SPED Certification Program

September 17, 2003

Houston, TX

Outline• SPED Introduction

• Industry Need

• The SPED Certification Program

• Program Timetable

• Certification Process

• Call For Participation

Society of Piping Engineers and Designers (SPED)

• Established 1980

• Non-Profit Educational Technical Society

• Hosted at Univ. of Houston, Downtown

• Worldwide Membership

• Exclusively Serving the Piping Professional

Target SPED Member

• Equally attractive to Petrochemical Plant Engineer, Constructor, Operator and Maintainer

• Involved with Plant Containment Integrity Throughout Plant Life Cycle.

SPED Membership Target Jobs

• Piping Design

• Plant Layout

• Plant Construction

• Maintenance Management

• Management of Change

• Fitness for Service (API 579)

SPED Members: Equally Attractive to Plant Engineer,

Constructor, Operator and Maintainer

SPED Members: Broader Areas Of Employment

Across the Plant Life Cycle

ProcessDesign

Front-EndDesign

DetailDesign

PlantConstruction

Commis-sioning

Operations&

Maintenance

Decommis-sioning

Plant Life Cycle Phase

SPEDMember

Employment

Today’sMembers

Near TermMembers

Long TermMembers

SPED Course Offerings• Process Plant Layout

– Targets Experienced Designers– O&M Considerations in Layout & Piping

• Intergraph PDS I, II, III– Targets Designers with Paper & 2D CAD skills– 3D Plant Modeling and Data Management

• ASME B31.3 Code (Apr, 2003)– Targets Engineers with Mechanics & Matls Focus– Proper Application of B31.3 Code to Plant Piping

Industry Trends & Needs• Domestic: Brownfield, not Greenfield• Foreign: Local Content Required• Front-End Engineering with Fewer, Smarter

Staffers• Detail Engineering to Low Cost Centers

– Quality Varies– Financial Liability Retained

• Survival: Show Higher Quality, Competency, Efficiency at Bid Time, then Execute

Why Certification?The Case for Designers

• Documents Skills & Competency

• Increased Employability at Higher Pay

• Improved Professional Recognition

• Clear Professional Development Path

Why Certification?The Case for E&C Employers

• 3rd Party Verification of Employee Skills & Competency

• Hiring Candidate Qualifier

• Competitive Advantage on Contracts

• Professional Development Guidelines

Why Certification?The Case for Owner/Operators

• 3rd Party Verification of Resume Skills & Competency

• Contractor Differentiation• Staffing Qualifier• Indicator of Professional Commitment

and Continuing Development

SPED Certification Program forProfessional Piping Designer

1. Four Levels of PPD:– Level I: Basic PPD - Properly Trained

– Level II: Advanced PPD - Organize Work

– Level III: Senior PPD - Independent Producer

– Level IV:Lead PPD - Manage, Assure Work

• Qualification through:– Testing– Acceptable Experience

Professional Piping Designer Level I

• Route, support, verify pipe within an existing layout of process equipment IAW:– Process Engineer’s P&ID– Agreed piping specification– Piping design standards– Fabrication and erection methods– Inspection and maintenance practices.

• Use both 2D & 3D representations/models

• Qualification through Testing or Acceptable Experience

Professional Piping Designer Level II

• Level I plus: – 4 Years of Acceptable Experience– Design Impact of start-up, shutdown, vs normal

operation – Information needed before work begins (P&IDs,etc.)

– Determine when work is complete– Properly manages versions and releases– Properly extracts data as needed (BOMs, etc.)

• Qualification through Acceptable Experience

Professional Piping Designer Level III

• Level II plus:• 8 Years of Acceptable Cumulative Experience

– Space, layout and assure commonly used process equipment, supporting structures, site infrastructure and facilities, IAW:

• Process Engineer’s P&ID, • Equipment spacing standards, • Fabrication and erection methods• Inspection and maintenance practices.

– Document correctly on appropriate representation

• Qualification through Testing and Acceptable Experience

Professional Piping Designer Level IV

• Level III plus:• 12 Years of Acceptable Cumulative Experience

– Assess in others the skills listed for Level I, II and III

• Demonstrated ability to :• Bid man hours on limited information.• Document Client Requirements• Staffing, Hiring & Termination procedures.• Establish Schedules & Manage Change

• Qualification through Training and/or Acceptable Experience

SPED Certification Boards

• Governance - Final authority on all matters concerning certification

• Credentials - Developing and assuring certification criteria, tests and renewals

• Marketing - Explaining the business case for certification through the SPED Website, brochures, mailings and corporate presentations.;

SPED PPD Level I Certification Development Timetable

• Oct '03 Initial Set of Test Items, Application Forms Drafted

• Dec '03 Pilot Testing Begins• Feb '04 Certification Board Approves

Public Testing• Mar '04 Public Testing Begins• July '04 Online Testing Begins

What Can You Do To Help?

• Review Certification Criteria Drafts and Comment

• Sell Certification Inside Your Organization• Become Certified• Ask for Certification in RFPs & Job

Postings• Become a Sponsor

Why Sponsor SPED Certification?

• Sponsors Can Influence Requirements

• Prestige of SPED Certification Sponsor Logo on Website and Correspondence.

• Annual Test Seatings. – Closed pilot testing in Fall '03 – Open testing in Spring '04

• Membership on SPED Certification Boards, Depending Sponsorship level

Sponsor Levels

SponsorLevel

Ann Fee AnnSeatings

BoardMemberships

Platinum $ 10,000 40 All

Gold $ 5,000 20 All, exceptGovernance

Silver $ 2,500 10 Any One, exceptGovernance

Bronze $ 1,000 4 Any One, exceptGovernance

Discussion

Door Prizes

SPED Corporate Members: