scope:

This standard applies to all fastening locations or threaded fasteners in equipment manufacturing, plant construction and mechanical engineering, and also to the assembly of flanged connections in components under pressure. It concerns all entities or companies involved in the manufacture, assembly, maintenance and repair of equipment, installations or machines.

Objective

This standard provides a basis for the classification of threaded joints and serves as an aid in selecting and using the corresponding fastening systems and tools. This is to be achieved by:

• an unambiguous classification of joint types into categories

• defining the minimum requirements applicable to fastening systems and tools for each category, and

• defining the minimum requirements applicable to fault detection within the respective category.

The minimum requirements stated are of universal application and are independent of particular solutions - in other words, they are not tied to specific system structures, fastener designs or assembly technologies.

A selection appropriate to the application in question should be made on the basis of the minimum requirements indicated.

Demarcation

It is assumed that users of this standard will select and operate these fastening systems and tools in accordance with all relevant legislation, ordinances, provisions and regulations.

In the interests of technical progress this standard has been formulated in general terms, thus allowing greater design flexibility. Each application must be considered on a case-by-case basis.

The present standard will only be concerned with the joint and the fastening tool or fastening system to be used. It does not address safety aspects going beyond the joint itself (e.g., statistical evaluation, documentation, process safety, process parameters). The user of the standard will have to attend to these matters himself.