Plastic Pipe Joining Qualification & Training

The United States Department of Transportation (DOT) regulation 192.285 requires pipeline operators to qualify employee and contractor personnel involved in the joining of polyethylene (PE) pipe. Personnel must be qualified annually in handling, preparing and joining PE pipe through mechanical, heat fusion, and/or electrofusion processes.  ARC Randolph & Associates, LLC certified instructors and evaluators can be scheduled to conduct quality, cost-effective pipe joining classes and/or qualifications onsite for you and your company.  For more information or to schedule training/qualifications contact us today at  614-329-6416, or 859-543-0224

Join Plastic Pipe with Heat Fusion

• Joining of Plastic Pipe – Butt Fusion: Manual
• Joining of Plastic Pipe – Butt Fusion: Hydraulic
• Joining of Plastic Pipe – Sidewall Heat Fusion
• Joining of Plastic Pipe – Electrofusion
• Joining of Plastic Pipe – Socket Heat Fusion

Join Plastic Pipe with Mechanical Fittings

• Joining of Plastic Pipe – Stab Fittings
• Joining of Pipe – Non-Bottom Out Compression Couplings
• Joining of Pipe – Bottom Out Compression Couplings
• Joining of Pipe – Compression Couplings

Part 192 – Transportation of Natural or Other Gas by Pipeline

192.285 Plastic pipe: Qualifying persons to make joints.
(a) No person may make a plastic pipe joint unless that person has been qualified under the applicable joining procedure by:

(1) Appropriate training or experience in the use of the procedure; and

(2) Making a specimen joint from pipe sections joined according to the procedure that passes the inspection and test set forth in paragraph (b) of this section.

(b) The specimen joint must be:

(1) Visually examined during and after assembly or joining and found to have the same appearance as a joint or photographs of a joint that is acceptable under the procedure; and

(2) In the case of a heat fusion, solvent cement, or adhesive joint:

(i) Tested under any one of the test methods listed under §192.283(a), or for PE heat fusion joints (except for electrofusion joints) visually inspected and tested in accordance with ASTM F2620-12 (incorporated by reference, see §192.7) applicable to the type of joint and material being tested;

(ii) Examined by ultrasonic inspection and found not to contain flaws that would cause failure; or

(iii) Cut into at least 3 longitudinal straps, each of which is:

(A) Visually examined and found not to contain voids or discontinuities on the cut surfaces of the joint area; and

(B) Deformed by bending, torque, or impact, and if failure occurs, it must not initiate in the joint area.

(c) A person must be re-qualified under an applicable procedure once each calendar year at intervals not exceeding 15 months, or after any production joint is found unacceptable by testing under §192.513.

(d) Each operator shall establish a method to determine that each person making joints in plastic pipelines in the operator’s system is qualified in accordance with this section.

[Amdt. 192-34A, 45 FR 9935, Feb. 14, 1980, as amended by Amdt. 192-34B, 46 FR 39, Jan. 2, 1981; Amdt. 192-93, 68 FR 53900, Sept. 15, 2003; Amdt. 192-120, 80 FR 12779, Mar. 11, 2015; Amdt. 192-124, 83 FR 58718, Nov. 20, 2018]