PSI/PCI Cylinders

Why Is There So Much To Know About Inspecting Cylinders?

Back in the day, before formal function specific training was developed, “inspectors” typically just looked in and around a “tank” – decided it “looked good” and put it back into service. 

There have always been rules and regulations pertaining to cylinder inspection and Bill High, the founder of Professional Scuba Inspectors, Inc. was the pioneer for training on this subject.  He was the first person to compile and develop a Visual Cylinder Inspection program with a protocol based on the Federal regulations, Compressed Gas Association requirements, and manufacturer’s standards.  The training he developed is a comprehensive, informative program to apply the required standards of the inspection process.

Some purport that this program is cumbersome and difficult to learn and apply.  So why do you have to know so much to inspect high pressure cylinders?  Why can’t someone just show you the process and that be good enough for training?  Wouldn’t that be cheaper and quicker than spending a full day or more on such a simple subject?

As with any formal process, there are reasons and explanations behind what must be understood for successful application and results.  Look at baking, for example.  A chef can typically cook many things.  They may follow a recipe, or they might concoct a dish from their imagination.  But baking is an exacting process where ingredients must be measured to the gram.  Without knowledge of these specific details and measurements, baking would be impossible to master.  Thus it would be practically impossible to provide a chef with even familiar ingredients and expect the chef to bake a cake to the level of a professionally trained baker.  

It is just as unlikely you would have surgery performed without investigating and considering the credentials and level of training of the surgeon.  Knowing how - and to what level - these service providers are trained would be critical to your safety.

The same consideration must be given to high pressure cylinders.  Cylinders are HAZMAT and they can be dangerous in the hands of untrained or inadequately trained persons – which we know has resulted in many cylinder accidents.  We have seen cheap, easy routes to cylinder inspection where the training essentially boils down to deciding if a “tank” looks good.  However, “looks good” is not a regulation nor a standard – it’s just checking a box.  Understanding the regulations, the protocols and processes that must be applied to a cylinder, all go into making a successful and knowledgeable cylinder inspector.  This requires formal function specific training to applicable standards; the “hard” stuff.  It takes meticulous training that covers the whys and wherefores and not just the activity itself; demands understanding the reasons for the protocol and why/when to apply it.  

High pressure cylinders, especially those used in life support operations like scuba diving or medical gas, deserve the effort of comprehensive formal function specific training (which is required by Federal law) to understand them, successfully inspect them, and ensure the safety of those using them. Cylinder end users should be cognizant of the credentials of the person performing their cylinder inspections.  It is just as important as knowing the training and credentials of the doctor performing your surgery – or the baker making your birthday cake.