A SPECIALIST engineering company has won an order to supply the world’s largest "pig".

International Pipeline Products (IPP) of Brompton on Swale, near Richmond, is designing, manufacturing and testing a 90 inch diameter pig – a remotely-operated device used to clean and maintain pipelines – for use in a pipe carrying cooling water in an Algerian power plant.

Ordered by Daewoo, the South Korean conglomerate, the pig is the largest ever made by IPP and is also believed to be the largest in the world.

Simon Bell, managing director, said: “This is a massive job. I can’t think of another company worldwide that’s set up to manufacture the moulds to make this pig and its handling equipment.’’

It is the latest in a series of orders for the business which has founded more than 30 years ago. It employs more than 80 people and exports between 75 and 85 per cent of its turnover to six continents.

Although it is a major supplier for the global offshore oil and gas industry, it has been largely unaffected by the recent fall in the oil price.

Mr Bell said: "Yes, the oil price is down and the cost of production in the North Sea is high compared to the rest of the world, but if you look at the Near and Far East and parts of Russia, they seem less concerned about the price of oil. In those areas there’s still demand and we are seeing business as usual."

The company is optimistic that the order will raise its profile and help attract more work in other sectors.

Mr Bell said: “We won this order because of our excellence as a design, engineering and manufacturing company rather than just a commodity supplier.’’

International Pipeline Products is a member of business development organisation NOF Energy, which has almost 500 UK and international members.

This month (April) it is leading a group of oil & gas supply chain companies on a four-day market visit to South Korea to meet companies including Samsung Engineering, Hyundai Engineering and Daewoo Shipbuilding and Engineering.

Joanne Leng, deputy chief executive of NOF Energy, said: “International Pipeline Products demonstrates that UK companies can adapt to changing times and market conditions and deliver innovative solutions to different sectors in any part of the world. It also demonstrates the appetite of South Korean industry for UK engineering expertise."