Q&A: Welding procedure specification/qualification and welders qualification for oil/gas pipes/facilities?
Question by well: Welding procedure specification/qualification and welders qualification for oil/gas pipes/facilities?
Hi,
I have a question about welding procedures please, and I deeply appreciate your insightful input/answers.
1.Welding procedure specification (WPS)
2.Procedure qualification record (PQR)
3.Welders performance qualification (WPQ)
I know (by definition) what the above three means, I’m fairly new to welding and/or oil and gas industry (just one year experience).
HERE IS MY QUESTION:
When I worked on piping standard for production pad, we used ASME B31.3, 31.4, 31.8 and we simply specified which applies to on and/or off-pad facilities for liquid hydrocarbon, water, and gas. The main thing that appeared in the code were the 3 different equations for B31.4, 31.3, and 31.8. In addition, we just made some recommendations like what pipe sizes should be threaded and which ones should not.
When it comes to welding standard, we have ASME sectoin IX, and API standard 1104. Those I think are the two most widely applied codes to production facilities and piping welding.
SO
When writing a standard/guideline for WPS, PQR, and WPQ, what exactly does this entail?
1. Is it just saying for WPS, use this code, or..
2. I’ve seen some sample WPS, etc, but for a standard, what kind of information is contained in a company welding procedure standard that the construction folks make contract and/or company welders follow as a procedure, qualification, etc
3. Or do you (after reading through the two codes) say for such kind of weld, use this filler, pre-heat, etc. I’ve seen a lot of variables (both essential and non-essentials) in sample WPS, but ..
THE BOTTOM LINE IS
If you were asked to write a company standard/guideline on Welding procedures, what would be the content, so that it can be used to get the WPS, PQR, etc
BECAUSE
The code already specifies what kind of fillers should used for what kind of base metals, and treatments, etc. So do you just say, use this code, or if you want to get more specific, what do you include…The codes are 100s of pages, the company standards/guideline based on the codes will of course be 3, 5, or more pages.
THANKS YOU FOR YOUR HELP.
Best answer:
Answer by oil field trash
Based on your questions, I would say you are trying to get into an area where you really aren’t qualified to be. You would do well to have someone who is knowledgeable on the subject to help you and not those of us here on “Answers.”
It is really the owner who determines what procedures should be used and how welders should be qualified. The codes set forth minimum requirements as to what is in a procedure, how it should be qualified and how welders should be tested but there is much latitude for adding important information to these documents.
Items such are preheat, post well heat treatment can be up to the writer of the procedure depending on what is needed to meet the service requirements of the piping. Only in some cases due to wall thickness is heat treatment addressed.
This also true for materials used for root and filler passes. Even the direction of welding rod travel can be a variable (ie, up hill or down hill, etc).
I don’t believe any of the codes set forth material requirements simply because of the wide variations in the service conditions. One case might be okay with a 6010 rod and another might need to use a low hydrogen rod.
Even welder qualifications are subject to variations depending on what the service conditions are and the owner’s requirements.
The codes at best set forth minimum requirements and these are not always adequate to provide the level of welding quality needed for many applications.
What do you think? Answer below!