Onboard Dynamics

Unique, Patented Natural Gas Compression Technology for Driving Down Emissions

Use Cases

Use Case: Pipeline Evacuation and Natural Gas Recovery with the GoVAC® MAX System

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Challenge

Faced with the need to perform scheduled integrity digs on a 26,400-foot section of 12-inch pipeline, a leading U.S. natural gas utility took a forward-thinking approach to environmental responsibility. The utility sought a solution that aligned with its commitment to sustainability, safety, and operational excellence. Their goal: to recover natural gas efficiently while minimizing environmental impact and ensuring regulatory compliance.

This is a photo of ZENRG Services deploying the GoVAC® MAX System to perform cross compression.
Example of ZENRG Services performing a cross compression project with the GoVAC® MAX System.

Solution

ZENRG Services, an authorized service provider for Onboard Dynamics, deployed two GoVAC® MAX Systems to perform the evacuation. The systems successfully cross-compressed the natural gas in under seven hours, eliminating methane emissions during the process. Integrated automated data capture enabled remote monitoring and delivered accurate, real-time operational reporting—ensuring transparency, traceability, and compliance throughout the project.

The environmental report of the GoVAC MAX System for a Southern US pipeline project.
The environmental report of the GoVAC MAX® System for a Southern US pipeline project.

Key Metrics

  • Total Natural Gas Evacuated: 287,333.72 SCF
  • Net Natural Gas Recovered: 274,564.56 SCF
  • Environmental Impact Avoided: 158.09 MT CO₂e
  • Pipeline Specs: 12″ diameter, 26,400′ length
  • Pressure Range: 234.99 psig (start) → 1.7 psig (final inlet)
  • Evacuation Duration: Under 7 hours

Benefits

  • Safety: Mitigate risk to personnel
  • Environmental Compliance: Avoided significant methane emissions aligning with company emission goals.
  • Operational Efficiency: Completed evacuation in under 7 hours with minimal gas loss.
  • Data Transparency: Digitally recorded and cloud-synced metrics for third-party certification and audit readiness.
  • Product Savings: $906

“The GoVAC® MAX System has completely transformed how we approach natural gas evacuation projects. Its ease of deployment, rapid performance, and automated data capture make it one of the most efficient and reliable tools in our field operations. It allows our teams to deliver exceptional results while staying aligned with our environmental and safety commitments.”

— Joe Chandler, CEO, ZENRG Services
Image of the GoVAC MAX performing a natural gas pipeline evacuation by ZENRG Services.
The suction and discharge lines connected to a pipeline during a cross compression project.

The successful deployment of the GoVAC® MAX System in the Southern US project demonstrates the powerful intersection of innovation, environmental stewardship, and operational efficiency. By capturing and recovering over 274,000 SCF of natural gas and avoiding more than 158 metric tons of CO₂e emissions, this project exemplifies how advanced evacuation technology can transform routine pipeline maintenance into a model of sustainability and accountability. The GoVAC® System not only supports regulatory compliance and ESG goals but also delivers measurable value through data-driven performance and reduced environmental impact—setting a new standard for responsible energy infrastructure management.

Use Case: Adding a Valve During a Pipeline Intervention in Belgium

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Adding a Valve During a Pipeline Intervention

Onstream Pipeline Solutions (OPS) successfully utilized Onboard Dynamics’ (OBD) GoVAC® FLEX System to perform pipeline maintenance on a distribution line operated by a major Belgian network company. This use-case highlights the process of adding a valve during a pipeline intervention, showcasing OPS’s expertise in maintaining pipeline integrity and efficiency. This was a live project performed for demonstration purposes.

Onboard Dynamics environmental impact report
The Environmental Impact Report for This Project

Key Details

  • The pipeline owner and operator: A major Belgian network company, active in all Flemish cities and municipalities with approximately 5800 colleagues. 
  • OPS Technicians: Execute the valve installation.
  • OBD Technician: Performs the pipeline evacuation.
  • Location: Knokke-Heist, Belgium
  • Date: October 22, 2024
  • Pipeline Length: 300 meters
  • Pipeline Diameter: 10 inches
  • Total Natural Gas Evacuated: 3,257.65 SCF
  • Net Natural Gas Recovered: 1.64 MT CO2e

Process

Jeramy Cummings, the Operations Manager at Onboard Dynamics, shown here training OPS technicians to operate the GoVAC® FLEX System.
Jeramy Cummings, the Operations Manager at Onboard Dynamics, shown here training OPS technicians to operate the GoVAC® FLEX System.
  • Preparation: The operations team reviews the plan.
  • Evacuation: The pipeline is safely evacuated using the GoVAC® FLEX System, ensuring no residual gas remains.
  • Valve Installation: The OPS technician installs the valve, adhering to operational safety guidelines.
  • Re-pressurization: The pipeline is carefully re-pressurized, restoring operational capacity.
  • Documentation: The gas recovery process is documented by the system and provides metrics for the project for current and future reference.

Benefits

  • Efficiency: The GoVAC® FLEX System streamlines the process of evacuating natural gas from the pipeline, minimizing downtime.
  • Safety: The GoVAC® FLEX System is equipped with remote operations monitoring and communications.
  • Environmental Impact: The GoVAC® FLEX System prevents methane releases to the atmosphere contributing to reduced emissions and effective gas management during pipeline operations.
The GoVAC® FLEX System can operate in tight-fitting locations easily and quietly.
The GoVAC® FLEX System can operate in tight-fitting locations easily and quietly.

Conclusion

Successfully using the GoVAC® FLEX System to prevent methane releases into the atmosphere during pipeline evacuation demonstrates the owner and operator’s commitment to a sustainable energy infrastructure. It also exemplifies OPS’s technological leadership and commitment to customer-focused solutions in pipeline management.

With certified technicians and a fleet of well-maintained equipment, OPS continues to set the standard for operational excellence in the industry.

Project Spotlight: Four GoVAC® FLEX Systems Used in a Single Project for Evacuation in British Columbia

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The GoVAC FLEX System in Canada

Overview:

A major utility company (the “Company”), servicing over a million customers across multiple communities in British Columbia (B.C.), is dedicated to mitigating greenhouse gas emissions through investments in low-carbon energy solutions. Grounded in core values of safety, customer care, collaboration, respect, and progress, the Company is committed to achieving net-zero emissions by 2030.

This utility highlights their sustainability pillars as the foundation for their future, emphasizing environmental responsibility in all aspects of project planning and execution, including routine blowdown or pipeline evacuation operations.

The Challenge:

Given the Company’s extensive pipeline network and their sustainability goals and zero-release methane policy, a flexible solution capable of meeting the demands of both high-volume evacuation projects and smaller projects located in residential areas was required.

The Solution:

Onboard Dynamics’ GoVAC® FLEX System emerged as the top choice for this customer because of its versatility. In particular, the ability to employ a single unit for smaller projects as well as the option to aggregate multiple units for larger scale projects was advantageous. As a result, the Company opted to lease four (4) systems to meet their project requirements.

In addition to supplying the GoVAC® FLEX systems, Onboard Dynamics also provided user training which enabled the Company to operate the systems safely and efficiently with continual oversight. This expedited deployment and enabled better project planning for the Company.

Four GoVAC® FLEX Systems Project Scope:

Four GoVAC® FLEX systems drawing down a 20″ pipeline.

The project scope consisted of decommissioning a distribution line located beneath a freeway. This line encompassed pipes of various diameters ranging from 8 inches to 20 inches. The Company wanted to standardize the diameters of their pipelines which motivated the decommissioning of these segments to facilitate replacement with a uniform diameter. This strategic initiative aimed to enhance operational efficiency and bolster reliability for the Company’s customers, ensuring consistent service delivery across their pipeline network.


Given the challenging location of the project, the evacuation system chosen needed to be nimble enough so that it could be maneuvered into place yet efficient enough to cross-compress larger volumes of gas.

Onboard Dynamics deployed four GoVAC® FLEX systems in a single project.


For this specific project, four GoVAC® FLEX systems working in tandem successfully evacuated 1,174,482 standard cubic feet (scf) of natural gas over a 16,733 ft long section. To achieve this, the units consumed 60,177 scf of natural gas as fuel. Despite this fuel consumption, the emissions generated by the system amounted to 7,221 pounds of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e). Considering the emissions generated by running the system, net emission reductions from capturing the natural gas with the GoVAC® FLEX System were greater than 99%. This demonstrates the efficiency of the GoVAC® FLEX System in evacuating natural gas while keeping its environmental impact relatively low as compared to common practices of venting or flaring gas from the pipe.

“I just want to say I am very impressed with your whole team with the support since delivery…”

The Company’s operations team underwent comprehensive hands-on training in preparation for operating the four GoVAC® FLEX systems. This training regimen comprised a full day of classroom instruction followed by a full day of field training. The team was divided into five groups of two individuals each, allowing for focused practice sessions encompassing system setup, operation, and “live” pipeline evacuation scenarios. Emphasizing practical, real-world applications, the training aimed to equip the team with the skills and confidence needed to effectively utilize the GoVAC® FLEX System in operational environments.


Environmental impact reports summarizing the project enabled the Company to measure their environmental initiatives. The environmental impact reporting features gave the Company accurate project results that they can use to measure their internal ESG goals as well as having accurate documented proof of their methane mitigation activities.

Environmental Impact Report:

  • Total Natural Gas Evacuated
    • 1,174,482 scf.
  • The Fuel Consumption by the GoVAC® System
    • 60,177 scf.
    • ~5% of the natural gas captured.
  • The GoVAC® System Emissions from the Project
    • 7,221.26 lbs. of CO2e
    • Approximately 5% of the total gas captured.
  • Total Evacuation Time
    • This is the total time that gas is moving through the system.
    • In this case, this value is the sum of the time dispersed across all four units.

Furthermore, remote monitoring supported by Onboard Dynamics’ leading telemetry and SCADA system provided the Company additional assurance on the status of the project in real-time.  In summary, this project not only showcased the efficiency of the GoVAC® FLEX systems but also underscored Onboard Dynamics’ dedication to its customers, prioritizing a client-centric approach to training and support throughout the entirety of the project.

By leveraging its innovative technologies and strategic collaborations, Onboard Dynamics continues to set new benchmarks for our customers in pipeline evacuations, Advancing Cleaner Energy For Our Environment.