Flanged Joints is the library behind flanged joint assembly in WeldTrace. It holds two things: your Bolted Joint Assembly Procedures, or BJAPs, and the bolt tightening patterns they use, both under ASME PCC-1-2022. A BJAP says how a joint is prepared, what gasket and fasteners it takes, the tightening method and the target load for each bolt size, and which tightening patterns the joint may be tightened by. When a flanged joint is recorded as assembled in a project, the assembler works to the BJAP chosen for it, and the joint record keeps the revision of the BJAP and the pattern used.

A BJAP starts as a draft. A super user or account administrator approves it, which locks it. A change to an approved BJAP is made as a new revision, while the joints already recorded keep the revision they were made up to. Tightening patterns go through a review in the same way: WeldTrace supplies the ASME PCC-1 Appendix F patterns waiting for review, and a BJAP can only use a pattern once it has been accepted.

The Flanged Joints menu is under Library. Every account comes with sample data to explore: the draft BJAP-01, the approved BJAP-DEMO-01 and the account pattern TriStar it tightens by. "Delete sample data" in Account settings removes them.

Step 1 - Open the BJAP Library

Open "Library" in the main menu and click "Flanged Joints". The BJAP Library opens first. The banner above the tabs tells super users and account administrators how many patterns are waiting for review.

1. Hover over the information icon for a short description of the library;
   
2. Click "Tightening Patterns" to see the patterns the procedures use (see Step 8). The count on the tab is the number waiting for review;
   
3. "Active" lists the BJAPs that are offered on a joint. Switch it off to see the inactive ones, which stay on record;
   
4. "Superseded revisions" also lists the revisions that a later approved revision has replaced;
   
5. Click "+ BJAP" to create a procedure (see Step 5);
   
6. Type part of a number, title, pattern, service or method to filter the list;
   
7. Click the chevron to open a summary of the BJAP: its status, who approved it and when, its scope, tightening and the patterns in order of preference;
   
8. Click a BJAP number to open it (see Step 2);
   
9. The Info column shows whether the BJAP is active and, with a ring, how many joint assemblies have been recorded to it;
   
10. The status: Draft, Approved or Superseded.

Step 2 - The BJAP page

The BJAP page is laid out like a welder's detail page.

1. The document icon, with a green dot for an active BJAP and an amber dot for an inactive one;
   
2. The number and revision, the status, and who approved it and when;
   
3. The title, revision date, tightening method and tool, and the service categories the procedure covers;
   
4. "Joint assemblies" counts the joints made up to this revision;
   
5. "Status" switches the BJAP between active and inactive. Only super users and account administrators change it. An inactive BJAP is kept on record but is no longer offered on a joint;
   
6. Click the printer to print the BJAP as a PDF, with every pass of its patterns drawn for the bolt counts it is used for;
   
7. Click the clock to see the history of the record: created, saved, approved, revised, activated or deactivated, by whom and when;
   
8. Click the branch icon to make a new revision: a draft copy to change, while this revision stays in use. A draft shows a pencil to edit it, a tick to approve it and a bin to delete it instead. The "<" button returns to the library.
   

Step 3 - The procedure's sections

Below the header the procedure is set out in the order the assembler works.

1. "Scope": the joint types, sizes, pressure classes and PCC-1 Appendix A service categories the procedure covers;
   
2. "Preparation": the cleaning and inspection of the flange faces, the flatness limit and the alignment tolerance;
   
3. "Gasket and fasteners": the gasket and whether a new one is fitted at every assembly, the bolting, nuts and washers, the lubricant with its nut factor, and whether bolts and nuts may be reused;
   
4. "Checks and sign-off": what is checked and recorded, and who signs the joint record;
   
5. "Tightening": the method, the tool, whether a calibrated tool is required, and the units;
   
6. The target load for each bolt size, as prestress and the torque or tensioner pressure that reaches it.

Step 4 - The BJAP's tightening patterns

The last card draws the patterns the procedure allows, one tab each, in order of preference. A joint is tightened by the first pattern used for its bolt count. When more than one fits, the joint record offers those.

1. Click a pattern tab to see it. Under the tab, "Used for" lists the bolt counts the BJAP uses that pattern for, and a bar of bolt counts picks the one drawn;
   
2. On an approved BJAP, "Change in a new revision" opens a draft copy to change the patterns. On a draft, "Change" opens the form;
   
3. Each pass is drawn on the flange for the bolt count chosen, numbered in tightening order, with its share of the target load.

Step 5 - Create a BJAP

Click "+ BJAP" in the library. Every field has an information icon that explains it, and the required ones carry a red asterisk.

1. "Copy from" starts the new BJAP as a copy of an approved one. Everything is copied except the number; change what differs before saving. Leave it at "No, start blank" to type the procedure yourself;
   
2. The BJAP number, unique in your account;
   
3. The revision, for example 0 or A;
   
4. The date this revision was issued, printed on the BJAP;
   
5. The units for the whole procedure, which start as the account's units. They set the size example under Scope and the target loads;
   
6. A short title, shown with the number wherever a BJAP is chosen.

Step 6 - Scope, preparation, gasket and fasteners

The next three sections describe the joints and what goes into them.

1. The joint types the procedure covers, for example raised face weld neck;
   
2. The range of sizes, in NPS or DN according to the units chosen;
   
3. The pressure classes. Tick the PCC-1 Appendix A service categories below them. Critical service always requires a calibrated tool on the assembly date;
   
4. How the flange faces, gasket seating surfaces, bolts and nuts are cleaned and examined, with the flatness limit and alignment tolerance below;
   
5. The gasket type, materials and standard. It must be given;
   
6. "New gasket at every assembly" is on by default, as PCC-1 advises against reusing a gasket;
   
7. The lubricant for the threads and nut faces. It must be given, because the nut factor and the target torques depend on it;
   
8. The nut factor K for this bolt, nut and lubricant, which turns the target prestress into a torque. It must be given when the method is torque.

Step 7 - Tightening, patterns, checks and save

The tightening section gives the method and the loads, and names the patterns the joint may be tightened by.

1. The method: torque, where each nut is turned to a target torque, or tension, where a hydraulic bolt tensioner stretches the bolt before the nut is run down;
   
2. The tool to use, for example a hydraulic torque wrench or a bolt tensioner;
   
3. "Calibrated tool required" means the joint record needs a tool whose calibration is in date on the assembly date. It is always on when Critical service is ticked;
   
4. Click "Add bolt size" for each bolt size the procedure covers, and enter its target prestress and the torque or tensioner pressure that reaches it. At least one row is required;
   
5. Tick every accepted pattern this procedure allows. Only accepted patterns are offered here;
   
6. For each ticked pattern, choose the bolt counts it is used for, or "All prepared" for every count the pattern is prepared for. Use the arrows to put the patterns in order of preference;
   
7. The checks made and recorded, for example the flange gap measured at four points after the final pass;
   
8. Who signs the joint record;
   
9. Click "Save". The BJAP is kept as a draft until a super user or account administrator approves it. The draft's page lists anything still missing before approval.
   

Step 8 - The Tightening Patterns tab

Click "Tightening Patterns" in the library. WeldTrace comes with the bolt tightening patterns of ASME PCC-1-2022, Appendix F, each with its clause, bolt range and passes. Your account's own patterns are listed alongside them.

1. The banner reminds super users and account administrators how many patterns are waiting for review;
   
2. Click "+ Pattern" to create a pattern of your own (see Step 10);
   
3. Click a pattern name to open it. The chevron opens a summary, as for a BJAP;
   
4. A pattern marked "Account" was prepared in house, for the bolt counts it lists. It goes through the same review and acceptance as a PCC-1 pattern;
   
5. The status: Waiting for review, Accepted, Rejected or Superseded. A BJAP can use only an accepted pattern. A new revision of a pattern is reviewed again while the accepted one stays in use;
   
6. "Passes" shows each pass's share of the target load, so you can compare patterns at a glance.

Step 9 - Review a PCC-1 pattern

A PCC-1 pattern arrives waiting for review. A super user or account administrator checks it against the standard and accepts it before any BJAP can use it.

1. The edition and clause the pattern comes from, the bolt range it covers, how many tools work at once, and the method;
   
2. The reviewer's instructions. Each bolt count has a tab, with a green tick once its passes are complete, and the pattern's bolt order is printed under the tabs;
   
3. The "From" share of the target load for the pass. The standard gives a range, for example 20 to 30 percent;
   
4. The "To" share. Narrow the range to the value your procedures use, for example 30 in both fields, before accepting;
   
5. Click the tick to accept the pattern with the ranges as set. It is then locked, and a later change is a new revision that needs acceptance again;
   
6. Click the cross to reject it, recording why. A rejected pattern cannot be used.

Step 10 - Create an account pattern

Click "+ Pattern" on the Tightening Patterns tab when the standard's patterns do not suit a joint.

1. A name, shown when patterns are chosen on a BJAP;
   
2. Tick the bolt counts the pattern is prepared for, or type others. Each count gets its own tab for its passes;
   
3. How many tools work at once. A pass can tighten that many bolts at a time;
   
4. The method, torque or tension;
   
5. The bolt order: one of the standard's rules, such as star or quadrant, so that rule passes fill in by themselves, or "Entered by clicking the bolts" to click the order yourself;
   
6. Click "Create and set the passes". The pattern opens for review with one tab per bolt count (see Step 11).

Step 11 - Set up an account pattern

An account pattern waits for review until every bolt count tab is complete and a super user or account administrator accepts it.

1. One tab per bolt count. A green tick means every pass is set up for that count; an amber mark means the count is not ready yet. The badge under the tabs counts the tabs prepared;
   
2. Enter a number of bolts and click "Add tab" to prepare the pattern for another count. "Delete this tab" removes the count shown;
   
3. "Generate passes" builds the tab's passes from the pattern's order: one round over all the bolts at each share of the target you list, for example 30, 70 and 100 percent, so many bolts at a time. Edit the result, or set each pass by hand;
   
4. Each pass has its name, the bolts it tightens, the order, its share of the target, and how many bolts at a time. "Selected bolts" takes its bolts from your clicks on the diagram, with the bolts of the passes before it shown dimmed. "Add pass after" inserts a pass, and the bin removes one. A circular check pass is added by itself once every bolt reaches 100 percent;
   
5. Click the tick to accept the pattern once every tab is complete. Until then, your work is kept on the page and saved with the acceptance.

Step 12 - An accepted account pattern

TriStar is the sample account pattern, prepared for 8, 16 and 32 bolts.

1. An account pattern is not one of the PCC-1 patterns. The header gives its bolt range, tools and method, and who accepted it and when;
   
2. Click a bolt count tab to see the passes drawn for that count, with the bolt order under the tabs;
   
3. Every count is prepared, so the pattern can be used by a BJAP for any of them;
   
4. An optional pass over selected bolts, drawn in pattern order. A pass marked optional may be skipped, for example on hard gaskets;
   
5. "Remaining bolts" tightens the bolts that none of the passes before it touched;
   
6. Click the branch icon to make a new revision, which is reviewed again while this revision stays in use. The bin deletes an account pattern that no BJAP uses.