UFC 3-430-07
24 July 2003
including Change 1, Jan 2004 and Change 2, March 2005
APPENDIX G
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN THE BOILER INSPECTOR CALLS
The following article is reprinted unabridged with the permission of HEATING, PIPING,
and AIR CONDITIONING. The author is John G. Gillissie, a field representative of the
National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors.
The article is provided as a general guide for use by activities when preparing boilers for
inspection. The text of this UFC contains further guidance.
WHAT TO EXPECT WHEN THE BOILER INSPECTOR CALLS
Here's what you can and should do to help him to ensure the safety and integrity of your
boiler plant.
Boilers are so common and essential that their safe and effective operation can easily
be taken for granted. With boiler safety laws widely adopted and enforced, boiler
accidents have become relatively rare. Yet the potential for injury and destruction still
exists with any boiler or pressure vessel. A careful, consistent program of maintenance
and third-party inspection is fundamental to boiler safety.
That's why you, as a boiler owner or user, can count on periodic visits from an inspector
commissioned by the National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors and
authorized by the legal jurisdiction in which you operate. His visit is mandated by the
police powers of that jurisdiction to maintain public safety.
Here is what to expect-and what you can and should do to help-when the authorized
inspector visits you, based on the National Board Inspection Code.
Boilers bearing the ASME and National Board stamps are inspected during
manufacture by a National Board commissioned inspector to assure conformance to the
ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code. They are then inspected at installation and at
designated periods thereafter, depending on the regulations that govern your area.
Because thorough boiler inspections are essential, the following directions for them
have been carefully drawn up. In some cases, these instructions appear as
recommendations in the National Board Inspection Code although your local
regulations probably make them mandatory.
The commissioned inspector visiting you will know these regulations and will
understand what causes boiler deterioration and accidents. He will be conscientious
and careful in his observations, taking sufficient time to make his examination thorough
in every way and making no final statement about conditions not personally observed.
He will not accept testimony of others. If he cannot make a thorough inspection, he will
note that in his report.
51
Previous Page
