nazua91, welcome to an interesting, challenging and, some say, a financially rewarding field
The activity of delivering a pressure vessel consists of three related activities, broadly speaking: contractual, engineering and fabrication. You should learn something of each, with the your main focus on engineering.
Contractual: Generally, pressure vessels are custom-designed, custom-built industrial equipment. You should learn broadly how PV's are bought and sold. Refer to a previous job and study the proposal and sales documents, which usually would consist of a contract including terms and conditions, technical specifications, performance data, estimating data and correspondence.
Through the project documents learn what the customer has specified (wants to buy) and what your organization has proposed to furnish (wants to sell). Study any technical exceptions your organization has taken to the contract and learn why they are taken. Notice the back and forth between the parties that occurs in arriving at an "As Sold" job. Review the performance and estimating data to further understand what your organization is furnishing.
Understand that once a job is sold, and the contract signed, your organization is pretty much obligated to furnish to the contract.
Engineering: You should, of course, become familiar with the Code and your Handbook. Work
by hand enough example calculations such as shell and head thicknesses, nozzle reinforcing, weld sizing and some of the structural stuff so that you feel comfortable looking at the software output. Learn what your software will and won't do properly. You should start putting together your own library and reference materials. Ask your supervisor intelligent questions. Learn to read the technical specifications so you can identify what applies to your class of work and how to meet it. Learn what does not apply to your class of work.
Before starting a job in earnest, review the contract documents, keeping your eyes open for conflicting or ambiguous requirements. Find out how your organization resolves such conflicts and do so. It may be useful to make your own notes summarizing important or unusual requirements of the specifications. Refer to the estimating data so that your designs are generally in line with how your organization has priced the vessel. Learn that at times you will need to deviate from the estimates to insure compliance with the contract or because the estimate was not fully detailed. It was an estimate, after all.
Get to know someone in purchasing and learn how they buy stuff, and what information you will need to supply them.
Fabrication: Get out on the floor and find out how the things get built and inspected. Start learning what their problems are and how you can address them in the design stage. Ask more intelligent questions.
You should by now be getting the idea that learning pressure vessel design is not a sprint, it is a marathon.
Last, but certainly not least, do a lot of reading here on Eng-Tips, especially the B&PV and ASME Code Issues fora. It is a great resource with many contributors who are 1) much more knowledgeable than myself, and 2) always willing to try to answer well thought-out and well stated questions.
And have some fun with it.
Regards,
Mike
The problem with sloppy work is that the supply FAR EXCEEDS the demand
