API RP 581, Risk-Based Inspection Technology, Third Edition, is a recommended practice developed and published by the American Petroleum Institute (API) to provide quantitative risk-based inspection (RBI) methods that support the minimum guidelines presented by API RP 580. Originally released in 2000 and last updated in April of 2016 (third edition), this document details the procedures and methodology of RBI, an integrated methodology that uses risk as a basis for prioritizing and managing an in-service equipment inspection program by analyzing both the likelihood and the consequences of equipment failure.
Risk-based inspection (RBI) is a methodology that involves quantitative assessment of the probability of failure (PoF) and the consequence of failure (CoF) associated with each equipment item in a particular process unit. A properly-implemented RBI program categorizes individual pieces of equipment by their risks, prioritizes inspection efforts, and provides guidance for risk mitigation efforts, such as changes in materials of construction, the addition of linings, changes in operating conditions, etc.
API RP 581 was based on the knowledge and experience of several global practitioners of RBI with extensive experience in its implementation. According to API 581, an RBI program has four major goals:
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Blog
January 9, 2019 By John Reynolds at Intertek
The 2019 API Inspection and Mechanical Integrity Summit will be kicking off later this month in Galveston, TX. This four-day event will begin with 14 high level training courses offered Monday, January 28th, and then a top notch conference and exhibition running from Tuesday, January 29th through Thursday, January 31st. If you've been then you already know; but if you haven't been, here are the top reasons you need to attend. |
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November/December 2018 Inspectioneering Journal
By Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
This article shares examples of where RBI work processes either broke down or were non-existent, or where the user did not fully understand the technology or overall RBI logic and the results. |
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Blog
December 27, 2018 By John Reynolds at Intertek
A quick summary of some of the important topics that were discussed at the Fall Meeting, including the upcoming API Inspection and Mechanical Integrity Summit, subcommittee activities, and progress with the API Individual Certification Program. |
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July/August 2018 Inspectioneering Journal
By Ibrahim Kodssi at Independent Consultant
Software implementation, including RBI, comes with a lot of ad-hoc challenges and pitfalls. There are numerous options for RBI software currently available, and they may differ by design, purpose, function, scope and capabilities. This article highlights several key integrity-related aspects to consider when selecting RBI software. |
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May/June 2018 Inspectioneering Journal
By Dheeraj Narang at Haldor Topsoe India Pvt Ltd.
This article intends to use a top-down approach of describing RBI methodology and how it fits in a facility management system. The main idea of this article is to provide a comprehensive picture of RBI methodology in terms of basics, technology trends, implementation guidance, and evaluating a potential RBI technology partner. |
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March/April 2018 Inspectioneering Journal
By Ibrahim Kodssi at Independent Consultant, and Houssam Sabry at ADNOC LNG
Implementing RBI for process piping can be a very tedious and lengthy exercise, especially for major process plants with thousands of feet of interconnected piping. This article shares the experience of ADNOC LNG following a structured RBI approach for piping groups. |
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March/April 2017 Inspectioneering Journal
By Fernando Vicente at ABB, and Laza Krstin at ABB
Myths, challenges, and good practices related to process piping integrity management activities that help inspection and maintenance managers make the right decisions to develop cost-effective piping inspection plans without compromising the asset’s reliability or performance. |
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January/February 2017 Inspectioneering Journal
Historically, if asked when or how likely an austenitic series stainless steel component is to crack, corrosion engineers usually answered “very” or “maybe” or, later, “I didn’t see that coming.” With the introduction of API’s formal risk assessment methodology, that situation has changed over the past 20 years. |
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November/December 2016 Inspectioneering Journal
By Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
Human factors, inspection effectiveness, and RBI all play an important role in running an effective asset management program. This article discusses how each is applicable to inspecting equipment in processing facilities. |
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November/December 2016 Inspectioneering Journal
By Lynne Kaley at Trinity Bridge LLC / Trinity Bridge Digital
This paper provides the background for the technology behind the Third Edition thinning model as well as step-by-step worked examples demonstrating the methodology for thinning in this new edition of API RP 581. |
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Blog
December 29, 2016 By John Reynolds at Intertek
The Fall API Standards Meeting was incredibly productive and addressed, among other issues, the API Inspection Summit, balloting for the 11th edition of API 510, and improvements to the inspection section of each damage mechanism in API RP 571. |
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Blog
September 12, 2016 By Lynne Kaley at Trinity Bridge LLC / Trinity Bridge Digital
Experienced material specialists are in short supply and high demand these days. So if you are lucky enough to have one at your disposal, how can you squeeze the most out of that opportunity? |
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Blog
July 15, 2016 By Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
Anyone who knows me knows that Risk Based Inspection (RBI) and Risk Management are true passions of mine. I have dedicated much of my career to studying them, understanding their intricacies, and witnessing the benefits of their successful implementation. This article briefly discusses the history of RBI and provides a short, yet persuasive justification for investing in establishing an effective RBI program. |
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May/June 2016 Inspectioneering Journal
By John Reynolds at Intertek
This brief article contains updates and highlights related to the Subcommittee on Inspection (SCI) at the 2016 API Spring Refining Equipment and Standards Meeting. |
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Blog
May 16, 2016 By Valerie Magyari at The Equity Engineering Group, Inc.
When was the last time you reviewed your Risk-Based Inspection (RBI) methodology? Are you using calculation procedures for probability of failure, consequence of failure, and risk that haven’t had their basis reviewed in years? |
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Blog
January 4, 2016 By John Reynolds at Intertek
This article provides a summary of the Subcommittee on Inspection (SCI) discussions that occurred at the Fall 2015 API Refining Standards Meeting, including the Inspection Summit Planning Committee and the API ICP Task Group. |
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July/August 2015 Inspectioneering Journal
By Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
Asset managers need to know when repairs and replacement are required for many reasons, including safe operation, accurate budgeting, replacement planning, and on-going reliability. When predicting design life based on a simple, linear corrosion rate versus remaining thickness, metallurgical degradation, or crack propagation rates are often not accurate or realistic. Even if the models are good, things change. |
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November/December 2014 Inspectioneering Journal
By Alphonse W. Hegger Jr., P.E. at Stress Engineering Services
Today, more than ever, refinery operators are focused on maintaining safe operations for their employees and extending the life cycle of valuable operating equipment to optimize efficiencies and avoid expensive unforeseen shutdowns. When process unit corrosion assessments, RBI methodologies, and IOWs are properly integrated into refining operations, the result is improved safety and longer run times. |
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Blog
November 17, 2014 By John Reynolds at Intertek
One of the most significant advancements to come along in the fixed equipment mechanical integrity (FEMI) business in the past two decades is the application of risk-based inspection (RBI) for inspection prioritization, planning, and scheduling. The most important standard for RBI in the petroleum and petrochemical industry is API RP 580. |
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May/June 2014 Inspectioneering Journal
By Luciano Narcisi at GIE
As an RBI consultant, I frequently get involved in discussions spawned from a misunderstanding of the relation between Risk Based Inspection (RBI) approaches and Fitness for Service (FFS) assessments. Questions like: If thickness is below the minimum required by design, why does the risk stay so low? |
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Partner Content
InVista is a lightweight, hand-held ultrasonic in-line inspection tool (intelligent pig) capable of detecting pipeline wall loss and corrosion in unpiggable or difficult-to-inspect pipelines. The pipeline geometry inspection data captured by the InVista tool is exceptionally powerful when combined with the LifeQuest™ Pipeline fitness-for-service capabilities, providing an integrated solution set for the pipeline industry. |
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Blog
April 21, 2014 By Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
A paper was presented at the 68th Conference of the Italian Thermal Machines Engineering Association entitled Updated Failure Rates and Risk Management in the Process Industries. It was presented in October 2013 by INAIL, an Italian insurance association. The presentation included a thorough analysis of generic failure frequencies used in various American, European, and other sources dating back to 1970. |
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Blog
September 9, 2013 By Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
We’ve been discussing Scalable Accuracy and its use related to Lifecycle Management technologies available to owner/operators. The last few topics have included Risk Based Inspection, Fitness for Service using Accuracy, the approach for Equipment Lifecycle Management and, to lay the foundation for proper thinking, making the case for Scalable Accuracy. |
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Blog
September 3, 2013 By Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
We’ve been discussing Scalable Accuracy and its use related to Lifecycle Management technologies available to owner/operators. The last few topics have included Fitness for Service using Scalable Accuracy, the approach for Equipment Lifecycle Management and, to lay the foundation for proper thinking, making the case for Scalable Accuracy. In a continuation on the topic, this week’s blog will cover Risk-Based Inspection (RBI). |
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Blog
June 3, 2013 By Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
This is the third of four blogs in a series about Risk Based Inspection (RBI). You can read the previous blogs on a history and reasons for RBI and on starting to define risk. This post deals with the second half of the equation used to define risk... |
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Blog
May 20, 2013 By Greg Alvarado at Inspectioneering Journal
Anyone who knows me knows that Risk Based Inspection (RBI), and Risk Management, are a passion of mine, so my next few posts will feature these topics. These are not all-inclusive, but Inspectioneering.com has dozens of articles and you can join our LinkedIn Group for more. |
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Partner Content
Industrial Rope Access is a proven method of achieving a safe work position at elevated heights or areas that are difficult to access. When combined with advanced NDE technologies, rope access technicians can substantially reduce the cost of inspections and maintenance activities by virtually eliminating the need for fixed scaffolding. |
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November/December 2012 Inspectioneering Journal
By Ryan Corn at Marathon Petroleum Company LP, and Matthew K. Caserta, PE at BASF
As refiners continue operating aging infrastructure, safe operation and equipment availability continue to be key components of a sustainable operation. When considering optimizing inspection projects, more and more refiners are making Risk-Based Inspection (RBI) an integral part of their plan processes. When applied properly, RBI can focus inspection efforts using risk as a basis for prioritizing and managing an in-service inspection program. |
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May/June 2009 Inspectioneering Journal
By Lynne Kaley at Trinity Bridge LLC / Trinity Bridge Digital
This article is Part 3 of a 3-Part series. The articles in this series provide a step-by-step example of utilization of API RP 581 and build off of each other. This article (Part 3) will cover the final risk analysis, inspection planning, provide a very helpful table of calculated results for each step to check your calculations against, and a glimpse of the future direction of API RP 581. |
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March/April 2009 Inspectioneering Journal
By Lynne Kaley at Trinity Bridge LLC / Trinity Bridge Digital
The previous article (Part 1) covered Probability of Failure (POF), including modeling of thinning and stress corrosion cracking and demonstrated how API RBI provides credits for past inspections, considering their effectiveness in detecting those specific damage types and the number of inspections performed. This article (Part 2) picks up where the previous left off by guiding the reader through the health, safety, and environmental and financial consequence calculations, including calculation of Consequence of Failure (COF). |
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January/February 2009 Inspectioneering Journal
By Lynne Kaley at Trinity Bridge LLC / Trinity Bridge Digital
This article provides a unique opportunity to guide the reader through API RBI quantitative calculations per API RP 581, Second Edition, September 2008, using real data. The author guides you step by step from input data to final answers including, probability of failure, consequence of failure, financial and risk return and metrics usage, and inspection planning. |
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January/February 2000 Inspectioneering Journal
By Gene R. Meyer at The Dow Chemical Company
Part 1 provided a review of RBI for pressure vessels and piping and an introduction to application of RBI to rotating equipment and the differences between approaching the two different types of equipment. As promised, Part 2 will delve more deeply into the details of rotating equipment RBI analysis, highlighting additional differences between this and fixed equipment analysis and cover: - RBI for Rotating Mechanical Equipment: Likelihood - Qualitative Risk Assignment - Forming the Risk Reduction Plan - Moving from RBI to Risk-CM |
Quest Integrity Group is a global leader in the development and delivery of asset integrity management and asset reliability solutions for our clients in the refining and chemical, pipeline, syngas and power industries. Our services include furnace tube inspection for the refining and chemical industries, in-line inspection for the pipeline industry, steam reformer tube inspection for the syngas industry, as well as fitness-for-service assessment, remaining life assessment, structural integrity, failure analysis and materials consulting for various industries including the power industry. We specialize in condition assessment for fired heater coils, unpiggable pipelines, steam reformer tubes, storage tanks, gas turbines and other assets.
Quest Integrity Group is a global leader in the development and delivery of asset integrity management and asset reliability solutions for our clients in the refining and chemical, pipeline, syngas and power industries. Our services include furnace tube inspection for the refining and chemical industries, in-line inspection for the pipeline industry, steam reformer tube inspection for the syngas industry, as well as fitness-for-service assessment, remaining life assessment, structural integrity, failure analysis and materials consulting for various industries including the power industry. We specialize in condition assessment for fired heater coils, unpiggable pipelines, steam reformer tubes, storage tanks, gas turbines and other assets.
Pinnacle Advanced Reliability Technologies (PinnacleART) is a leader in building, implementing and maintaining comprehensive reliability programs for facilities in the oil and gas, chemical, mining, pharmaceutical, wastewater and electric power industries, to name a few. Our team consists of talented experts and engineers, who offer the highest degree of service and uncompromised reliability for every one of our projects. PinnacleART’s specialists are dedicated to delivering optimal outcomes for our clients, which results in reducing risk, ensuring compliance, optimizing costs and improving safety.
Pinnacle Advanced Reliability Technologies (PinnacleART) is a leader in building, implementing and maintaining comprehensive reliability programs for facilities in the oil and gas, chemical, mining, pharmaceutical, wastewater and electric power industries, to name a few. Our team consists of talented experts and engineers, who offer the highest degree of service and uncompromised reliability for every one of our projects. PinnacleART’s specialists are dedicated to delivering optimal outcomes for our clients, which results in reducing risk, ensuring compliance, optimizing costs and improving safety.
Versa Integrity Group, Inc. is a full service inspection, maintenance, and engineering company serving the oil refining, chemical processing, and offshore industries. Versa possesses over 70 years of NDE inspection, engineering and rope access experience and provides its customers access to a total of more than 400 engineers, API inspectors, rope access climbers and NDE technicians. Like many companies, Versa has the tools to get the job done; what separates Versa from the rest of the pack is their commitment to professionalism, integrity, and above all else, customer service.
Versa Integrity Group, Inc. is a full service inspection, maintenance, and engineering company serving the oil refining, chemical processing, and offshore industries. Versa possesses over 70 years of NDE inspection, engineering and rope access experience and provides its customers access to a total of more than 400 engineers, API inspectors, rope access climbers and NDE technicians. Like many companies, Versa has the tools to get the job done; what separates Versa from the rest of the pack is their commitment to professionalism, integrity, and above all else, customer service.
PK Technology is a full-service inspection contractor, as well as, an in-house software development company specializing in the Oil and Gas industry. PK Technology is the creator of intelliSPEC, the worlds first Digital Data Management System (DDMS) which is a robust and intelligent solution designed to digitize, analyze and realize all vital data.
PK Technology is a full-service inspection contractor, as well as, an in-house software development company specializing in the Oil and Gas industry. PK Technology is the creator of intelliSPEC, the worlds first Digital Data Management System (DDMS) which is a robust and intelligent solution designed to digitize, analyze and realize all vital data.
Sentinel Integrity Solutions is a full service inspection company, providing a full suite of inspection support to service the Petroleum (upstream, midstream and downstream operations), Chemical, Power and Pipeline Industries. We are respected by our clients for the unsurpassed reliability, dedication and professionalism exhibited by our personnel and the customer service and responsiveness exhibited by our Management Team.
Sentinel Integrity Solutions is a full service inspection company, providing a full suite of inspection support to service the Petroleum (upstream, midstream and downstream operations), Chemical, Power and Pipeline Industries. We are respected by our clients for the unsurpassed reliability, dedication and professionalism exhibited by our personnel and the customer service and responsiveness exhibited by our Management Team.
Greg Alvarado explains the inspection effectiveness tables found in API RP 581, the importance of them, and how they should be used.
Greg Alvarado discusses the concept of "risk in square feet per year", a powerful metric found in the API RP 581 Risk Based Inspection methodology. Understanding metrics such as this one will allow you to begin trending your risks, identifying best practices, and feel comfortable with the decisions you are making in your facility or corporation.
Greg Alvarado explains the concept of RBI risk thresholds: "How much confidence do I need to have in what I believe to be the true damage state of the equipment?"
