Tanks and Transportable Pressure Equipment

In each country transporting dangerous goods, a 'Competent Authority' is responsible for implementing the regulations and Directives. In Great Britain, the provisions of ADR for Road transport and RID for Rail, are implemented by means of The Carriage of Dangerous Goods and Use of Transportable Pressure Equipment Regulations SI 2009, No 1348 (CDG 2009). Separate regulations exist for Northern Ireland

The regulations require tanks and pressure receptacles which are used to transport dangerous goods to be tested, inspected and certified before they are first used, and periodically thereafter. They also specify that only bodies who have been be appointed by the competent authority shall undertake these tasks. In order to meet these requirements, the competent authority of Great Britain has set up an appointment scheme for conformity assessment bodies, which is operated by The VCA Dangerous Goods Office (VCA DGO). The scheme applies to:

all tanks built for domestic use before 10 May 2004 (OLD or GB tanks)
all tanks built thereafter to the standards set down in RID/ADR
all transportable pressure equipment

And to conformity assessment bodies performing the functions of:

Verification and certification of the design and/or construction of tanks and transportable pressure equipment;
and/or
Initial examination and testing of tanks and transportable pressure equipment or examination and testing following a repair or modification to the tank shell;
and/or
Periodic examination and testing of tanks and transportable pressure equipment in accordance with the requirements in regulations or as appropriate RID and ADR Agreements
and/or
Examination and testing in accordance with the Transportable Pressure Equipment Directive

Conformity assessment bodies may be appointed for one or more of the above functions but do not take on the role of the competent authority, responsibility for which remains with VCA DGO (administrative) and The Department for Transport Dangerous Goods Division (policy).

Lists of appointed conformity assessment bodies, organised by their scope of activity, can be found here

Application for Appointment

Companies or individuals who may be considered for appointment as a conformity assessment body will be those meeting the general requirements of EN ISO17020, 'General Criteria for the Operation of Various Types of Bodies Performing Inspection', who have been recommended or accredited by the United Kingdom Accreditation service (UKAS) following a satisfactory assessment. From 1 January 2011, recommendation alone will cease to be acceptable and only bodies actually accredited to that standard will be appointed.

The publications explaining the appointment process and the rules applicable are currently under revision and are due to be reissues as a comprehensive manual later this year. For the time being, general guidance for potential applicants is given below.

Application for accreditation to ISO 17020 should be made to UKAS directly. Details can be obtained from their web site. (www.ukas.com)
It is recommended that application is made to VCA DGO at the same time to minimise any delays in processing. An application form can be found here: Application for Appointment as an Inspection Body (PDF 96.6KB)
Information regarding appointments will be exchanged between VCA DGO and UKAS as necessary to facilitate the appointment.
When necessary, a temporary appointment may be made to facilitate the accreditation process. It should be noted that for transportable pressure equipment applications, temporary appointment will be for a maximum period of 12 months and no extension or further temporary appointment of the applicant may be made. It is therefore essential that accreditation be achieved within that period if there is to be no discontinuity in the applicant's authority to undertake conformity assessment work. Applicants should note that once accreditation has been granted it may take a several weeks for the appointment to be made and they should take this into account when scheduling.

Fees

UKAS will charge a fee for Accreditation, details of which may be obtained from them.

VCA DGO charge fees for functions relating to appointment according to the following scale, (correct at 1 January 2010)

Initial appointment as an Appointed Person or Appointed Body £1000.00

Variation or extension of scope at appointees request £300.00

Annual fee for maintaining existing appointments £600.00

All fees are subject to VAT at the prevailing rate.