Incoming coil
Gauge, width and surface checked on every coil before it is accepted. Non-conforming stock is rejected at the gate, not on the line.
Quality & standards
What our certification actually means
A.N. Industries manufactures to published international specifications and tests against them. Here is what is checked, and where.
- ISO 9001:2008
- ASTM A53
- BS EN 10255
Quality & standards
Specifications we manufacture to
Where a project calls for a standard not listed, tell us at enquiry — we produce against JIS, DIN, EN, BS, ISO and PS on order.
- ISO 9001 Quality Management Systems Certified quality management system covering manufacturing, inspection and dispatch.
- ASTM A53 Pipe, Steel, Black and Hot-Dipped, Zinc-Coated, Welded and Seamless Governs our MS pipe in Schedule 10, 20, 40 and 80, Grade A and Grade B.
- BS EN 10255:2004 Non-alloy steel tubes suitable for welding and threading Governs GI pipe in Grades L, M and H. Formerly BS 1387:1985.
- BS EN 10226:2004 Pipe threads where pressure-tight joints are made on the threads Governs the threading on our galvanized iron pipe.
- BS EN 39:2001 Loose steel tubes for tube and coupler scaffolds Governs our scaffolding tubes in both Type 1 and Type 2 wall thicknesses.
- JIS / DIN / PS Japanese, German and Pakistan Standards Additional specifications supplied against on request for export and project orders.
Inspection
Six checks between coil and consignment
In-process dimensional
Outside diameter, wall thickness and straightness sampled through the run, against the tolerance band of the governing standard.
Hydrostatic test
Pipe is hydro-tested to the pressure its specification calls for. GI pipe is proved to 50 bar.
Coating and thread
Zinc coating weight and adherence checked on galvanized lines; threads gauged to BS EN 10226:2004.
Weight and length
Unit weight and cut length verified against the chart before bundling, so a tonne delivered is a tonne ordered.
Certification
A mill test certificate is raised for the consignment and travels with it. Third-party inspection accommodated on request.
In-house testing facilities
The rigs are ours, so the test happens here
Testing sent out is testing that waits for a slot and comes back a week later. Every one of these machines is on site, which is what lets a consignment be proved and released in the same week it is rolled.
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Hydrostatic test
Every length is put under water pressure and held, to prove the weld and the body against leakage. The rig runs to 3000 psi, and pipe is tested to whatever pressure its specification calls for — BS EN, ASTM or API.
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Galvanizing test
Zinc goes on by hot dip, and the coating is proved in house rather than taken on trust: copper sulphate for adherence and uniformity, and coating mass by weight, both to the BS EN and ASTM methods.
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Bend test
Applied to tube up to DN 50 on our own bend rig, to BS EN and ASTM. Bending a tube through an angle is what shows whether the weld line will open under working stress.
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Flattening test
The counterpart above DN 50: the tube is flattened between platens on the flattening machine until the walls meet, and the weld either holds or it does not. Done to BS EN, ASTM and API.
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Non-destructive weld inspection
The weld seam of every length of ERW pipe NPS 2 and larger passes an online non-destructive electric test as it leaves the mill, so the seam is inspected on each length rather than on a sample from the batch.
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Dimensional and lux
Diameter, wall and straightness are taken with calipers and micrometers through the run. A lux meter checks light levels at each inspection station — a dimensional check is only as good as the light it is made under.
How it is made
From coil to consignment
Six stages, every one of them inspected. Nothing leaves the mill without a certificate against the standard it was ordered to.
- 01
Coil in, inspected
Prime soft mild steel coil is checked for gauge, width and surface before it is accepted onto the floor.
- 02
Slit to width
Coil is slit to the strip width the finished section calls for, so wall thickness lands on tolerance.
- 03
Formed and ERW welded
Strip is roll-formed and high-frequency welded into round, square or rectangular section on automatic lines.
- 04
Sized, straightened, cut
Tube is sized to final outside diameter, straightened, and cut to length. Ends are faced and deburred.
- 05
Galvanized or finished
GI lines go through hot-dip galvanizing and threading to BS EN 10226. Black pipe is finished and coated.
- 06
Tested and certified
Hydro test, dimensional check and weight check. Mill test certificate issued with the consignment.
Documentation
What travels with your order
Every consignment leaves with a mill test certificate naming the heat, the specification, the dimensional results and the hydro test result. For export orders we add packing lists, certificates of origin and any third-party inspection release the buyer requires.
If your project needs documentation in a particular format — a client's own QA template, an inspection and test plan signed off before production starts — send it through at the enquiry stage rather than at dispatch, and we will build the run around it.
Need certification against a specific standard?
Tell us the specification and the inspection regime at enquiry, and we will confirm in writing what we can certify to before you place the order.