Quality Management System

Manufacturers of pressure equipment in Alberta must have a Quality Management System (QMS). In addition, manufacturers of boilers and pressure vessels must comply with the requirements of CSA B-51 Boiler, Pressure Vessel and Pressure Piping Code as well as the specific ASME code of construction applicable to the type of pressure equipment being manufactured.

General QMS information can be found in the QMS General Information section.

The Safety Codes Act and regulations set forth the requirements for Quality Management Systems:

• Section 39(1) of the Safety Codes Act states that "An owner, occupier, vendor, contractor, manufacturer or designer of a thing, or a person who authorizes, undertakes or supervises a process or activity, to which this Act applies may be required by a written order of an Administrator or by this Act to have and maintain a quality management system that meets the requirements of the regulations."

• The Pressure Equipment Safety Regulation, section 11, requires a person who constructs, manufacturers, repairs or alters pressure equipment or who services, sets, repairs or seals a pressure relief valve to hold a certificate of authorization permit for that activity. 

In keeping with these regulatory requirements, ABSA requires manufactures to register a Quality Control Program with ABSA. The registration process involves the following activities:

• Develop a quality manual that meets the requirements set by the Administrator under the Safety Codes Act. The manual is to describe the quality system that will be used for the type of work, and how the various regulatory and code requirements will be met. Sample manuals and manual guidelines are available at ABSA offices to aid manufacturers in developing their manual.

• Submit the quality control manual to ABSA for review, with the applicable application form and prescribed fee.

• Following review and acceptance of the manual, an ABSA Safety Codes Officer (SCO) will audit the program at a work site for compliance with the manual, applicable code, and regulatory requirements.

• When the manufacturer successfully passes the audit, ABSA issues an Alberta Quality Program Certificate of Authorization Permit for a three-year term. This permits the manufacturer to engage in the work described in their manual (as filed with ABSA), within the scope listed on their certificate.

• Prior to the expiry of the certificate, the manufacturer must review and update the manual as necessary, and resubmit it to ABSA to start the cycle for renewal of the Certificate of Authorization Permit.

• If the manufacturer elects to become an ASME-certified shop, the manufacturer is required to have the manual and the program reviewed and accepted by an ASME representative.

Certificate Of Authorization Permit 

Manufacturers with a current QMS Certificate of Authorization Permit may work on pressure equipment within their authorized scope as found in their accepted quality manual. Valid Certificate of Authorization Permits are listed in the Directory of QMS Certificate of Authorization Holders.

No person or organization is permitted to fabricate, alter, or repair any item of pressure equipment, as defined in the Safety Codes Act, without a Certificate of Authorization Permit to perform the work. Some Certificates of Authorization issued by ABSA are:

Design Registration

The Pressure Equipment Safety Regulation, Section 14, requires registration of designs for all pressure equipment to be manufactured in Alberta.

• For details on items to be included in the design submission, refer to the Design Registration Program section.

• Following acceptance of the design, the manufacturer will be issued a Canadian Registration Number (CRN). Multiple items may be manufactured under the registered design, but restrictions may apply to the total number.

Welding, Brazing or other Joining Procedures

Manufacturers who engage in welding, brazing or joining by other processes of pressure equipment under the jurisdiction of the Safety Codes Act are required to have such procedures registered with ABSA that are suitable for the work being done (Pressure Equipment Safety Regulation, sections 18 & 27).

Welding & brazing procedures must comply with the requirements of the ASME Boiler and Pressure Vessel Code, Section IX Welding and Brazing Qualifications. Other joining procedures must comply with the code of construction of the pressure equipment.

Information regarding all joining procedures including welding & brazing procedures:

• The registered procedure may only be used for work falling within the parameters of that procedure. Consequently, manufacturers may need to register a number of procedures to cover the scope of work they do.

• Registered joining procedures may only be used by the manufacturer who developed and registered them.

Registration of a joining procedure is a multi-part process. For details, see the Design Registration section.

Inspection, Testing, And Documentation

Prior to the start of construction, the manufacturer is required to develop a construction travel sheet. This sheet identifies all the checks, examinations and tests required by code and by the registered design, that are to be completed during the construction of the boiler or pressure vessel.

• The travel sheet is presented to the ABSA Authorized Inspector (AI) (i.e. the ABSA Safety Codes Officer) for review and for the establishment of hold points.

• Fabrication is to be halted when a hold point is reached to allow the AI to complete the function identified by the hold point.

• A Material Test Report (MTR) is required for all material used if required by the code of  construction.

• Reports of all non-destructive examinations and post-weld heat treatments, if applicable, are required.

• A hydrostatic test of the vessel is required. This test is to be witnessed by the ABSA AI.

• Following final testing, the manufacturer completes a Manufacturer's Data Report, certifying that all requirements of code and the design have been met. This is signed by both the manufacturer and the AI in their respective locations.

• The Manufacturer's Data Report must meet the requirements of CSA B-51, and for ASME stamped vessels an ASME data report is required.

• The data report is to be filed with the jurisdiction where the vessel is to be used. A copy is to be provided to the owner.

Pressure Equipment Repair Or Alteration

A manufacturing organization may not perform any work outside the scope of its Certificate of Authorization Permit. Only companies with a QMS Certificate of Authorization Permit which allows them to perform repairs or alterations may undertake this work.

To ensure that repairs and alterations are completed within the terms of their ABSA Certificate of Authorization Permit and the Safety Codes Act, owners and organizations performing repairs and alterations should be aware of the following terms:

• A "repair" is work carried out to restore a damaged item to a condition that satisfies the original design.

• An "alteration" means any change to an item of pressure equipment as described in the original manufacturer's data report that requires a change of design calculations or otherwise affects the pressure-retaining capability of the item of pressure equipment.

The following requirements apply to pressure equipment repairs and alterations:

• Changes to the design (alterations) of a boiler, pressure vessel, or pressure piping system are to be registered with ABSA before work commences (Pressure Equipment Safety Regulation, section 22).

• Repair procedures must be approved by an ABSA Safety Codes Officer prior to the start of work, for any repair to a boiler or pressure vessel. The completed repair must be inspected and certified by an ABSA Safety Codes Officer.

Refer to the Alberta Repair and Alteration Requirements (AB-513) document for details on owner-user repairs.

• The regulation places the responsibility for submitting the repair or alteration procedure on the owner; however, the contractor doing the repair often submits the work procedure on behalf of the owner.

• The repair procedure must be accepted by the owner.

• The contractor must not commence work until the procedure has been submitted to and accepted by ABSA.

For details, see the "Alberta Repair and Alteration Requirements (AB-513)" document.

The following testing, inspection, and documentation is required for vessel repairs:

• A travel sheet, detailing the work to be done, is to be developed by the contractor and presented to an ABSA Safety Codes Officer (SCO) to establish inspection hold points.

• A Material Test Report (MTR) is required for all material used for replacement of shell sections, heads, tubes, etc.

• Reports of all non-destructive examinations and post-weld heat treatments, if applicable, are required.

• Depending on the magnitude of the repair, the ABSA SCO may require interim inspection of the vessel at several stages during the repair.

• A pressure test is generally required unless alternative examinations and tests have been accepted by the ABSA Safety Codes Officer.

• All work done is documented on a Repair/Alteration Report, AB-40. This report is to be certified by the repair organization as complying with code requirements and the accepted repair procedure.

• The SCO would sign the report after signoff by the contractor and the owner, if applicable.

• The AB-40 Repair /Alteration Report is to be filed with ABSA, with a copy going to the owner for his or her permanent records.

• In the case of a repair covered under an Owner-User Program (OUP) and completed on the owners premises, the owner may be authorized to perform the inspection and certification of certain repairs that would normally be done by an ABSA SCO. Refer to the Alberta Repair and Alteration Requirements (AB-513) document for details.

Keeping Up-To-Date

It is important for manufacturers to keep up to date with changes in regulatory requirements, codes, and changes in inspection requirements. This is particularly true in the management of a quality control program where code and regulatory changes could affect the application of that program.

Manufacturers should visit ABSAs web site on a regular basis. Changes may be found in Alerts and Information Bulletins or The Pressure News.