RTR FLANGE TIGHTENING, BOLT TORQUING PROCEDURE | METHOD STATEMENT

1. PURPOSE.
2. SCOPE.
3. REFERENCES.
4. RESPONSIBILITIES.
5. PROCEDURE.
6. SAFETY.
7. ATTACHMENT.

1.0 PURPOSE

This procedure or method statement shall provide minimum Guidelines for RTR flange joint bolt tightening & torqueing activities, in accordance with Project Drawings and Project Specifications.

2.0 SCOPE

This procedure applies to RTR flange joint bolt tightening & torqueing for Commercial buildings, plants and refineries.

3.0 REFERENCES

ASME B31.3 Chemical Plant and Petroleum Refinery Piping.
ASTM D4024 Reinforced Thermosetting Resin (RTR) Flanges.
SAES-A-004  General Requirement for Pressure Testing.
SAES-A-007 Hydrostatic Testing Fluids and Lay-up Procedure.
SAES-B-017 Fire Water System Design.
SAES-L-105 Piping Material Specifications.
SAES-L-610 Non-metallic Piping in Oily Water Services.
SAES-S-010 Sanitary Sewers.
SAES-S-020 Oily Water Drainage Systems.
SAES-S-030 Storm Water Drainage Systems.
SAES-S-040 Saudi Aramco Water Systems.
SAES-S-070 Installation of Utility Piping Systems.
SAEP-351 Bolted Flange Joints Assembly.
SAIC-S-4056 R TR and Thermoplastic Piping Handling, Storage and Preservation.
SAIC-S-4057 Assembly of Thermoplastic (PVC, UPVC, CPVC and HDPE) Piping.

SAIC-S-4058 Assembly and Laying of RTR piping.
SATIP-L-350-05 Fire Water Distribution Piping Installation.
SA TIP-S-070-03 Thermoplastic and R TR Piping.
01-SAMSS-029 RTR (Fiberglass) Sewer Pipe and Fittings for Gravity Flow.
01-SAMSS-034 Pressure Pipes and Fittings and Pipes, FPI MANUAL(VENDER).

V -216A-1 09-A-513 Preservation Procedure (Storage Procedure) at Construction Site.
V -216A-l 09-A-515 Field Fabrication Procedure (For Adhesive & RSLJ Connection).
V-216A-1 09-A-516 Repairing Procedure.
V-216A-1 09-A-518 Bolt Torquing I Flange Tightening Procedure.

4.0 RESPONSIBILITIES

4.1 Construction Manager shall be responsible for the overall implementation of this procedure and shall appoint personnel to undertake periodic audits to ensure this procedure is being complied with.
4.2 Health Safety & Environment (HSE) Manager shall be responsible for ensuring that any Safety issues arising from the implementation of this procedure and regular inspections are followed up and recorded by all Field Supervisors and notified to Project management accordingly.
4.3 Materials Controller shall be responsible for ensuring that all materials are stored and transferred to the custody ofthe Construction Contractors in a clean and dry condition, suitably protected to ensure ingress of debris and moisture is prevented.

4.4 Field Superintendent shall be responsible for ensuring that all Field Supervisors and Contractor personnel are aware of the requirements of this procedure and for monitoring its implementation at site.
4.5 Field Supervisors shall be responsible for the detailed day-to-day operation of the procedure. They shall complete regular inspections in line with the agreed quality plans and random inspections of Construction Contractors operations to ensure the requirements are being successfully implemented.

4.6 QA/QC Manager has the responsibility to:

4.6.1 Review of all request including Daily Inspection Report.
4.6.2 Managing worker.
4.6.3 Managing control system.
4.6.4 Managing of quality control
4.6.5 Managing inspection and test with regard to tightening & torquing.

5.0 PROCEDURE for Manual Bolt Tightening

This procedure describes the steps to be followed in tightening the bolts during the Assembly of 025 to 01400 mm RTR to RTR or RTR to full-face steel flange or RTR to raised face flange
using Kroll & Ziller or Integrated Gasket. The flanges of diameters 25 to 1200 mm have a flat face. The gasket used with the flat face flanges is Kroll & Ziller type G-ST-P/S.
5.1 Thoroughly clean the face of the flanges & the gaskets.
5.2 Inspect the gasket (Kroll & Ziller type) or integrated rubber gasket of valve for any damage. Do not use damaged gasket or integrated rubber gasket of valve.
5.3 For the flat face flanges, place the gasket in position & hold it in the right place by masking tape. Ensure that the holes of the gasket & the flange are aligned.
5.4 Place the flange. Make sure that the mating flange is properly supported to avoid load being transmitted to the fiberglass flange.
5.5 Insert the flange’s bolts.
5.6 Install washer and apply nut until it is hand tight.
5.7 Flat washer shall be placed under nuts and bolts on non-metallic flanges.

5.8 Number each bolt starting at the top in a clock-wise direction.
5.9 Tighten all the bolts at 70% of the recommended torque value as specify in Table 1 depending on its piping class using the diagonally sequence ( see fig 1 ).
5.10 Tighten all the bolts at 100& of the recommended torque value as shown in Table 1 using the diagonally sequence for two rounds.

5.11 Torque Wrench shall be calibrated from Aramco approved Calibrator prior to use it in the project site and valid calibration certificate shall be provided.
5.12 Add spacer in case fiberglass flanges is connected to a raised face flange.
5.13 Tightening of bolts on the flange shall be done properly with proper alignment and parallelism as per standard requirements specified from R TR Pipe Manufacturer and Vendor’s recommendations and instructions and Saudi Aramco Engineering Procedure SAEP-351.
5.14 Bolt tightening and bolt torqueing shall be done by an experienced person and well-trained personnel in charge for the specific task or job ~

Note:

a) Do not over torque the flange bolts. The over torque may cause permanent damage to fiberglass flanges.
b) Do not laminate the flange joint until the original supports are fixed in location and the full torque is applied to the flanges in order ensure that the R TR flanges are stress free.
c) The Table 1 specifies the torque values for flanged connection and table 2 for bolt size.
d) Tightening shall be as per the bolt torquing sequence as described in ASTM D4024 ( see Flange Torquing Sequence Drawing).
e) FPI comply with the requirement as per 01-SAMSS-034.
f) more information please check Fiberstrong / Wavistrong Flange Guide.

6.0 Safety

6.1 Ensure that all personnel involved in the work are wearing standard personnel protective equipment (PPE).
6.2 Maintain warning devices such as warning tapes, signboards and barriers around the work area to prevent injury to all personnel affected by the operations.
6.3 Tools (Hand Tools and Machined Operated tools) and Safety Harnesses shall be monitored and coded as per safety monthly monitoring guidelines for acceptance and compliance of these equipment to daily site activities.

7.0 ATTACHMENT

JOB SAFETY ANALYSIS JSA FOR BOLT TORQUING AND TENSIONING