BusinessRisk

Top 500: Pipeline Safety Regulations Proposed

On Sept. 9, 2010, a 30-in.-dia, Pacific Gas & Electric-owned natural-gas pipeline exploded (above), killing eight people in a residential neighborhood of San Bruno, Calif.

In response, the U.S. Dept. of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) on April 8 issued a notice of proposed rule-making to tighten rules for the inspection and integrity management of gas pipelines. It would create a new category for inspections and maintenance of pipelines and add new mapping and inspection rules.

Click Here to Read Top 500 Design Firms 2016: Most Markets on the Rise

Top 500 Design Firms 2016: Most Markets on the Rise PDF (subscription required)

Many design firms say the steep drop in oil-and-gas prices has hurt some petroleum markets. But firms in the pipeline inspection and environmental markets say there will be a new demand for work due to the proposed PHMSA regulations.

“The proposed PHMSA rule-making for gas transmission could have an immediate impact on pipeline operators as well as utilities,” says Gregory Corso, senior vice president of CHA Consulting (No. 59). He says there will be an immediate need for integrity management expertise and analytics, placing a major demand on the pipeline industry.

This market should grow quickly as pipeline operators and utilities are forced to map and inspect their lines. “We are facing a potential catastrophe every day that these lines are not checked for integrity and repairs are not made. That is why we invested in Willbros—to address this need,” says Chris Vincze, CEO of TRC Cos (No. 30).

Looking for quick answers on construction and engineering topics?
Try Ask ENR, our new smart AI search tool. Ask ENR →

Gary J. Tulacz had been, since 1993, senior editor in charge of ENR's Top Lists, which bring structure to the huge global construction industry through annual surveys and market analysis of its key segments and major players. The array of surveys rank companies, based both in the U.S. and outside, which perform general contracting, specialty contracting, engineering, architecture and environmental services, among other specialties.

The rankings, based on annual revenue from work at home and abroad, are further divided into specific market categories. Click here for descriptions and schedules of ENR Top List surveys and access to information on current and past listed firms.

Gary also created the ENR Top 100 Green Contractors and Design Firms rankings and the ENR quarterly Construction Industry Confidence Index that measures firm executives' market outlook.

This survey data is used by industry firms and other businesses, government agencies and academics also to gauge the health of the global construction market.

A graduate of Fordham College in New York City and the Fordham University School of Law, Gary previously wrote extensively on employee relations in such areas as labor and immigration law and employee drug testing.

Post a comment to this article

Live: June 4, 2026 at 2:00 pm EDT Your VDC team invests weeks in coordination: modeling, resolving clashes, aligning MEP, structural, and specialty systems down to the inch. But when it's time to build, not nearly enough of that work actually reaches the field. We'll walk through how Skanska made it work, the key decisions, and the hard lessons.