CODE, STANDARD, SPECIFICATION AND

PROCEDURE

K. S. SenanayakeB.Sc. (Hon’s) Phy. (Sp), Grad. IP (SL)NDT Level 2 in RT, UT& MT and Level 1 in PT & ET (as per ISO 9712)

Scientific Officer - NCNDT

CODE• Code is a conventionalized set of rules of good

practice.• They are always using the verbs ‘shall or will’

to indicate the mandatory use of certain materials or action or both.

• Code differs from specification in that their use is mandated with force of law by governmental jurisdiction.

Example:ASME Section V (for Non Destructive Examination covering methods such as Radiography, Ultrasonic, Eddy Currents, Magnetic Particles and Dye Penetrants).

STANDARD

•Standard is a level of excellence of quality of product and service.

Example:British Standard which is classified as a standard for product such as BS 5000 (specification for unfired fusion welded pressure vessels and standard for radiographic examination of fusion welded butt joints in steel).

SPECIFICATION

• Specification is a detailed description of the criteria for the constituent, construction appearance, etc., o a material and service.

• In the other word, specifications are document for communication at the engineering, management and purchasing levels.

• The use of specification becomes mandatory only when they are referred by code or contractual documents.

PROCEDURE (WORKING INSTRUCTION)

• Procedure is a written document make as step by step basis which show you HOW to do it.

• The procedure should specifically present everything that the inspector needs to know in order to inspect the parts as intended.

• Procedures are frequently developed in laboratory conditions on special test objects.

• Under such circumstances, procedures should also be tried under production conditions by production personnel before their actual implementation.

Procedure…•The purpose or function of the standard

and/or codes is to prescribe or guide a test method (e.g. Radiography) or procedure which could give correct, reliable, and uniform assessment of the quality of the product, and will ensure that the method is reproducible.

Requirements for Code and Standards

• Almost all codes and standards are written and issued to meet demands for safety and quality.

• The applications of theses codes and standards are made either voluntarily (due to realization of manufacturers to improve their product quality) or by the instruction of certain authority (for the reason of safety) and/or to meet the specification by clients (for the reason of both quality and/or safety)

Example:The history ASME Codes dates back to 1910 when a big boiler explosion in a shoe factory destroyed the whole factory. Following this incident, The US Government asked the manufacturers to discuss and develop rules concerning the construction of B & PV.

Various Codes and Standards Pertaining to Radiographic Inspection• ANSI – American National Standard• ASTM – American Society for Testing and Materials• ASNT – American Society for Non Destructive Testing• ASME – American Society of Mechanical Engineers• API – American Petroleum Institute• AWS – American Welding Society• MIL – American Military Standards• JIS – Japanese Industrial Standards• NDIS – Standards of Japanese Society for NDI• DIN – German Industrial Standards• BS – British Standards• AS – Australian Standards• IIW – International Institute of Welding• ISO – International Standards Organization

Examples: ASME Section V, Article 2 (Radiographic

Examination) BS 2600 (Radiographic Examination of

Fusion Welded Butt Joints in Steel) API 1104 (Standard for Welding Pipelines

and Related Facilities) JIS 3104 (Method of Radiographic Test

and Classification of Radiographs for Steel Welds)

Performance of Radiographic Test

• In ISO 9000 series these documents are considered as level III and level IV type document after company’s manual (level I) and company’s procedures (level II).

• Most NDT works involved with level III and level IV documentations.

• Level III documents are usually called as working instructions while level IV includes detailed technique sheet (procedure sheets), report forms, etc.

• In NDT it is the responsibility of the radiographer level III (advanced grade) to prepare and qualified the level III documents.

• Level II (intermediate grade) personnel should be able to understand the level III documents and responsible to write level IV documents.

• Finally the level I (basic grade) personnel should be able to understand level IV documents in order to execute the radiographic job (excluding film interpretation).

Detailed descriptions for performing specific NDT function or a specific way of utilizing NDT methods within the constraint of an NDT working instruction may includes of the following: Equipment Operation Instructions• X-ray machine, Gamma ray projector, densitometer,

radiation Protection Devices (Survey meter etc.) Radiographic Techniques• Exposure arrangements, Marking (Identification) system

Film Processing Instructions• Chemical preparation used for film processing, Solution

checking and replenishment, Film processing Radiation Safety Instructions• The use of safety devices, Boundary and Radiation sign

installation. Recording Methods• Filing report forms, Log books, etc.

Example of Radiography Procedure and Radiography Report•RT procedure•RT report