• Welding Inspection
• NDT Level 3
• API

Preparatory Program for API Certification

Pressure Vessels, Piping Systems and Storage Tanks are the major installations in Petroleum Refineries, Petrochemical Plants, Oil Terminals and other process plants. They handle variety of fluids, which may be explosive, corrosive or toxic in nature. The equipments are also subjected to high pressures and temperatures. All these factors may cause corrosion and other damages to the vital equipments.

The corrosion may cause thinning, pitting or cracking of vessel walls. The internal pressure will tend to burst the vessels or piping at the corroded locations, releasing the explosive or toxic contents resulting in serious consequences to the plant, personnel and the people at large. It is therefore essential that during the planned shutdowns, the degradation and damages inflicted to the Plant Equipment, Piping and Tanks should be monitored and evaluated so as to arrive at the 3R decisions. i.e. Run-Repair-Replace decisions.

More specifically, these courses describe the essentials of what to inspect, where to inspect, how much to inspect and what to accept so as to evaluate the safety and mechanical integrity of in-service equipments. The courses also cover methods of repair, alteration, re-rating and replacements of affected equipments.

Course Objectives

The API Courses provide the participants the guidelines and methodology of carrying out inspection of in-service equipments. It also provides techniques for the assessment of the wear and tear of the equipments as well as to measure de-gradation and damages caused to the process equipments due to the process conditions.

If the assessment indicates that the equipment is safe to run, the participants are further taught how to estimate the safe remaining life and the methods to extend the useful life of the equipments.

If the decision is that the equipment needs repair, the course teaches the participants, how to carry out such repairs of the damaged part without causing damage to the whole equipment. It also covers the methods of re-rating the equipment by evaluating the mechanical integrity if it is not possible to restore the equipment to its original design conditions.

Benefits of API Courses

Upon completion of this course, attendees will be able to:

1. Apply the requirements of the relevant industry standards and practices to the maintenance of pressure vessels, heat exchangers, piping systems, and storage tanks.

2. Develop and execute inspection and maintenance programs of process plant equipment and piping systems using several NDT methods and analytical procedures.

3. Carry out appropriate repairs and alterations to process plant equipment and piping systems so as to ensure for safe and reliable operation.

API 510 Pressure Vessel Inspector Course for In-Service Equipments

This course explains the step-by-step method for carrying out inspection and repairs of Pressure Vessels, Heat exchanges, Columns, etc during the shut-down period of Refineries, Fertilizer Plants, Oil and Gas plants Petrochemical plants.

The participant will know how to inspect and analyze the damages like corrosion, erosion, pitting, and cracking, and how to decide whether the equipment is safe for operation or needs repairs. If needs repairs how to perform repairs (or re-rating) of the equipment so that it can be safely used again.

The course is ideally suited for all Inspectors and QA/QC Professionals in Oil & Gas plants, Chemical Plants, Refineries, etc. It is also useful for the engineers and supervisors in operation, maintenance and engineering departments.

The course contents are as follows

• Common Construction Codes for Pressure Vessels and Heat Exchanges.
• Review of ASME Sec. VIII Div 1 Code.
• Design of shells and dished heads.
• Effects of Corrosions on the Pressure Vessels.
• Effects of high and low temperatures.
• De-gradation and damages during the operations.
• How and when to take the plants shut-down?.
• Inspections of equipments during the shut-down.
• Inspections methods: External, Internal and On-stream.
• How to judge the equipment is safe for future operation?.
• Estimation of safe "Remaining life" of the equipments.
• Repairs, Alternation and Re-rating of equipments.
• Methods of repairs: temporary and permanent repairs.
• Life-extension methods of the equipments.
• Review of major NDT methods(ASME Sec. V).
• Review of welding qualifications(ASME Sec. IX).
• Effects on Refinery equipments due to the Sour Crude, Hydrogen embitterment, stress-corrosion cracking etc..
• Review of RISK-BASED-INSPECTION methodology.
• Hydrostatic and pneumatic testing of the equipments.
• Inspection records and documentation.
• Review Quiz and Feedback.

During the course several examples, illustrations and case studies will be discussed and participants will be given additional reading materials and practice questions for their study purpose.

API 570 Piping Inspectors Course for In-Service Piping:

This course explains the step-by-step method for carrying out inspection and repairs of process piping during the shut-down period of Refineries, Oil and Gas Plants, Fertilizer Plants and Petrochemical plants.

The participant will know how to find out and inspect the damages like corrosion, erosion, pitting, cracking and how to decide whether the piping is safe for operation or needs repairs. If needs repairs how to perform repairs (or re-rating) of the piping so that it can be safely used again. The course is ideally suited for all Inspectors and QA/QC Professionals in Oil & Gas Plants, Chemical Plants and Refineries. It is also useful for the engineers and supervisors in operation, maintenance and engineering departments. The course contents are as follows:

• Construction codes for the plant piping.
• Review of ASME B 31.3 code.
• Design of piping for internal pressure.
• Effects of corrosion on the piping.
• Temperature effects on piping.
• Effects of Creep, Fatigue, Stress, Corrosion, Cracking, and Pitting.
• Inspection methods: External, Thickness and Auxiliary.
• Inspection of buried piping.
• Estimation of safe remaining life.
• Repair, alternation and re-rating of piping.
• Repairs by welding, Non-welding repairs.
• Calculation of retirement thickness and renewal of old piping.
• Life extension methods for piping systems.
• Hydrostatic and Pneumatic testing.
• Review of NDT methods (ASME Sec. V).
• Review of welding qualifications (ASME Sec IX).
• RISK - BASED - INSPECTION (RBI) methodology.
• Inspection record and documentation.
• Review Quiz and Feedback.

During the course several examples, illustrations and case studies will be discussed and participants will be given additional reading materials and practice questions for their study purpose.

API 653 Tanks Inspectors Course for In Service Storage Tanks

This course explains the step-by-step method for carrying out inspection and repairs of storage tanks during the shut-down periods of Refineries, Oil and Gas Terminals, and other Hydrocarbon Processing Plants.

The participant will know how to conduct the external and internal inspection of tanks, how to check and evaluate the damage to the tank shell, roof, bottom and how to repair the damage, so that the tank can be safety used again.

The course is ideally suited for all Inspectors and QA/QC Professionals in Oil & Gas plants, Chemical Plants and Refineries. It is also useful for the engineers and supervisors in operation, maintenance and engineering departments. The course contents are as follows:

• Construction codes for the storage tanks.
• Brief review of API 650 code.
• Review of design and construction of storage tanks: Cone roof, Dome roof and Floating roof tanks.
• Effects of corrosion on tank shell, bottom and roof.
• Corrosion of tank bottom due to soil-corrosion.
• Inspection methods for shell, roof and bottom. while the tank is in service.
• Internal and external inspection.
• Repairs and alteration of tanks.
• Evaluation of Settlement of tank bottom.
• Methods for hot-tapping.
• Re-constructed tanks.
• Cathodic protection of tanks.
• Tank lining: Thin film and Thick film lining.
• Review of NDT methods (ASME Sec. V).
• Review of welding qualifications.
• Inspection Records and documentations (ASME Sec. IX).
• Review Quiz and Feedback.

During the course, several examples, illustrations and case studies will be discussed and participants will be given additional reading materials and practice questions for their study purpose.