For more than 15 years, Gulf of Mexico operators have soundly embraced Proline Systems’ HSE-friendly approach to the delivery and handling of drilling fluids offshore. However, the New Iberia, La., company recently received a most unlikely endorsement, from none other than Hall of Fame, NFL quarterback Terry Bradshaw.
The long-retired Pittsburgh Steeler and Louisiana native hosts the New Orleans-based cable network show, “The Environmental Report with Terry Bradshaw,” which showcases U.S. companies that he says “are changing the way we do things, to help preserve and protect our world for the future.” In a recent episode, home-grown Proline was one of those companies.
What landed the small company in the spotlight was its recyclable Enviro Bags, which replace the 50-lb paper sacks traditionally used to package the hundreds of pounds of powdered drilling fluid additives used on a typical offshore rig. “Experts say the environmental footprint of these sacks is tremendous,” Bradshaw said in introducing the piece.
Proline effectively replaced the paper sacks with a reusable bulk bag capable of holding up to 4,000 lb of dry material. Constructed with a nylon weave and then coated with PVC vinyl, the Enviro Bag is reused continuously, effectively slashing the environmental footprint of paper sacks. The bags are delivered empty to the respective drilling fluid company, which fills the order from the rig-based mud engineer and ships the now-full bags to the rig or platform. Once emptied, they are returned to Proline for cleaning, inspection and repair, if necessary, before being stored to await the next order.
Proline President Kenneth Boutte said his firm’s creation eliminated the myriad environmental issues associated with paper sacks, “First of all, they (paper sacks) are not reusable; second of all, we destroy thousands of trees a year to create these (paper) bags; and third of all, they create a whole lot of waste for our nation’s landfills.”
The reusable mud bags also are much safer and cost-effective, said Proline Vice President Ban Green, who co-founded the company with Boutte. “Paper sacks are neither safe nor efficient. Rig workers have to lift, cut and dispense the contents of each 50-lb bag. With today’s rigs having 15,000-to 20,000-bbl capacities, this can be a huge volume of daily chemical additions that expose these workers to dust and injury.”
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| Filled Proline Enviro Bags at the M-I SWACO drilling fluids facility in Port Fourchon await delivery offshore. |
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Cranes or forklifts are used to handle the bags, once they arrive on location, said Boutte, and are dispensed either directly into the rig hopper or through a bag rack that allows for a controlled flow by using scales and valves. He said if the material is dumped directly into the hopper, it can be mixed with the active drilling fluid system “in three to six minutes.”
“Our bags are recycled many times over until their safe working limits are met,” Green said. “The efficiency of having only one man mix this many pounds in a safe and efficient manner also reduces the costs and enhances the safety of the whole operation.”
Green added that the Proline Enviro Bag is but one example of what he sees the industry doing to re-invent itself for the better. “It’s a new oil field today—a kinder, gentler and safer oil field,” he said.
The Environmental Report with Terry Bradshaw airs nationwide on a host of cable networks and cable channels, like CNN Headline News and the Fox Business Network. 
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