Personnel Certification Records for CSA Z662
CSA Z662 names this requirement as "Documented visual inspection procedures covering extent and frequency of visual inspection, personnel qualification and visual acuity, maximum viewing distance and angle, lighting conditions, evaluation tools and.". The QA manager owns it, alongside the certification scheme rather than replacing it.
The finding auditors record against this document is: Non-destructive inspection procedure approved by an ASNT Level III rather than by a CGSB Level 3. CSA Z662:23, the ninth edition, was released on 30 June 2023 and covers pipelines from design through construction, operation, maintenance, deactivation and abandonment, with a new clause for hydrogen and hydrogen-blend systems. For an inspection service provider the operative content sits in Clause 7: mandatory non-destructive inspection extents, documented and company-approved NDI procedures, standards of acceptability, production and retention of radiographs, and ultrasonic inspection of circumferential butt welds. Personnel qualification is pinned to CAN/CGSB-48.9712 — radiographers, with radiographic image interpretation at Level 2 or 3, and ultrasonic inspectors at Level 2 or 3. Since the 2019 edition a CGSB Level 3 must review and approve non-destructive inspection procedures.
Source: Verified August 2026 against: CSA Z662:23, ninth edition, released 30 June 2023, per CSA Group and ANSI Webstore listings, which record it as superseding the 2019, 2015, 2011, 2007, 2003, 1999, 1996 and 1994 editions; Canada Energy Regulator Information Advisory IA 2023-001, confirming the 30 June 2023 in-force date and incorporation by reference through section 4 and paragraph 4(1)(d) of the Onshore Pipeline Regulations; the CSA Z662:19 table of contents, confirming clause numbering for 7.10, 7.11, 7.14 (including 7.14.8 Radiographers and 7.14.9) and 7.15 (including 7.15.6 Qualification of ultrasonic inspectors); and the verbatim text of Clauses 7.10.2, 7.10.3, 7.10.4, 7.14.8 and 7.15.6 read from a CSA Z662-11 excerpt filed as exhibit 76 in South Dakota PUC docket HP14-001. Clause numbering was unchanged between those editions, but inspection percentages and ultrasonic reference levels should be confirmed against the edition in force. The requirement for a CGSB Level 3 to review and approve non-destructive inspection procedures is reported in the Z662:19 and Z662:23 change summaries published by standards distributors; it was not read from the clause text and should be confirmed against a purchased copy before it is relied on contractually.
| Item | What applies | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Regime | CSA Z662, Oil and gas pipeline systems | Enforced by CSA Group publishes the standard; it is incorporated by reference into the Canada Energy Regulator's Onshore Pipeline Regulations and adopted by provincial energy regulators including the BC Energy Regulator, the Alberta Energy Regulator and TSSA in Ontario |
| Document | Personnel Certification Records | the file proving each technician is currently certified for the work they are doing |
| Owner | the QA manager | The signature an auditor traces back |
| Where it is checked | Execute and record inspection to the approved procedures, evaluating results against Clause 7. | Usually against a sampled job, not in isolation |
| Common failure | Non-destructive inspection procedure approved by an ASNT Level III rather than by a CGSB Level 3 | The gap between the manual and the job file |
What must a personnel certification records contain under CSA Z662?
It has to satisfy CSA Z662 as CSA Group publishes the standard; it is incorporated by reference into the Canada Energy Regulator's Onshore Pipeline Regulations and adopted by provincial energy regulators including the BC Energy Regulator, the Alberta Energy Regulator and TSSA in Ontario enforces it: the file proving each technician is currently certified for the work they are doing. The test is not completeness on paper but traceability — an auditor picks a finished job and works backwards to this document, so anything it claims must be demonstrable on that job.
Who signs the personnel certification records for CSA Z662?
The QA manager. This regime requires central or third-party certification, so the signature works alongside the scheme rather than substituting for it.
How does a CSA Z662 auditor test this document?
By sampling. They take a completed job, find the technicians and equipment used, and trace each back through this document to the evidence behind it. A document that reads well but cannot survive that trace is the most common finding across every regime, not just this one.
How long must CSA Z662 records be kept?
CSA Z662 is revised on a roughly four-year cycle — 1994, 1996, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015, 2019, 2023 — and Z662:23 is the ninth edition, released 30 June 2023. Because the Onshore Pipeline Regulations incorporate the latest version by reference, a new edition takes effect on publication rather than on an adoption date. The Canada Energy Regulator's Information Advisory IA 2023-001 told companies to review Z662:23 and take the steps needed to comply as soon as possible, and to demonstrate for pending applications how projects would meet the new requirements. There is no certificate to renew under this regime; what expires is the personnel certification behind it and the currency of the procedures written to it. Retention is set by the regime and by the client contract above it, and the longer of the two governs. Firms that set one retention period for everything and document it fare better at audit than firms tracking different periods per record type and losing track.
Does a generic template satisfy CSA Z662?
No. A downloaded template describes a generic firm, and the first question an auditor asks is whether the document describes THIS firm — its methods, its equipment, its people, its actual workflow. Templates are a starting structure; the content has to be the firm's own or the trace fails immediately.
What happens if this document is missing at a CSA Z662 audit?
It is a finding, and depending on the regime it can suspend the certificate rather than merely generate a corrective action. The related finding auditors record most often is: Non-destructive inspection procedure approved by an ASNT Level III rather than by a CGSB Level 3
Where this sits in the CSA Z662 evidence pack
- Documented non-destructive inspection procedures, approved by the company and reviewed and approved by a CGSB Level 3
- Documented visual inspection procedures covering extent and frequency of visual inspection, personnel qualification and visual acuity, maximum viewing distance and angle, lighting conditions, evaluation tools and reporting (Clause 7.10.2.1)
- Visual inspection reports carrying weld identification, description, position and length of defects, date, and the signature of the qualified visual inspector (Clause 7.10.2.3)
- Visual inspection records retained until the piping is abandoned (Clause 7.10.2.4) and radiographic records retained per Clause 7.14.9
- Ultrasonic calibration and reference-level records — reference at 80% full screen height and recording at 40%, six decibels below reference, in the edition verified
- CAN/CGSB-48.9712 certificates for radiographers, radiographic image interpreters and ultrasonic inspectors
- Records demonstrating that welds selected for daily non-destructive inspection were reasonably representative of daily production
- Search unit and equipment performance records against the referenced specification, with repair or replacement criteria established by the manufacturer or the inspection company
Personnel certification context
Central certification only. Clause 7.14.8.1 requires radiographers to be qualified as specified in CAN/CGSB-48.9712, with radiographic image interpretation at Level 2 or 3; Clause 7.15.6 requires ultrasonic inspectors to be qualified to Level 2 or 3; and confirmation of complete crack removal by liquid penetrant or wet magnetic particle inspection must be by inspectors qualified to the same standard. There is no employer written practice route. This is exactly where an outsourced Level III earns his place: the requirement introduced in Z662:19 and carried into Z662:23 that a CGSB Level 3 review and approve non-destructive inspection procedures is a signature a pipeline contractor can buy in.
Related: the CSA Z662 overview, outsourced ASNT Level III cover, written practice development, NDT procedure development, a programme gap assessment, interim Level III cover.