Standards for British pressure vessels
15 Jan 2000
The origins of existing practices can be traced in the UK as far back as the 1850s when steam boilers in cotton mills were exploding with devastating consequences for lives and property; these practices have developed over the years and are now the norm in all the developed nations.
Practice in the UK has been driven by the British Standards for fired and for unfired vessels which support the UK Pressure Systems Regulations. These Standards (compliance with which is, admittedly, voluntary) nevertheless specify a mandatory requirement for independent design appraisal and stage inspection and thereby reflect the practices which in many countries - notably the US (Sentries of Safety: The National Board of Boiler and Pressure Inspectors, US) and certain members of the European Union - are now enshrined in legislation. This has been a system which has proven its worth in providing high levels of safety without placing an excessive burden on the manufacturing industry to which it applies.
