Use of API standards outside intended scope
Use of API standards outside intended scope
(OP)
I work for a manufacturer of equipment where petroleum storage/production companies are among our customers. Many of these customers do not have corporate specs for our type of equipment - so the engineering companies that handle these for the end users just cobble together API standards that appear to apply to things within our equipment.
These API standards might appear to apply to our product based on the title, but when you read the standard it's clear that it does not apply to our product. In our experience, application of the cited API standards does nothing to add to the reliability or value of the equipment, otherwise I wouldn't be concerned. It works, just in a massively overpriced and difficult way - death by 1000 cuts. We'd develop a product just for this industry, but the engineering companies seem to spec their own blend of irrelevant standards.
Naturally, having a frank conversation about it would require the end user to be a party. The engineering companies would never allow that, and seem to believe their role is to apply as many industry standards as possible to each transaction. So this does not happen.
OK, enough of my griping; everyone is downhill of something. Has anyone else navigated this problem with success?
David
These API standards might appear to apply to our product based on the title, but when you read the standard it's clear that it does not apply to our product. In our experience, application of the cited API standards does nothing to add to the reliability or value of the equipment, otherwise I wouldn't be concerned. It works, just in a massively overpriced and difficult way - death by 1000 cuts. We'd develop a product just for this industry, but the engineering companies seem to spec their own blend of irrelevant standards.
Naturally, having a frank conversation about it would require the end user to be a party. The engineering companies would never allow that, and seem to believe their role is to apply as many industry standards as possible to each transaction. So this does not happen.
OK, enough of my griping; everyone is downhill of something. Has anyone else navigated this problem with success?
David





RE: Use of API standards outside intended scope
Not much help, but that's all I got...
RE: Use of API standards outside intended scope
I think the frustrating part is knowing that we have standard products designed specifically for these applications, and that the specs are written as if we're going to build everything from the ground up, for the first time. So to "comply" with these specs intended to reduce risk, we're actually breaking down a proven system and substituting various things just because. At the end, you have basically a new, unproven system, based on unrelated codes that were never intended to work together.
David