Ultrasonic Testing (UT) Requirements Under CSA Z662

Sensitivity setting is the auditable step: the reference block used must itself be in calibration and traceable, and its identity recorded on the report. CSA Z662, enforced by CSA Group publishes the standard; it is incorporated by reference into the.: Central certification only. Clause 7.14.8.1 requires radiographers to be qualified as specified in CAN/CGSB-48.

An auditor examining UT asks for instrument, probes, cables, couplant, and the calibration and reference blocks used to set sensitivity. 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.

Ultrasonic Testing under CSA Z662 — procedure, personnel and evidence
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
Method	Ultrasonic Testing (UT)	Needs its own procedure and its own qualified personnel
Procedure approval	Per the certification scheme and the client specification	The signature an auditor traces
Other methods in scope	RT, MT, PT, VT	Each needs separate qualification
Renewal	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.	Applies to the personnel certification behind this method

Does CSA Z662 require a separate procedure for UT?

Yes. Every method in scope needs its own written procedure, approved by someone qualified in that method, describing technique, equipment, calibration, scanning or coverage, acceptance criteria and reporting. A single combined "NDT procedure" covering several methods is a finding under every regime that names procedures individually.

Who can approve a UT procedure under CSA Z662?

Approval follows the certification scheme and the governing specification rather than the employer alone. The person approving must hold the scheme's qualification for UT at the appropriate level.

What UT records does a CSA Z662 audit sample?

The approved procedure, the technician's UT certification on the date of work, and the equipment evidence — instrument, probes, cables, couplant, and the calibration and reference blocks used to set sensitivity. The auditor works backwards from a finished job, so every item has to reconcile with the report and its stated acceptance criteria.

What is the most common UT finding at audit?

An in-calibration instrument used with an unidentified or out-of-calibration reference block. It is a records failure rather than a technique failure — the examination was performed correctly and the evidence supporting it cannot be produced, which under CSA Z662 is recorded the same way as not having done the work.

Can a technician certified elsewhere perform UT under CSA Z662?

Where the scheme's certification travels with the individual, yes — that is the point of central certification. Verify the certificate covers UT at the level required and is current, since scope and expiry are what get checked.

What equipment evidence does UT need under CSA Z662?

Calibration status traceable to the day of use, covering the instrument and its accessories — probes, cables, blocks and reference standards for ultrasonics; sources and densitometers for radiography. An in-calibration instrument with an out-of-calibration reference block fails the same way as an uncalibrated one.

How do UT requirements differ from the other methods in CSA Z662?

Scope, qualification and evidence are method-specific, so the differences are real rather than administrative. CSA Z662 also covers RT, MT, PT, VT, and each carries its own procedure, its own personnel qualification and its own equipment evidence.

Personnel certification for UT

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.