REGULATIONS

10 MACHINERY UPDATE MARCH/APRIL 2022 www.machineryupdate.co.uk 10 MACHINERY UPDATERegulations NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2021 www.machineryupdate.co.uk

Keeping control of the pressure…

Paul Laidler Paul Taylor BUSINESS DIRECTOR FOR MACHINERY SAFTEY AT TÜV SÜD PRODUCT SERVICE MANAGER FOR MACHINERY SAFETY AT TÜV SÜD PRODUCT SERVICE

The guidance document for pressure systems from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy is a useful reference when conforming to the UK’s Pressure Equipment Regulations 2016 (PER) or the EU’s Pressure Equipment Directive, as it can save time

Machine builders o en nd that part of the equipment they are designing falls within the scope of the UK’s Pressure Equipment Regulations 2016 (PER) or the European Union’s Pressure Equipment Directive.

While the purpose of the PER is to protect machinery end-users from unsafe products, it provides many options and routes to conformity. This can prove to be time consuming for those not fully familiar with this process and an inappropriate choice of the route to compliance could potentially lead to signi cant third-party inspection costs. A useful reference is the guidance document for pressure systems from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).

The PER is mandatory for equipment operating at a pressure greater than 0.5 bar, and is wide ranging as it impacts upon design, production, nal inspection/ test, marking/labelling, and instructions for use/ maintenance. The regulations do not apply to: • Excluded pressure equipment and assemblies (speci ed in Schedule 1 of the PER) • Pressure equipment and assemblies placed on the machinery market before 8 December 2016 • Pressure equipment or assemblies placed on the market on or before 29 May 2002 if they comply with the

safety provisions in force in the UK on 29 November 1999 • The assembly of pressure equipment on the site of and under the responsibility of a user who is not the manufacturer.

DEFINE MANUFACTURER The regulations de ne a manufacturer as a person with legal authority to design, manufacture, package and label pressure equipment before it is placed on the market, regardless of whether these operations are carried out by them, or on their behalf by another person.

They are required to ensure that pressure equipment or assemblies have been designed and manufactured in accordance with the essential safety requirements (ESR), which are detailed in Schedule 2 of the PER. Alternatively, for equipment falling within Regulation 8 (sound engineering practice) it must meet the requirements of that regulation.

The machine builder is therefore responsible for classifying the equipment or assembly into the appropriate category, determining the conformity procedure that applies, carrying out the relevant conformity assessment procedure and drawing up the relevant technical documentation.

Firstly, decide whether the equipment really does fall within the scope of the PER as there are several exclusions, which are set out in Schedule 1 of the Regulations. Paragraph ‘f’ of Schedule 1 also includes a speci c exclusion for equipment that is classi ed as ‘no higher than category 1’. However, the only way to decide if this is appropriate, is to undertake the following steps.

The rst stage is to decide whether the equipment should

be categorised as a vessel, which is de ned as ‘a housing designed and built to contain uids under pressure’; piping, which covers components intended for the transport of uids when connected for integration into a pressure system; or a steam generator, such as a boiler.

GAS OR LIQUID? Except in the case of a steam generator, it is also necessary to decide whether the uid contained in the equipment is a gas or a liquid, and whether the uid must be treated as a Group 1 or Group 2 uid.

The decision about whether the uid is a gas or a liquid is usually straightforward as the regulations require the uid to be treated as a gas if it has vapour pressure greater than 0.5 bar at the maximum allowable temperature for the equipment. Information about vapour pressure at various temperatures should be readily available from the uid supplier. Deciding between Group 1 and Group 2 uids is equally easy, as Group 1 covers uids that are explosive, ammable, toxic or oxidising, with all other uids falling into Group 2.

The next step is to identify the relevant conformity assessment table in Schedule 1B of the regulations and determine the correct classi cation of the equipment by plotting the maximum allowable pressure and, in the case of vessels, the volume in litres or, for piping, the nominal size. Conformity assessment must be carried out by Conformity Assessment Bodies, also known as Approved Bodies.

The PER is not a process that machine builders can a ord to get wrong. Although initially it may appear challenging, by adopting a step-by-step approach, achieving compliance within the PER can be a relatively straightforward and inexpensive process.

By embracing a step-by-step approach, achieving compliance within the PER can be an inexpensive process

i For more information contact W www.tuv-sud.co.uk TÜV SÜD Product Service is the PPMA’s technical and legislative partner