ASME publishes standard on qualifying pipeline personnel

The ASME Codes and Standards Committee on Pressure Piping has published a new standard, "B31Q-2006, Pipeline Personnel Qualification."

According to the foreword of the published document, the new standard identifies requirements for establishing the qualifications of pipeline personnel who carry out various critical jobs and is intended to minimize pipeline failures caused by human error.

The standard grew out of a need by industry to take a reasoned and technically informed approach to qualifying operators and other personnel. It is also in response to regulatory actions in the United States from 1987 through 2003, ASME said.

According to the foreword, "The transmission and distribution of gas and hazardous liquids in pipelines is one of the safest forms of transportation. However, investigations of pipeline accidents from 1975 through 1986 revealed that human error was a contributing factor to some failures."

ASME has long had in place a Code for Pressure Piping, B31. After the pipeline industry approached ASME about developing a consensus standard, the Pressure Piping Committee formed a project team representing federal and state agencies, contractors, industry associations, labor, operators of hazardous liquid and gas transmission pipelines, and local distribution companies. The project team met regularly over a period of 20 months, beginning in 2003, to reach consensus on the content of the standard.

The standard is available for purchase at ASME's Web site, www.asme.org.

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