CGSB Standards News: New Edition of CAN/CGSB-48.9712

In Canada, generally, personnel who are certified to perform Non-Destructive Testing (NDT) are deemed to be in compliance with the National Standard of Canada CAN/CGSB-48.9712. Often times personnel will refer to having their “CGSB levels or tickets”, but what does this really mean and how does a new edition of the standard affect you and the industry?

To fully understand the national NDT certification process in Canada, we must first look on a broader scale to the international standards community in complement to our own national standards process. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) is an independent, non-governmental international organization with a membership of 167 national standards bodies. Through its members, it brings together experts and representatives to share knowledge and develop voluntary, consensus-based, market relevant International Standards that support innovation and provide solutions to global challenges.

In conducting their work, ISO governs hundreds of Technical Committees in various subject areas - one being NDT. This is also where Canada plays a key role. Canada has been appointed to the leadership positions for the ISO Technical Committee ISO/TC 135/SC 7 Committee for Personnel Qualification of NDT. Managing the international secretariat for this committee, Canada acts in an impartial manner to further the work done at the ISO level for Personnel Qualification. This includes the critically important Standard ISO 9712 Non-destructive testing—Qualification and certification of NDT personnel. The Canadian secretariat is currently comprised of International Chairperson, Darcy Corcoran (Quality Control Council of Canada - National Training Society), while Jennifer Jimenez (Canadian General Standards Board) maintains the position of International Committee Manager. You can learn more about it on the ISO website.

In 2017, the ISO 9712 (version 2012) standard was due for its 5-year systematic review. During this review process, there were over 400 suggested comments submitted by 33 countries. With Canada’s secretariat leading this review, there was certainly lots of work to be done. Over the next four years, Task Groups were formed, meetings were held with international colleagues, and many iterations of the draft standard were reviewed. In fact, in June 2019, Canada hosted one of these meetings in conjunction with the NDT in Canada Conference held in Edmonton, Alberta. Finally, in December 2021, the revisions to ISO 9712 were completed and a new edition of the international standard was published as ISO 9712:2021.

Once a standard is published at the international level, Canada can then decide to adopt it as a National Standard. In early 2022, the process to consider this new edition of ISO 9712 for adoption quickly got underway.

In addition to their involvement with the international secretariat, the Canadian General Standards Board (CGSB), as a directorate within the department of Public Services and Procurement Canada, is also the responsible Standards Development Organization that oversees the national CGSB Committee on Non-Destructive Testing. It is this committee that has the technical expertise and final decision-making power to adopt the standard in Canada. By mid-2022, the CGSB Committee had voted unanimously to adopt ISO 9712 with no modifications, and in October, CAN/CGSB-48.9712-2022 was published.

So what’s new in the updated 2022 edition?

The main changes compared to the previous edition are as follows:

• clarified responsibilities for the certification body, the authorized qualification body, the examination centre and the employer;
• added and revised definitions;
• defined responsibilities for examiners and referees;
• revised requirements for the duration of training and industrial experience;
• modified requirements for visual acuity testing;
• revised requirements for examinations;
• included an option for the use of a psychometric process at the discretion of the certification body;
• revised requirements for the certification documents;
• revised requirements for the conditions of certification;
• added requirements for candidates for the renewal of certificates;
• revised structured credit system for Level 3 recertification;
• included a new Annex F for techniques;
• included a new Annex G for psychometric principles;
• other minor technical and editorial changes.

This 2022 edition now supersedes the CAN/CGSB-48.9712-2014 edition and Natural Resources Canada (NRCan), through its National Non-Destructive Testing Certification Body (NDTCB), will be undertaking the process to transition and implement the updated standard for our national certification program. This is similar to the way the last implementation process of the ISO 9712 standard occurred in 2012.

So what's next?

Through its ongoing work in support of its certification management and program development cycle, the NRCan NDTCB will be reviewing its guidelines and policies towards the transition and implementation of the updated standard. The NDTCB will be developing an updated set of its “Rules of Implementation” for the CAN/CGSB-48.9712-2022 standard where it will outline its program’s requirements and related policies for the transition. During the next few months, the NDTCB plans to communicate and publish this key information on its website once it is finalized and becomes publicly available. An effective transition to the updated standard is anticipated by late 2023. Of note, the NDTCB’s CGSB certification program will continue to administer the current rules for the CAN/CGSB 48.9712:2014 standard until the transition can be completed and implemented.

In cooperation with our national technical society CINDE, notifications and key updates of this transition will be brought to the user community via the CINDE Journal and relevant communication channels. In addition, watch for further information on an upcoming session (to be provided by the International Chairperson and Committee Manager) at the NDT in Canada 2023 Conference being held in Edmonton June 6-8.

For more information about the current administration and upcoming implementation of the national standard and its certification requirements, please continue to consult with the NRCan website.

Copies of the new standard CAN/CGSB-48.9712-2022 / ISO 9712:2021, Identical (IDT) can be purchased via the CGSB website.

If anyone is interested in becoming more familiar with the national or international standards development work, CGSB is always looking for new committee members. Please contact Jennifer Jimenez at (873) 354‑9879 or at jennifer.jimenez@tpsgc-pwgsc.gc.ca.