GENERAL INSPECTION GUIDELINES FOR THE INSPECTION OF FLANGES

Page 1 of 5

Scope
This procedure specifies minimum requirements for performing inspection to
assure that the clients quality requirements pertaining to all types of Flanges
are met.

Purpose
To ensure conformity of the product per the ASME, MSS, ASTM standards and
additional Saudi Aramco requirement

Reference Documents
ASME B16.5 for flanges size upto and including 24 Inches
ASME B16.47 Series A & B for flanges size above 24 Inches
ASTM SPECIFICATIONS
MSS SP 44 for Flanges manufactured MSS standard
MSS SP 55 for visual inspection
MSS SP 25 for marking inspection
02-SAMSS-011, Table-1, for Aramco standard specification for WN flanges
IR Form 175 026000 for Inspection requirements for Aramco WN flanges
EN 10204 for certification requirements for metallic material
Procedure
Inspection Procedure for all types of flanges is as follows;
1) Document Review:
a. Inspector to review the purchase order, its attachments and approved
drawings and manufacturer catalogue (If available) pertaining to the flanges.
b. Review the Material Test Certificates of the Fittings supplied by the
manufacturer for traceability. MTC should be legible identifiable and with
proper reference to the purchase order and it is advisable to check the original
copy.
c. An MTC should have the identification no. (Document/report/certificate No.). it
should show the date of issue.
d. MTC should mention the melt/heat or any other identification for material
traceability.
e. Clients additional requirements and supplementary requirements need to be
identified pertaining to the Chemical Composition, Mechanical Properties and
the Heat treatment details before reviewing the MTC.

GENERAL INSPECTION GUIDELINES FOR THE INSPECTION OF FLANGES

Page 2 of 5
f.

Chemical Composition: Chemical composition should be shown in heat

analysis and verified with respect to the applicable ASTM specification i.e.
A105, A182, A350, A707 A859 & A694 etc.
Additionally for compliance of Saudi Aramco 02-SAMSS-011, below are the
additional requirements to be verified;

Heat Analysis is required for: Carbon, Manganese, Phosphorus, Sulfur,

Silicon, Nickel, Chromium, Molybdenum, Copper,
Niobium(Columbium), Vanadium, Titanium, Aluminum, and Boron.
Analysis for Calcium, Nitrogen and Oxygen is also required when
specified in the respective standards or in this specification.
Boron shall not be intentionally added.
Additional chemical composition requirements w.r.t. the ASTM
specifications are as listed below;
ASTM #
Grade
Class
P
S
B
Ca
CE

A105
B
--0.020
0.015
0.0005
0.005
0.43

A350
LF2
2
0.020
0.015
0.0005
0.005
0.43

A350
LF2
1
0.020
0.015
0.0005
0.005
0.43

A707
L3
1
0.020
0.015
0.0005
0.005
0.43

A707
L3
3
0.020
0.015
0.0005
0.005
0.43

A707
L5
3
0.020
0.015
0.0005
0.005
0.43

A859
A
2
0.020
0.015
0.0005
0.005
---

A694
F52
--0.020
0.020
----0.43

A707
L3
3
0.020
0.015
0.0005
0.005
0.43

P and S for SS flanges is limited to 0.020 and 0.015

g. Mechanical Properties: Mechanical properties i.e Yield Strength, Tensile
Strength, Percentage Elongation and reduction in area etc. should be verified
with respect to the applicable ASTM specification i.e. A105, A182, A350, A707
A859 & A694 etc.

100% of the following sizes shall be hardness tested;

Class 150 & 300 -- 26 inch NPS and larger

GENERAL INSPECTION GUIDELINES FOR THE INSPECTION OF FLANGES

Page 3 of 5
Class 400 -- 30 inch NPS and larger
Class 600 & 900 -- 20 inch NPS and larger
Class 1500 & 2500 -- 14 inch NPS and larger
Smaller sizes shall be sample hardness tested. Impressions shall be on

either the side of the flange rim or on the outer diameter, mid way
between bolt hole locations. Every flange and test ring shall be
tested at two locations 180 degrees apart.
The highest and lowest values from the same test lot, test

specimens included, shall not differ by more than 30 HB, or the

entire lot is rejected.

Grain Size for A105, A350 flanges shall be minimum 6.

Grain Size for A707 L3(Class 1 & 3) shall be minimum 8

Grain Size for A707 L5(Class 3), A859 A(Class 2), A694 (F59) shall be
minimum 7.
.
h. Heat Treatment: Heat Treatment details i.e. type of heat treatment, heating
cooling cycles and HT charts if available should be verified with respect to the
applicable ASTM specification i.e. A105, A182, A350, A707 A859 & A694 etc.
Minimum temperature for tempering or precipitation hardening is 590 C.
A105, A350 and A707 L3(Class 1) flanges shall be Normalized Heat Treated.
A707 L3(Class 3) flanges shall be Quenched and Tempered.
Grain Size for A707 L5(Class 3), A859 A(Class 2), flanges shall be
Quenched and Precipitation Hardened.
i.

NDE Requirement verification:

Magnetic Particle Testing shall be performed on all accessible areas by wet

fluorescent method in accordance with ASTM A508/A275.
Dye Penetrant Testing may be substituted for stainless steel flanges

as applicable.
Ultrasonic Testing (UT) shall be conducted on flanges in accordance
with the following requirements:
100% of all ASME/ANSI flanges, rated for at least 3000 psi
service (not class rating), and all API SPEC 6A Type 6B flanges,

GENERAL INSPECTION GUIDELINES FOR THE INSPECTION OF FLANGES

Page 4 of 5
shall be UT tested by longitudinal wave and angle beam
examination
F42 and stronger flanges in accordance with ASTM A707/A388
including Supplementary Requirement S8 (angle beam).
Acceptance limits for angle beam examination will be in
accordance with ASTM A508.
100% sampling is required of flanges in the following sizes and
classes only:
Class 400 & 600, 26 inch NPS and larger (A707 S1)
Class 900, 20 inch NPS and larger (A707 S1)
Class 1500 & 2500, 14 inch NPS and larger (A707 S1)
UT testing per ASTM A707 of other sizes and classes is expressly

waived unless required by Quality Plan

j.

All the MTC after review should be stamped Reviewed with signature and
position of the reviewer. Only reviewed MTC should be offered to Third party
inspector. This MTC should have the correct reference to the Purchase Order
and its item nos.

2) Physical and quantity verification: Material should be physically identified

and quantity to be verified according to purchase order during witnessed
inspection.
3) Visual Inspection: Visual inspection of the flanges will be performed as per the
applicable ASME B16.5, B16.47 and MSS SP 55. Flanges shall be free from any
noticeable flaws as forging, machining, cutting or handling damages.

As-machined roughness of the raised face shall be 3.2 to 6.4 micro-meters

Ra
4) Dimensional Inspection: Dimensional inspection should be performed
according to ASME B 16.5, B16.47 A and the drawing mentioned in purchase
order.

5) Marking Inspection: All flanges should be marked by the manufacturer by

metal stamping, low stress stamps are not required if markings are confined to

GENERAL INSPECTION GUIDELINES FOR THE INSPECTION OF FLANGES

Page 5 of 5
the outer diameter of the rim(the circumferential curved surface of flange).

Markings shall be in the following order when possible:

Descriptive Acronym for flange type
Pressure Rating
Nominal Size and Bore Diameter (Schedule, XS, etc.)
Dimensional Standard
Strength Marking per Table II
Heat Treatment per Table I
Material Standard and Supplementary Requirements per Table I
"LO TEMP" or "API", when applicable
Non-Destructive Test Markings
Ring Joint Gasket Number, when applicable
Manufacturer's Name (first 3 letters or logo)
6) Protective Coatings and Packaging: Finish-machined and tested flanges
shall be coated overall with a protective finish that does not hide
markings. The coating shall be suitable for welding
Report:
A report shall be generated in standard approved format w.r.t. the activities mentioned
above.
Responsibility:
QC inspectors are responsible for performing the inspection.