Inspection of pressure equipment

Inspection is required throughout the lifetime of industrial process plants, power stations and other industrial facilities to check that they are being built, modified and maintained in keeping with design and maintenance engineering requirements, to help provide assurance that they will operate and continue to operate as intended. Inspection of new equipment may be carried out by the manufacturer or supplier (1st party), the owner (2nd party), or an independent body (3rd party).

Achievements to date

Between 1992 and the approval of its final draft, EEMUA actively influenced the wording of the European Pressure Equipment Directive (PED, 97/23/EC), principally through its technical committees on Pressure Vessels (PRV) and User Inspectorates (CUI) and through the European Committee of User Inspectorates (ECUI) to which EEMUA provides the secretariat. Regular meetings were held with the UK representative on the PED drafting committee.

When it was first issued, the PED - a ‘new approach’ Directive - resulted in a host of queries from manufacturers, purchasers, notified bodies and others.  This led the European Commission to establish a working group on pressure (WGP) and subordinate working party (WPG) to provide interpretive ‘guidelines’.  EEMUA’s ECUI Secretary participates in both WPG and WGP and has contributed to the drafting of nearly 200 guidelines. EEMUA has helped to secure recognition of 2nd-party User Inspectorates in the PED and ECUI has been instrumental in preserving this recognition.

Other guides published by EEMUA on PED requirements cover the procurement of valves and the use of the ASME piping code. The latter has been converted, verbatim, into a CEN Technical Report.

EEMUA’s Technical Committee on Inspection and Non-destructive Testing (INT) has developed industry guidance on inspection techniques.

EEMUA’s current agenda on plant inspection

EEMUA has developed and promotes industry guidance for members and non-members on the implementation of a risk-based inspection (RBI) programme that conforms to the principles of the British Health & Safety Executive (HSE) document 363/2001.

Members are contributing to a CEN workshop developing a proposed draft European standard on risk-based inspection and maintenance.

The PED requires not only conformance to the applicable conformity assessment (inspection) module for new equipment before it can be put into service, but also for equipment that undergoes ‘important change’.  EEMUA has recently developed and promotes industry guidance for plant owners and operators that explains when plant and pipework changes should be considered new installations or modifications to existing facilities.

ECUI has produced a position paper on in-service inspection of pressure equipment.  EEMUA supports and promotes the ECUI position.

Join us

To participate in EEMUA’s inspection-related Technical Committees, or to become involved in other ways in the Association’s current agenda on inspections, write to .