Atmos International (Atmos) was originally founded in 1995 with a primary focus to detect pipeline leaks reliably on operational pipelines. This technology has been successfully applied to over 1,500 pipelines across more than 60 countries.
Their turnkey solutions are designed to overcome traditional limitations that prevented efficient leak detection, theft detection and simulation on pipelines
Interview with Jun Zhang, CEO & Founder at Atmos International.
What are the main areas of activity of the company?
Jun Zhang: Since Atmos Pipe was released as the first statistical corrected volume balance system in 1995, Atmos has positioned itself as the leading leak detection solutions provider. As the challenges across the oil, gas, chemical, water, aviation and mining industries continue to grow, so does our technology.
As part of our commitment to continuously improving our services, software and hardware, we provide pipeline leak detection, theft detection and simulation software solutions.
What’s the news about new products/services?
J.Z: As a member of the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) Strategic Partnerships Program, Atmos is always staying ahead of the needs of the aviation industry and continuing to develop solutions in line with the market’s needs. We have recently launched Atmos Pit Sentry, a new technology that innovates pit valve integrity testing for airports operating fuel hydrant systems.
With pilot projects underway, Atmos Pit Sentry is already demonstrating why it’s the smart investment for airports looking to reduce the costs and resource associated with operating fuel hydrants.
What are the ranges of products/services?
J.Z: Through our extensive experience across numerous industries, we have developed a broad range of pipeline leak, theft and simulation services that fit with the needs of each industry and support regulation compliance.
For example, in the water industry there are strong requirements in the clean water sector to reduce supply interruptions while in the wastewater sectors the focus is on reducing the harmful impacts of rising sewer main failures.
Only the most effective pipeline leak detection solutions identify both newly forming and existing leaks across all areas of the clean water and wastewater networks, so Atmos’ strategy involves detecting new and existing leakage across the whole water network.
What is the state of the market where you are currently active?
J.Z: In the oil and gas market, events from recent years such as the lasting impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on oil prices, the move to Net Zero and the phasing out of fossil fuels have all created uncertainty and changed attitudes towards investing in this field.
To ensure Atmos thrives long into the future, we diversified into other areas. While continuing to support our extensive oil and gas customer base, we’ve begun bringing our 30 years’ experience detecting leaks to help the water industry meet the ambitious performance commitments that they face.
This commitment to providing the best technology and service to our clients was recently recognized by Best Companies when we were included in the UK’s top 25 technology companies to work for, along with rankings in other categories.
What can you tell us about market trends?
J.Z: In all the industries we support, there’s a growing focus on regulations and increased attention from pipeline operators on remaining compliant.
In the aviation industry, hydrant operators across the world represent member organizations who subscribe to the Joint Inspection Group (JIG), an organization developing fuel supply standards to ensure aviation compliance and the safe transportation and storage of fuel, and the Energy Institute (EI), a chartered membership body for professionals in the energy industry.
Similarly, water utilities are bound by performance commitments set in their asset management periods (AMPs), which are released in five year increments.
As Net Zero commitments become stricter, we’re noticing regulations across every pipeline sector tighten and pipeline operators become increasingly concerned with remaining compliant.
What are the most innovative products/services marketed?
J.Z: In addition to Atmos Pit Sentry, another recent innovation is Atmos Intelligent Optimizer (AIO), a solution for the modern gas sector.
AIO is a gas pipeline optimizer which uses machine learning and AI to inform operators in a control room the best course of action in case of both planned and unplanned events in gas transmission and distribution networks.
What estimations do you have for 2025?
J.Z: 2025 will be an exciting year for Atmos as we apply our latest innovative products to various industries including aviation, water and gas.
With uncertainties in some parts of the world, it will be challenging for us to continue our work in making pipelines sustainable through innovative and reliable products and services.