NATIONAL OIL CORPORATION

GENERAL ENGINEERING SPECIFICATION

GES C.02

PROTECTION OF MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT
DURING CONSTRUCTION
















Rev Date Description Checked Approved
0 1999 Issued for Implementation DL


Compiled by Teknica (UK) Ltd
GENERAL ENGINEERING SPECIFICATION
PROTECTION OF MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT
GES C.02
Page 2 of 7
DURING CONSTRUCTION Rev 0 1999

INDEX

SEC TITLE PAGE

1.0 SCOPE OF SPECIFICATION 3

1.1 Introduction 3
1.2 Other NOC Specifications 3
1.3 Codes and Standards 3

2.0 DEFINITIONS 3

2.1 Technical 3
2.2 Contractual 4

3.0 ESSENTIALS 5

4.0 PIPELINES AND PRE-FABRICATED PIPEWORK 5

5.0 PRESSURE TESTING 6

6.0 EQUIPMENT 7

7.0 PROTECTIVE COATINGS 7
GENERAL ENGINEERING SPECIFICATION
PROTECTION OF MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT
GES C.02
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1.0 SCOPE OF SPECIFICATION

1.1 Introduction

1.1.1 This specification defines the general requirements for the protection of all equipment and materials used
during the construction phase of a project for refineries, on-shore oil and gas installations, and processing
facilities.

1.1.2 Such equipment and materials shall be handled and stored specifically to maintain the mechanical integrity
and functionality in respect to their end use.

1.1.3 The various procedures included in this specification are meant to protect the items against damage and
degradation due to various adversaries such as the weather, lack of care, mishandling, etc.

1.1.4 This specification is not meant to replace or modify the erection and installation procedures, but to
supplement them with details of how to ensure overall integrity of equipment and materials during the
construction phase.

1.2 Other NOC Specifications

1.2.1 Where indicated in this specification, the following additional NOC Specifications shall apply:

GES C.01 Protection of Materials and Equipment during Storage

GES C.03 Safety Procedures on Construction Sites

GES C.05 Mechanical Equipment Installation Practices

GES C.06 Electrical Installation Practices

1.3 Codes and Standards

1.3.1 There are no specific codes and standards identified which are unique to the scope of this specification,
however individual supporting installation and commissioning specifications will identify the appropriate
equipment or material codes which may, or may not, provide details on special protection requirements.


2.0 DEFINITIONS

2.1 Technical

2.1.1 The technical terms referred to within this specification are defined as follows:

Deterioration

Deterioration is a condition that adversely affects the properties (physical or chemical) or performance of
the item under consideration.

Corrosion

Corrosion is the deterioration through the gradual eating away of a material by the attack of liquids and
gases to which it is exposed. The rate of corrosion is affected to a considerable extent by the conditions of
exposure, the type of corrosive medium, the nature of the products of corrosion and by the presence of
certain bacteria or marine growths. This is a very basic interpretation as many other influencing factors
determine the rate or ability of one substance to corrode another. The most common is the corrosion attack
on bare steel by moisture which may be accelerated by the presence of other organic and inorganic
compounds.
GENERAL ENGINEERING SPECIFICATION
PROTECTION OF MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT
GES C.02
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DURING CONSTRUCTION Rev 0 1999

Contamination

This is any extraneous materials that will give rise to damage, deterioration, or corrosion. This may be
products originated within the plant itself, e.g. acidic vapours, or natural elements such as sand and
humidity.

Vapour Phase Inhibitors (VPIs) and Preservatives

These are materials that serve as a barrier between the material and the attacking agent either as a mist or
vapour that settles out onto the surfaces to be protected or as a positive barrier applied thick enough to
prevent the penetration of the attacking agent over a period of time. These materials can provide protection
up to a maximum specified time period, after which time they must be replaced. Caution must be exercised
in the selection of these materials as they themselves may, in certain circumstances and on certain
materials, act as the corroding agent.

2.2 Contractual

The commercial terms used in this specification are defined as follows:

Owner

The oil and gas company, an associate or subsidiary, who is the end user of the equipment and facilities.

Vendor

The company supplying the equipment and material.

Contractor

The main contractor for a defined piece of work

Sub-Contractor

A company awarded a contract by a Contractor to do part of the work awarded to the Contractor.

Inspection Authority

The organisation representing the Owner or Vendor/Contractor that verifies that the equipment and
facilities have been designed, constructed, inspected and tested in accordance with the requirements of this
specification and the Purchase Order/Contract.

Inspector

A qualified individual representing the Owner, Vendor/Contractor or the assigned Inspection Authority,
who verifies that the equipment and facilities have been designed, constructed, inspected and tested in
accordance with the requirements of this specification and the Purchase Order/Contract.





3.0 ESSENTIALS

3.1 No material or equipment shall be issued to the field unless it is due for installation, and arrangements are
complete for the lifting . This reduces the time the materials and equipment are exposed to the possibility of
contamination, and damage.
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PROTECTION OF MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT
GES C.02
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3.2 All equipment shall be clearly identified in order to ensure it is not accidentally installed in the wrong
location, where it might be subjected to damage or be a safety hazard due to incorrect use. Any item, or
material found without correct identification, shall be classed as non-conforming until its identity can be re-
established. Identification of all items shall be re-affirmed after installation, during pre-commissioning.

3.3 All materials used in construction that can deteriorate, such as cement, shall be issued from its storage area
in only sufficient quantities to complete the task at hand. If large quantities are issued then the surplus from
an operation must be returned to the storage area where it can undergo any necessary preservation to
prevent its further degradation.

3.4 All equipment items shall remain in their storage packaging until they are ready for use. All openings shall
remain sealed and any openings that are made for inspection purposes shall be resealed until the equipment
is ready for installation to prevent ingress of foreign materials, e.g. water, refuse, sand, etc.

3.5 Any item removed for testing purposes, e.g. instruments, valves, gauges, etc. shall be positively identified
to the unit they were removed from. All resulting openings shall be sealed to prevent ingress of foreign
materials and the removed item shall be subjected to preservation, i.e. temporary packaging, greasing,
covering, etc.

3.6 All bracing, temporary supports, rotor locking devices, etc., shall remain in place until the equipment is
ready to be commissioned. In all cases equipment must be retained in a protected condition until the last
moment to avoid unnecessary damage.

3.7 Consideration shall be given to the application of temporary preservatives during the construction on items
where there will be some time lag between installation and commissioning. As an example, all anchor bolts
must be protected by grease, or proprietary preservatives, from the time of installation until they are used to
bolt down the actual installed equipment.


4.0 PIPELINES AND PRE-FABRICATED PIPEWORK

4.1 All pipe flanges shall be kept free from damage and temporary preservative or flange covers applied when
the pipeline fabrication was undertaken. They shall not be removed except for inspection, cleaning, testing
and installation to minimize the damage and deterioration that can occur.

4.2 Straight lengths of pipe must be correctly stacked. If there are no formally designed pipe racks then the
pipework may be laid on timber and stacked in a pyramid style with no stack exceeding 6.5 ft (2 m) for
pipe up to 12in (300 mm) diameter and no more than 9.75 ft (3 m) high for larger pipes. There shall be
retaining wedges at the outside of the stack firmly secured to the supporting timbers on which the pipe
rests. Loose wedges shall not be used.

4.3 Formal pipe racks shall be designed and constructed to accept a range of pipe sizes. The maximum distance
between upright supports shall not exceed 6.5 ft (2 m). Pipes shall not be stacked higher than the supports
at any time.

4.4 Fabricated pipework shall be offloaded onto timber. Due to the complex shapes of prefabricated pipe
spools they are normally not stacked. All flanges shall be protected with wooden or plastic end covers. All
butt weld preparations shall be sealed by plastic caps or wooden covers taped into place. Pipe spools shall
be laid down in defined areas and, where practical, all of the spools for an isometric drawing shall be stored
together.

4.5 When pipework or pipes are required for site installation and fabrication, the construction Contractor shall
confirm the identity of each spool, each size, grade and class of each straight length of pipe and any fittings
required for fabrication against the appropriate isometric diagram. Materials shall be delivered to the
construction area in isometric construction sequence to avoid mix up between similar items on different
drawings.
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PROTECTION OF MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT
GES C.02
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4.6 Any pipe spool, fitting or straight length of pipe that cannot be positively identified against the isometric
drawing due to inadequate identification, shall be quarantined until the identification can be re-established.

4.7 During installation care shall be taken to avoid arc strikes on the material surface. On low alloy materials
arc strikes outside of the weld zone will lead to high stress raisers and therefore the welder shall carry a
strike plate to strike his arc. Tape shall be applied either side of the weld zone to prevent the occurrence of
accidental arc strikes. This is a typical problem in the field fabrication of manifolds, where the access for
welding is restricted. Arc strikes on pipelines, or equipment, especially in sour service, shall be avoided as
it may result in early failure.

4.8 All electrical connections to pipeline instrumentation are to be isolated during construction. Where practical
no instrumentation is to be connected to the pipeline during the fabrication stage, in order to avoid
accidental exposure to welding currents.

4.9 All valves, instruments and mechanical equipment items associated with a particular line shall either be left
out with distance pieces used for construction purposes, or temporary blanks fitted between these items and
the pipeline to prevent any debris from fabrication entering the equipment itself.

4.10 All temporary strainers are to be installed where specified in the installation procedures. Where practical,
these are to be fitted with a finer mesh than that to be used in service.

4.11 On certain types of valves, particularly those with weld ends and subject to stress relieving, the internals
may be removed during fabrication and testing. When this is permitted by the line specifications, then the
removed internals shall be formally packed, preserved as necessary, and identified with the valve serial
number as well as any other required identifiers.

4.12 Primed pipe spools shall be handled using flat non-metallic web slings to avoid damage.


5.0 PRESSURE TESTING

5.1 The following general guidelines shall be followed to protect equipment while performing in-situ pressure
testing of plant/production facility systems. Detailed test procedures shall be developed for each case, in
strict compliance with the methods and procedures provided in the established codes of practice such as
ANSI B 31.3, 31.4, 31.8, ASME applicable sections, with needed modifications as required, and approval
obtained from the authenticated bodies.

5.2 Any hydraulic testing that takes place must be with potable water, or specially treated low chlorine content
water, with a corrosion inhibitor included to prevent rusting from residues.

5.3 Relief valves on process lines will not be fitted during the full hydrostatic test, however there must be
precautions in place to prevent over pressurisation. As a minimum two (2) calibrated pressure test gauges
must be used during testing to ensure there can be no accidental over pressurisation if one should fail to
read correctly. Pressure relief valves are to be calibrated before installation.

5.4 All necessary safety precautions must be followed when testing. In addition special attention must be taken
to protect equipment that is in the immediate vicinity of points of discharge from pipework, especially
where purging and flushing operations take place.

5.5 Relief/Safety valves on hydraulic packages/systems will not be removed for testing except under the direct
instruction of the Inspector or Inspection Authority to avoid contamination of the hydraulic circuits.

5.6 After testing all lines shall be drained and internals dried by blowing dry air. The dryness can be confirmed
by a hygroscopic test on the outlet air. Rust inhibitors shall to be applied and surfaces preserved if the
lines/vessels are to remain out of service for extended periods. Alternatively, rust prevention can be
achieved by the application of other proprietary type mist inhibitors or vapour barriers.
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PROTECTION OF MATERIALS AND EQUIPMENT
GES C.02
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DURING CONSTRUCTION Rev 0 1999


6.0 EQUIPMENT

6.1 All items of mechanical equipment shall be sited without removing any protective coverings unless it is
unavoidable. Any covers removed shall be replaced after equipment has been installed and this must be
done at the earliest possible opportunity.

6.2 All small diameter pipes, tubes and other delicate pieces of equipment shall be protected against
mechanical damage during handling and installation.

6.3 When the equipment, associated pipework, cabling and instrumentation has been installed, then it can be
made ready for commissioning. As part of the preparation any preservatives and temporary attachments,
locking devices, etc. shall be removed. Connecting pipework shall only be attached when there is positive
evidence that cleaning of the equipment and flange faces has been completed.

6.4 No equipment shall be started up until it is positively confirmed that all lubricants, and other operational
fluids, have been applied and all lines are clear. All temporary bracing shall be removed.

6.5 Rotating equipment may have become off balanced during transit and/or installation, therefore all
precautions shall be taken to ensure no further damage occurs by starting up equipment that has been
installed incorrectly. All start ups are to be made in incremental stages, so that equipment can be quickly
shut down in the event of a problem without creating additional problems or damage.

6.6 All installed equipment shall have all unpainted threads, and bare shafts such as those used for operation
and adjustment, protected by grease or preservatives so it is in a satisfactory status at the time of start up.


7.0 PROTECTIVE COATINGS

7.1 All protective coatings shall be protected by taking care during handling. All equipment shall be lifted by
its lifting lugs, where fitted, using any specified lifting device or spreader bars to avoid damage and to
ensure a safe lift. Webbing slings are preferred where they can be used within their safe working load. An
alternative is to use protective mats between the item being lifted and any slings.

7.2 Where the protective coating becomes damaged it must be assessed quickly to ensure that there is no
danger of corrosion taking place. If the coating is only damaged superficially, then it can be repaired as part
of final touch up work. Where the coating is damaged to a point that the metal surface is exposed, then a
full or temporary repair must be carried out as quickly as possible.

7.3 Damaged coatings shall be restored in accordance with the project specifications.

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