The Inspectioneering Journal Marks 10 Year Anniversary

We are happy to announce the 10-year anniversary of the inaugural issue of the “IJ”. The March April 1995 issue included articles from the original contributing editors, John Reynolds on RBI, Greg Kobrin (DuPont), Charles Foster (Pacific Gas and Electric) on High Energy Piping Systems and Greg Alvarado (IJ Publisher and Chief Editor) on Beginning with the End in Mind. In addition, there were articles by Roy Schuyler (DuPont) on Reducing Plant Asset Losses and Environmental Incidents. Time sure does fly when you’re having fun!

Staying on Track in a Complex Environment (also an article in 2004)

As IJ readers know, our mission as stated on the cover page is and always has been to be “Focused on mechanical integrity issues and answers in the chemical, refining and utility industries.” Some of the topics we promised to cover were:

• Inspection technologies
• Inspection methodologies
• Management Philosophy
• Fitness for Service Engineering
• Risk Based Inspection
• Process Safety Management
• Regulatory Updates
• Standards Updates

With a strong leaning toward case histories.

I believe that we have held true to the course. Check out the indices of past articles to see for yourselves at: https://inspectioneering.com/journal

Industry Changes Since the Inaugural Issue

We believe the IJ, this sharing vehicle, has provided technical information, practical field information, and awareness that have contributed to the improvements we have witnessed in the last 10 years. What are some of those IJ contributions and industry accomplishments?

• Provision of numerous articles and updates on RBI technology, applications, implementation, and updates on regulatory acceptance and evergreening
• Provision of interview articles with industry leaders such as Dr. David Wang (Shell Oil), John Nyholt (BP), and John Reynolds (Shell Global Solutions), just to name a few
• API production of API RP 580, the industry benchmark for RBI programs
• API production of API BRD 581, the industry benchmark for RBI technologies
• Industry and regulatory acceptance of RBI
• Industry and regulatory acceptance of FFS (Fitness for Service)
• Providing articles on understanding the relationship between RBI and FFS and mechanical integrity and RCM, and plant inspection programs
• API publication of API RP 579 (Fitness for Service)
• API Publication of the above-referenced RBI documents
• API publication of RP 571 on refinery damage mechanisms
• New NDE development
• A greater understanding and appreciation for RBI, FFS and NDE and the importance of NDE qualification demonstration testing.
• The Canadian Province of Alberta accepts RBI and creates a governing document for application in this jurisdiction
• Pending changes to accept technologies like RBI and FFS in various US and international jurisdictions by the end of 2005/2006
• Opening up new opportunities for the inspection and engineering communities alike
• Growing use of reliable on-stream NDE techniques Just to name a few.

What Lies Ahead

It is certain that many challenges lay ahead of us. Some that are clear are:

1. Creating clearer guidelines and processes for FFS and NDE practitioners to bridge the gulf between them, i.e. so the FFS practitioner feels comfortable with damage sizing as FFS input
2. Creating effective NDE qualification demonstration testing programs, either private or public, to contribute to point 1 above
3. To develop more NDE techniques and validation programs with output that is useable in the FFS calculation
4. To develop NDE techniques that remove currently necessary conservatism in FFS calculations (e.g. HIC blistering that is so dominant that the NDE operator cannot, with any confidence determine the presence of stress wise linking that the most conservative assumptions must be taken)
5. To develop NDE techniques to reliably and confidently measure materials properties as input to determine the FFS of equipment (in process but arguable at present)
6. To develop reliable NDE technologies for viable, both practical and economical, on- stream condition monitoring of equipment (some are on the horizon)
7. And more to be sure.

The overriding challenge, as industry infrastructures near the ends of their design lives is to assure, through the combined efforts and utilization of various technologies, methodologies, and processes is to assure the continued safe and reliable operation of this equipment, economically, most often through effective risk management tools. I believe that it will take industry information forums like the Inspectioneering® Journal to help achieve these challenges. More importantly, it will continue to take our (yours, the IJ's, and other industry bodies') participation to make this happen, through the effective, focused dissemination of information and ideas.

I have found that the technologies and tools that are created to address these challenges have also proven themselves valuable for application at the design and new construction stages to reduce infant mortality, spot opportunities for alloy upgrades with sound justification, design improvements, risk reduction, and oftentimes simultaneous cost savings.

You are very busy. We realize that. We live in the information age, and I believe it is incumbent on the Inspectioneering® Journal to provide the types of information you need in organized packets to assist you in our journey to achievement, as we are overwhelmed with the amount of information available. A lot of it is valuable but more of it is subterfuge or of interest to others. We want to make sure the IJ continues to serve as a mechanism to sift through these vast amounts of data to give you what you need, with minimum distraction and bias.

That means we need your input as to the types of articles you would like to see, and references to technologists who are creating promising new technologies, and your encouragement of/for them to participate.

Articles from Owner/Operators are much encouraged. To make it easier we are willing to conduct phone, e-mail interviews, and face to face interviews where practical to ease the burden on you to make it happen by writing the draft article or presenting the interchange as an interview. For those who have case histories, often taking a copy of the report and sanitizing it, is a great way to create the draft.

As the publisher, I promise to keep on track with this vision. Feel free to contact me with your thoughts, ideas, articles, and constructive criticism. Please let us know if you ever feel we do not stay true to the course.

Sincerely yours,

Greg C. Alvarado, Publisher of the Inspectioneering® Journal