Issues arising after the implementation of NB/T 47013-2015 for non-destructive testing of pressure vessels

This post was last edited by Menghan100 on 2015-9-13 at 11:21. For work-in-progress items produced before September 1st, imaging has already been done, and reports are still prepared according to the old standards; this is how the quality inspection institute operates. If it has not been manufactured and only drawings are required, the drawing changes shall be made in accordance with the old standards.

I think making changes to the drawings in this way is not appropriate. In that case, new standards would be released every year, which would lead to frequent design changes. This is not conducive to the development of the industry nor to product safety. Because the new standard is not necessarily stricter than the old one; it might even be less strict. For example, due to advancements in equipment or manufacturing methods, a certain type of defect may no longer exist at all; in such cases, new standards might stop requiring detection of that defect or relax the relevant requirements. If the design file is changed at this time without proper attention, it may result in defects going undetected. Especially for products with long production cycles, such as nuclear power products, which take anywhere from three to five years, or even ten to eight years. In my opinion, the implementation of standards should be based on the design date, as at that time, adhering to the standards in effect was sufficient to meet the requirements. Even if the standard expires, it will still meet the requirements. But it’s not certain that the new standards will be implemented; if changes are made blindly without a good understanding of the new standards, mistakes may occur.

If that’s the case, then basically all the drawings will need to be changed. If we switch to another standard after two more items, changes will be needed again; I wonder how many more times this will have to happen.

To take it to an extreme, for a product, several photos of it were taken on August 31st, while a few others were taken on September 1st. So how do we get out?

Since there are films taken in August, it must be the old standard; one product is definitely manufactured according to that standard. In September as well, it will still be the old standard, just as determined by the kitchen equipment inspection agency.

In our pot inspection agency, new standards will apply as of September 1st.

Therefore, I believe that the standard should be applied based on the date of design, rather than the date when it comes into effect. However, the current practice of using the latter date is inappropriate and poses safety risks, as it’s not clear whether the changes in new standards were taken into account at the time of design. Sometimes, new standards are less stringent than the old ones; some unnecessary tests are eliminated, or they become unnecessary due to technological advancements.

I think it should be based on the design date; otherwise, if the design drawings specify 4730 while you use 47013, that doesn’t match the design drawings. You can’t expect the design agency to modify the drawings for you, as it’s unlikely they will do so anyway. Additionally, the requirements of 47013 are generally stricter than those of 4730. The equipment contracts were already signed; price issues are a minor concern. As for the testing of steel sheet raw materials, what if the steel sheets meet the standards specified in 4730 but fail to meet those of 47013? Do we have to discard them then?

Subject to the requirements specified in the design drawings, drawings issued after September 1 shall follow the new standards......