Technical Integrity Engineering is a term applied to the engineering disciplines associated with the

design, assurance and verification functions that ensure a product, process, or system meets its
appropriate and intended requirements under stated operating conditions. Application of these
disciplines should not adversely impact a program, but should in fact minimize cost, schedule,
technical and legal risks and improve the overall life cycle cost.
Asset Integrity is a term that relates to the process that improves operational reliability, safety and
asset protection whilst at the same time helping to maximize plant performance and mitigate the
constant challenges and hazards facing heavy industries such as Oil and Gas, Power Generation
and Nuclear.
It is also considered as the discipline and profession of acquiring and applying scientific,
mathematical, economic, social, legal and practical knowledge to the assurance, and verification
functions that ensure a product, process, or system meets (and is meeting) its appropriate and
intended safety, legal and business requirement(s).
In a post-Macondo Prospect (see (Deepwater Horizon explosion) and Piper Alpha world, the role of
integrity engineering has been placed under increased scrutiny. Not only can a well-managed
integrity engineering program help operators identify and reduce safety risks before they escalate,
but focusing on asset integrity can also play a major role in both achieving operational excellence
and extending the life of ageing assets.[1]
Typical responsibilities for an Integrity Engineer would be, to coordinate efficient and cost-effective
implementation of inspections and integrity management programs and to ensure integrity of plant
facilities including all onshore and offshore structures, pipelines, stationary equipment, piping
systems, etc.
In the scope of Integrity Management it is essential that this role is independent so that unbiased
and forthright decisions are made to ensure that equipment is designed, maintained, operated and
decommissioned in a responsible manner which complies with industry’s best practices.
Integrity Engineers may be required to manage, develop, or conduct the following:

 A high level integrity management philosophy which includes verification and assurance of
facilities (Basic repair methods and strategies, Static equipment repair and temporary repairs,
Fabric maintenance, Corrosion Engineering, Inspection Engineering, Chemical management
and Maintenance management).
 A Competency Management scheme.
 An RBI analysis.
 Integrity processes. i.e. Write Risk Based Inspection methodologies, Temporary Repair
methodologies, Maintenance Strategies, Mechanical Integrity Management Strategy (MIMS),
Structural Integrity Management Strategy (SIMS), Pipeline Integrity Management Strategy
(PIMS), Well Integrity Management System (WIMS) and create corrosion circuits for the plant
process.
 Verification Schemes and performance Standards management
 Conduct Life extension studies.
 A Fitness-for-service review.
 Write and review Integrity Management Plans
 Identify, investigate and assess deterioration/corrosion and ensure timely maintenance of the
affected facilities.
 Implement Inspection and Corrosion Control Policy and Risk Based Inspection (RBI) methods to
manage integrity, and optimize inspections frequency, maintenance cost and plant availability.
 Lead and conduct RBI reviews
 Participate in preparation of Capital and Operating budgets for Inspection.
 Monitor and oversee the execution of inspection programs and activities.
 Liaise closely with Operations, Technical Services, Corrosion engineering, Inspection
Engineering, Verification Engineering, Process/Chemical and Mechanical Engineering and other
Maintenance Units to coordinate major shutdowns and turn-around activities.
 Supervise, witness and participate in certification process of hydro tests and load test of lifting
devices and cylinders
 Ensure systematic and consistent implementation of work methods and procedures used in
Maintenance and Inspection and recommend improvements.
 Ensure systematic update of maintenance management systems.
 Participate in technical studies, Process and Instrument diagram reviews, Safety Integrity Level
(SIL) assessments and HAZOP's.
 Lead in failure investigations
 Input and control of asset integrity management software
Integrity Engineering encompasses the concept of:

 Organize, review, analyze, improve and control cycle

 Consistency of actions, values, methods, measures, principles, expectations, and outcomes.
 An undivided or unbroken completeness or totality with nothing wanting
 Knowledge of many interfaces of technology
 Balancing and countering the materials degradation process during the in-service life cycle of
equipment.
 Ensuring the recommended risk mitigation actions derived from the RBI study are implemented;
 Ensuring inspection intervals are not exceeded;
 Ensuring resources are available for RBI Assessments;
This may be applied to management, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that
safely realize improvements to the lives of assets.
The Integrity Engineer (IE) may also be involved with other asset life-cycle issues such as basis of
design (Process design basis) through to recycle. During the Front End Engineering Design stage
(i.e. FEED) aids in the selection of vessels, piping, pipelines and other equipment. At this FEED
stage, the optimum material requirements, mitigation and maintenance requirements for the
intended period of operation become the basis for the detailed engineering. It is the role of the IE to
develop/validate the integrity management plan and implement the monitoring and management
procedure for the intended period of operation. It may also be the responsibility of the integrity
engineer to incorporate and manage any variation identified (metal loss, material degradation,
cracking mechanisms, mitigation issues i.e. CP potentials, coating failures etc.) during the
monitoring regime.
It may be generalist in nature and or applied with specific prior knowledge denoted using a pre-
nominal of Mechanical, Inspection, Asset, Well or Well head, Technical, Pipeline, Signal, Fabrication
or Commissioning depending upon the equipment or system under scrutiny.
Integrity Engineers construct and implement Integrity Management plans which detail the
requirements of the item or asset under scrutiny and study any adverse effects from internal and or
external sources which damage / impair that item or system. These are used to build suitable
inspection and condition monitoring forward strategies. The monitoring may include both physical
(pipes / vessels) and nonphysical systems (Management legal obligations). This diversity will
depend upon the requirements of the task at hand.
Integrity Engineers also oversee or carry out Integrity Engineering Audit(s) to ensure legal
compliance with company, national and international standards and ensure that there is a level of
quality assurance within the process that meets good engineering standards.
Integrity Management Plan (part of an asset integrity management system) is a documented and
systematic approach to ensure the long-term integrity of an asset or assets.[1]
Integrity management planning is a process for assessing and mitigating risks in an effort to reduce
both the likelihood and consequences of incidents.
Asset integrity plans are maintained and reviewed regularly so that they:

 Optimize operational and capital expenditures

 Ensure adoption of best-in-class practices
 Assist management of risk
 Increase shareholder, senior management, regulator and public confidence
 Identify risks, conducting assessments, taking preventive actions and implementing mitigate
measures
An effective IMP should contain:

 A process outline – Details the process envelope (temperature pressure and velocity) in which
the system operates and any critical parameters that must be followed. Also states process
chemistry and contaminants that are encountered
 A threat identification list- Information about the asset segments are evaluated to identify the
threats of concerns to the asset and to assess risk
 A Risk Analysis – A systematic process, in which potential hazards from facility operation are
identified, and the likelihood and consequences of potential adverse events are estimated
 Detailed Regulatory Requirements –details the applicable regulatory standards to be met and
the methods used to comply with those standards
 A Responsibility assignment matrix – Details the persons responsible, accountable for any tasks
to comply with the requirements of the plan. It also states those who should be communicated to
and Informed
 Corrosion circuits – showing the system broken down into corrosion circuits shows damage
mechanisms, materials of construction and process chemistry
 Damage frequency (statistics) rates of decay
 Critical operating parameters for process safety
 Mitigation techniques, frequency, condition monitoring, inspections and process monitoring
requirements
 Historic review of asset condition to-date
 Knowledge gap analysis, missing information, manufacturer's data report (MDR), review
drawings etc.
 Previous failure analysis review
 Design drawing review, materials of construction (initial)
 Management of change review, alterations and repairs carried out
 Remediation – Repairs techniques considered
Also:

 Record keeping
 Performance plan
 Communication plan
 Regular Interaction
 Management of change
 Prevention and Mitigation measures
 How to conduct assessments / frequency / audit of system
 The Integrity Management Plan (IMP) forms a part of the overall asset integrity management system
and is audited as per the Integrity Engineering Audit (IEA).
Particularly post the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, the role of asset integrity has never been more
critical to the global oil and gas business. Not only can a well-managed asset integrity plan help
operators identify and reduce safety risks before they escalate but focusing on asset integrity can
also play a major role in both achieving operational excellence and extending the life of ageing
assets.See also
Risk Based Inspection (RBI) is an Optimal maintenance business process used to examine
equipment such as pressure vessels, heat exchangers and piping in industrial plants. RBI is a
decision-making methodology for optimizing inspection plans. The RBI concept lies in that the risk of
failure can be assessed in relation to a level that is acceptable, and inspection and repair used to
ensure that the level of risk is below that acceptance limit. It examines the Health, Safety and
Environment (HSE) and business risk of ‘active’ and ‘potential’ Damage Mechanisms (DMs) to
assess and rank failure probability and consequence. This ranking is used to optimize inspection
intervals based on site-acceptable risk levels and operating limits, while mitigating risks as
appropriate. RBI analysis can be qualitative, quantitative or semi-quantitative in nature.
Probability of Failure (PoF) is estimated on the basis of the types of degradation mechanisms
operating in the component. It is calculated as the area of overlap between the distributions of the
degradation rate for each degradation mechanism (based on uncertainties in rate) with the
distribution of the resistance of the component to failure.
Consequence of Failure (CoF) is defined for all consequences that are of importance , such as
safety, economy and environment. Consequence of failure is evaluated as the outcome of a failure
based on the assumption that such a failure will occur.
Accuracy is a function of analysis methodology, data quality and consistency of execution. Precision
is a function of the selected metrics and computational methods. Risk presented as a single numeric
value (as in a quantitative analysis) does not guarantee greater accuracy compared to a risk matrix
(as in a qualitative analysis), because of uncertainty that is inherent with probabilities and
consequences.
RBI is most often used in engineering industries and is predominant in the oil and gas industry.
Assessed risk levels are used to develop a prioritized inspection plan. It is related to (or sometimes a
part of) Risk Based Asset Management (RBAM), Risk Based Integrity Management (RBIM) and Risk
Based Management (RBM). Generally, RBI is part of Risk and Reliability Management (RRM). The
basis of most RBI programs is the Corrosion Circuit, in which each circuit can be compared for
relative risk levels to aid in inspection and maintenance planning.
Inspections typically employ non-destructive testing (NDT).

Contents

 1 Prioritization
 2 Objectives
 3 Standards
 4 See also
 5 References

Prioritization[edit]
Items with high probability and high consequence (i.e. high risk) are given a higher priority for
inspection than items that are high probability but for which failure has low consequences. This
strategy allows for a rational investment of inspection resources.

Objectives[edit]
RBI assists a company to select cost effective and appropriate maintenance and inspection tasks
and techniques, to minimize efforts and cost, to shift from a reactive to a proactive maintenance
regime, to produce an auditable system, to give an agreed “operating window”, and to implement a
risk management tool.
The purposes of RBI include:

1. To improve risk management results

2. To provide a holistic, interdependent approach for managing risks
3. To apply a strategy of doing what is needed for safeguarding integrity and improving
reliability and availability of the asset by planning and executing those inspections that are
needed
4. To reduce inspections and shutdowns and provide longer run length without compromising
safety or reliability
5. To safeguard integrity
6. To reduce the risk of failures
7. To increase plant availability and reduce unplanned outages
8. To provide a flexible technique able to continuously improve and adopt to changing risks
9. To ensure inspection techniques and methods consider potential failure modes
10. An Integrity Engineering Audit is carried out within an Integrity engineering function so as
to ensure compliance with international, national and company specific standards and
regulations.
11. It is carried out in order to prove that the system is compliant, transparent, effective and
efficient. API Recommended Practice 580, Risk-Based Inspection (see American Petroleum
Institute) outlines such an audit as part of a Risk Based Inspection program. It checks that
the most efficient and cost effective implementation of inspections and integrity management
programs are being carried out. It ensures that the integrity of plant facilities including all
onshore and offshore structures and pipelines, stationary equipment, piping systems are
being correctly addressed. It checks and ensures that the Integrity Engineer has identified,
investigated and assessed all deterioration/corrosion as well as timely maintenance of the
affected facilities. It audits the Inspection and Corrosion Control Policy and Risk Based
Inspection (RBI) methods which manage the integrity and checks that the optimum
inspection frequency, maintenance cost and plant availability are being met. It may be
approached under a generic framework such as ISO 19011 on the basis of a technical audit
without formal documentation, but with a regulatory or statutory criteria.