Equipment subject to technical inspection
Technical inspection covers transmission pipelines, in the part forming technical equipment within the meaning of the Technical Inspection Act, for poisonous, caustic and flammable hazardous materials under pressure p > 0.5 bar and with a nominal diameter DN > 25, manufactured or reconstructed after 16 July 2002, intended for:
compressed gases, liquefied gases, gases dissolved under pressure, vapours and those liquids for which vapour overpressure at the maximum allowable temperature is > 0.5 bar;
liquids whose vapour overpressure at the maximum allowable temperature is < 0.5 bar and the product of the allowable overpressure of the liquid and the nominal diameter of the pipeline DN is > 2 000 bar
Forms of inspection and deadlines for tests
| Type of fluid in the pipeline | Criterion for determining the form of technical inspection | Frequency of tests Operating conditions tests | Frequency of tests Tests with a measuring piston | Form of technical inspection |
| Gases, excluding natural gas, vapours and those liquids for which vapour overpressure at the maximum allowable temperature is higher than 0.05 MPa | MOP>0.05 MPa and DN>350 or 100<DN≤350 and MOPxDN >350 MPa | 1 year | The first test within 4 years from the start of operation and then every 8 years | full |
| Gases, excluding natural gas, vapours and those liquids for which vapour overpressure at the maximum allowable temperature is higher than 0.05 MPa | MOP>0.05 MPa and 25<DN<100 or MOP>0.05 MPa and 100<DN<350 and MOPxDN≤350 MPa | An ad hoc check at least every 2 years | Not applicable | limited |
| Gases, excluding natural gas, vapours and those liquids for which vapour overpressure at the maximum allowable temperature is higher than 0.05 MPa | 0.05 MPa<MOP≤0.05 MPa 25 <DN≤100 | Not applicable | Not applicable | simplified |
| Natural gas | MOP>1.6 MPa and DN>200 | An ad hoc check at least every 2 years | Not applicable | limited |
| Natural gas | other | Not applicable | Not applicable | simplified |
| Liquids | MOP > 1.0 MPa and DN>25 and MOPxDN>200 MPa | 1 year | The first test within 4 years from the start of operation and then every 8 years | full2 |
| Liquids | 0.05 MPa<MOP≤1.0 MPa and MOPxDN>200 MPa | An ad hoc check at least every 2 years | Not applicable | limited |
| 1. Tests with a piston are carried out only in pipelines adapted for such tests. 2. Pipelines for flammable hazardous liquids with a flash point above 61 °C, qualified on the basis of the specified full inspection criteria should be regarded as falling under limited inspection. | ||||
Required technical documentation
Technical documentation of a pipeline submitted by the operator for acceptance tests should be consistent with agreed technical conditions and include at least:
design technical documentation of the pipeline and its components,
as-built documentation of the pipeline and its components, to the extent specified in the technical conditions,
an operating manual for the pipeline,
a commissioning manual for the pipeline, if commissioning is planned.
The detailed content of the design and as-built technical documentation of a pipeline and its components is specified in agreed technical conditions (i.e. technical specifications other than the technical inspection conditions to be met by pipelines during the design, manufacturing, repair or upgrading referred to in Article 8(7) of the Technical Inspection Act).
