CRN Consulting Services

EngRx knows the Canadian Registration Number (CRN) process….

Canadian Provincial jurisdictions are regulated by CSA B51 which mandates that pressure equipment is registered. Drawings, calculations and plans are to be submitted to Provincial Boiler Authorities who will review documentation to code or engineering theory, and if found acceptable, will issue a CRN. As well, pressure equipment must be manufactured under an acceptable Quality System. To the unfamiliar, this process can be onerous.

Typical CRN Certificate

CSA B51 is brought into enforcement through Provincial legislation. For example, in Alberta, the Safety Codes Act includes the Pressure Equipment Safety Regulation. This Regulation effectively brings CSA B51 into force.

CSA B51 states that repeated construction of a pressure equipment design with a valid CRN is permissible until a code, Act or standard invalidate the design. Unless stated otherwise within the code, Act or Standard, CSA B51 allows 6 months for a design to be revised to meet new requirements.

The frequent question of whether a design change will affect the validity of a CRN is also addressed in CSA B51. Revisions to an existing registered design that require a change in design calculations or otherwise affect the pressure-retaining capability of the pressure equipment need to be submitted for CRN re-registration or new registration. Provincial Regulations can be more restrictive relative to design changes, whereas all design changes can be required to be assessed for validity of CRN by Provincial Safety Authority Design Survey Engineers.

ASME codes are the mandated design codes for vessels, piping and fittings, whereas pipeline design falls under CSA Z662.

Pressure Vessels and Category H Fittings with a Maximum Allowable Working Pressure lower than 15 psi do not fall within the requirements of CSA B51 and therefore do not require a CRN. The following flow chart is extracted from the recent version of CSA B51. It is shown as an example of the logic provided by the specification and clarifies CRN requirements for some pressure equipment used in liquid service not more hazardous than water. Other similar flow charts are found within the specification.

A Canadian Registration Number (CRN) is allocated by the provincial regulatory authority and uniquely identified by a suffix following a decimal point. Identifiers per province are as follows:

1 British Columbia
2 Alberta
3 Saskatchewan
4 Manitoba
5 Ontario
6 Quebec
7 New Brunswick
8 Nova Scotia
9 Prince Edward Island
0 Newfoundland
T Nothwest Territories
Y Yukon
N Nunavit

An example CRN could be as follows: 5278.5 (issued from Ontario) and 5278.52 (issued from Ontario and Alberta). If a letter C is used in the CRN suffix, it designates that the design is registered in all provinces and territories. Once a design has been registered in one province, it may be simultaneously submitted to all remaining provinces.

The CRN of a pressure fitting will have a “0” leading the registration number.

The manufacturing of pressure equipment for operation in Canada must be done under a satisfactory quality control program. It will be the responsibility of the manufacturer to provide information to the regulatory authority that proves the quality control program is functioning. Normally the quality control program would include an outside auditor review and acceptance. The format of an ISO type quality program is acceptable. Within Canada, pressure equipment quality control programs are audited directly by regulatory authority representatives and upon successful completion of the audit, a Certificate of Authorization may be issued to the organization.

On-Line Leak Repair ABSA-AB-521

In February 2016, ABSA introduced new regulations (Requirements for Engineering Pressure Enclosures, “EPE”) related to the Leak Sealing industry found in their release of the AB-521 document. The intention of the new requirements are to increase diligence in all segments of executing on-line leak repair (Leak Sealing). Facility owners are now encouraged to pre-register an RRIMR with ABSA to qualify future Leak Sealing enclosures under the new “streamlined” CRN process. As well, after the pressure equipment owners have registered their RRIMR, cataloged Leak Sealing Enclosures will qualify for installation through the ABSA streamlined CRN process. Leak Sealing contractors are now required to provide operations procedures for the safe installation of Leak Sealing enclosures as part of the CRN application process. Under ABSA AB-521, special consideration will need to be given when covering; Localized Thinned Area (LTA), Cracks, ASME B31.1 and Pressure Vessel related leaks. When Local Thinned Areas are present, the rules of ASME Section VIII Division 1 Appendix 32 related to the width and depth of the affected area are to be considered. Diligent NDE will need to be a requirement to complete analysis according to Appendix 32. When leaks or equipment pressure integrity issues are identified, ABSA AB-521 requires equipment owners to perform and report: Risk Assessment, Root Cause and a Maintenance and Monitoring System. In summary, owners, installers and engineers will need execute in close collaboration to meet the new requirements.

Recent changes to ABSA AB-521 Requirements for Leak Sealing Enclosures, or EPE’s, were introduced in July 2019. The changes to AB-521 largely introduce Annex A which provide guidelines for entities to include processes involving Leak Sealing Enclosures within their Alberta Owner-User QMS. The requirements within the QMS largely involve the elements of the RRIMR. For certain EPE applications detailed in Table 2 of AB-521, entities that successfully incorporate AB-521 requirements within their Owner-User QMS will be in the position of reviewing their own RRIMR rather than submitting the RRIMR to ABSA. The Owner-User will nominate a Recognized Procedure Reviewer (RPR) than will in essence assume responsibility of the execution of safe and compliance scope of Leak Repair Enclosures , or EPE’s

Refer to the following ABSA AB-521 link for more details:

https://www.absa.ca/media/1211/ab-521-requirements-for-engineered-pressure-enclosures.pdf

British Columbia CRN and Seismic Analysis

British Columbia is in a peculiar geographical region called the Cascadian, which is an active earthquake area. The techtonic plate geophysics make it actually one of the most active seismic regions in the world. Seismic analysis is generally a requirement in the design of pressure equipment in British Columbia. All British Columbia CRN (s) are administered and issued through Technical Safety BC. The British Columbia CRN process involves the completion of the CRN Application which requires a responsible authority such as a Professional Engineer to Authenticate the document in a Compliance Declaration section. As well, the stress analysis submitted as part of registration leading to a British Columbia CRN will involve Seismic Analysis under a qualified authority such as a Professional Engineer. EngRx can provide professional engineering leading to British Columbia CRN including Seismic Analysis.

EngRx understands and continuously participates in the Canadian pressure equipment regulatory processes. Our team consults and manages projects through the CRN process on your company’s behalf. We will navigate your project through application submission, design review, design finding response and final resolution to CRN.

Call us for further details related to your requirements for design registration. Our experience will deliver results

Province Regulatory Authorities

ALBERTA

Alberta Boilers and Safety Association (ABSA)

9410 20th Avenue NW Edmonton, Alberta, T6N 0A4

Phone: 780-437-9100

Fax: 780-437-7787

www.absa.ca

BRITISH COLUMBIA

B.C. SAFETY AUTHORITY (BSCA)

SASKATCHEWAN

Technical Safety Authority of Saskatchewan (TSASK)

2202 2nd Avenue, Regina, Saskatchewan, S4R 1K3

Toll Free: 1-866-530-8599

Phone: 306-798-7111

Fax: 306-787-9273

www.tsask.ca

YUKON

ACI Central Inc.

20 McAuley Court, Charlottetown, PEI, C1A 9M7

Phone: 902-566-1975

Fax: 902-566-3133

www.acicrn.com

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