New Euro standards on the way
The first Euro standards for pipes were introduced a few years ago. We are now familiar with the EN 10210 standard for hot-formed hollow sections and EN 10219 for the cold-formed equivalents. Since then many other Euro standards have been developed and approved and these have been or soon will be included in our product specifications. In the meantime, since the way steel qualities are described and the names of the standards will be quite different, we would like to familiarize you with them. The table shows what the new descriptions of our most important products will probably look like. There may still be changes in the way quality is described. For the time being we look at the type of tube being used to decide what quality we need to select, because the ‘old’ steel qualities cannot all be translated one-for-one to the new standards.
Advantages
The new standards create more consistency at the international level, making it easier to compare materials and prices. It is less likely that apples will be compared to pears. It also means that from a global perspective very few material standards will survive, because all the previous national standards used in European countries will disappear. The only ones left apart from the EN standards will be the API and ASTM standards used in the US and the JIS standards from Japan. The new Euro standards will also promote conformity with the requirements of the PED (Pressure Equipment directive). The new system will enable the materials described in the Euro standards to:
- be harmonized
- receive European material approval
- be approved by a Notified Body
The Euro standards will also mean that users will need to specify fewer additional requirements.
Round pipes and tubes:
- Table Euro standards for seamless round pipes and tubes
- Explanation Euro standards for seamless round pipes and tubes
- Explanation Euro standards for welded round pipes and tubes
Certificates
In late 2004 the EN 10204 standard, which established the designation for material certificates, was changed. This change means that the designations 3.1A, 3.1B and 3.1C have been dropped and the most common type of certificate for our materials, 3.1B, is now known as 3.1. The 3.1A, 3.1C and 3.2 certificates are now all designated as 3.2. There have been no substantive changes.