direction through the line.

          Normally, many pipelines are operates as common carriers. Common carriers account for approximately 90% of all pipelines carries. But now a day, there are some private carriers exist today. Some pipelines are joint ventures among two or more pipelines companies because the pipelines large diameters of pipelines needs the high investments.

    

      Pipelines transport a very limited variety of products. The main commodities hauled by pipeline are oil products, cruel oils and other types of oils such as petroleum, palm oil and so on. The movements for crude oil by using this mode are medium. Crude oil movements average about 800 miles per shipment, and product lines average about 400 miles per movement. For an example, the big companies of edible oil want to produce their product, and then the palm oil will be purchase in bulk and it will be transferred by using the pipeline.

          Besides that, pipelines are using to transfer natural gas, coal and chemicals. Coal

pipelines are frequently called slurry lines because the coal is moved in a crush form in water (one-to one ratio by weight). Once the coal has arrived at the destination, the water will be removed and the coal can be used. The chemicals pipeline has a limited number of transferring the chemicals. There are three types of chemicals that using the specific pipelines which are anhydrous ammonia, which used in fertilizer, propylene which used for manufacturing detergents and ethylene which used for making antifreeze.

         

There are some advantages of using the pipelines modes. A pipelines industry is low rates. It provides low cost service. It has a very good loss and damaged record. Pipelines can provide a warehousing function because their service is slow. Another advantage of pipelines is their dependability. There is no effect by weather conditions and it very rarely has mechanical failures.

         There also has a disadvantage by using the pipeline modes. To build the pipeline it needs very high investment. The pipeline service are slow, it cannot be easily extended to complete door-to-door service. It has limited geographic flexibility or accessibility. Frequently, pipelines depend on rail transport and motor carrier to complete delivery. The uses of pipeline are limited to the selected product. It only provides single direction for delivered the goods.