A Scottish plumber turned inventor and entrepreneur has secured the backing of some of the world’s biggest energy sector companies to develop his pipe repair solutions for industrial applications both onshore and in the harshest offshore operating environments.

Ross Dickinson, a self-employed plumber based in the Scottish Borders, created his signature pipe repair technology 14 years ago to provide a quick fix for damaged or leaking domestic water pipes. Ross, who left school aged 16 with no qualifications, was diagnosed with dyslexia years later and prescribed with coloured glasses that helped him to read. He soon gained his plumbing qualifications at Borders College and won a SNIPEF apprentice of the year award, before starting his own plumbing business in 2007.

Ross had the idea for the pipe repair technology when he was called out to attend to a burst pipe at a house in Melrose during the winter of 2007. The homeowner could not find the shut-off valve to turn off the water supply and by the time Ross was able to do so, several thousand pounds worth of damage had already been done to the property. The self-employed plumber asked himself why there wasn’t a product available on the market that would have enabled him to bring the leak under control quickly, minimising any damage and buying time for a permanent repair to be carried out.

That was the ‘Eureka moment’ for Ross who developed the idea during his spare time over the next few years, setting up Kibosh Ltd in 2009 and working with Cademuir Engineering in Selkirk to produce a prototype in 2010. In 2012, the Kibosh Emergency Pipe Repair Clamp caught the attention of Rothenberger, a leading global plumbing tool and equipment brand, and Ross soon entered into an agreement that saw his clamps produced and distributed internationally under the Rothenberger brand as well as the Kibosh one.

Over the last few years, Kibosh’s clamps have gained an international customer base in the professional plumbing, trades and DIY sectors. In February this year, when freezing conditions in Texas saw houses across the US state suffer burst pipes, the company supplied several thousand clamps to assist the recovery effort, including sales via major American DIY retailers Home Depot and Lowe’s Home Improvement. Kibosh has sold more than 100,000 domestic clamps so far, retailing on average between £12 and £20 each, with a growing trade customer base and an estimated market potential of £200m in the retail sector alone.

The success of the business has led to growing interest from the oil and gas, energy, and industrial sectors, with global partners including Total, Harbour Energy, CNOOC International, and Hydratight recognising the potential of the firm’s clamps as quick, simple solutions to damaged pipes, minimising any operational down-time until a permanent repair can be made. To meet that demand, Ross has created a range of industrial clamps which are now entering the final phase of research and development, with field trials due to take place in the North Sea over the next 18 months.

“It’s been excruciatingly difficult to get to this point, but it’s great now to be working with some of the biggest names in the energy sector to develop Kibosh products for a range of industrial settings,” says Ross. “I knew pretty early in the process that if we could make the clamps effective for domestic use, we had a really good chance of applying the same basic solution in large-scale engineering and manufacturing environments.”

In 2015, Ross secured funding to start the first phase of developing an industrial solution with the Oil & Gas Innovation Centre (OGIC) and Heriot Watt University. Three years later, he secured further funding for a second phase of development of Kibosh clamps for pipes up to six-inch diameter.

Craig Nicol, OGTC project lead, scomments: “OGTC are delighted to be supporting the team at Kibosh with further development of their rapid pipe repair and pipe freezing clamp systems. As we continue to invest in our drive towards a net-zero UK carbon strategy, Kibosh’s innovative repair and freezing products align with our strategic technology roadmap. We’re looking forward to working on this exciting project with Ross and the team.”

More information is available on the Kibosh website https://kiboshpiperepair.com/