What API 610 covers
API Standard 610, "Centrifugal Pumps for Petroleum, Petrochemical and Natural Gas Industries", sets requirements for centrifugal pumps in those services, including pumps run in reverse as hydraulic power recovery turbines. It covers overhung (OH), between-bearings (BB) and vertically suspended (VS) pump types. The 12th Edition was published in January 2021, about 11 years after the 11th. The 9th to 11th Editions were also published as ISO 13709; the 12th is not co-branded with ISO (Hydrocarbon Processing).
Several changes in the 12th Edition show up on datasheets. They include extra operating points, a tabular data list for electronic data exchange and new shaft guards near the seal gland. Cast iron material classes are removed, and there are more performance test points between rated flow and minimum continuous stable flow (same source). A tender written against the 11th Edition or ISO 13709 can ask for things the 12th Edition handles differently, so name the edition you offer.
Where owner requirements come from
Very few pump tenders ask for plain API 610. Operators add their own pump specification, and some use JIP33's S-615, a specification that sets a common minimum set of procurement requirements for centrifugal pumps to API 610 12th Edition (JIP33). JIP33 sets are split into a supplementary specification, a procurement data sheet, information requirements and quality requirements; the NORSOK and JIP33 page explains how to record deviations against each layer. Seals are usually called up to API 682, which covers shaft sealing systems, including seal category, type, arrangement and piping plan (Turbomachinery Magazine).
The datasheet sections that most often drive deviations
| Section | What to check | Typical deviation or clarification |
|---|---|---|
| Edition and pump type | API 610 edition, any ISO 13709 reference, and the pump type code offered (OH, BB or VS family) | Different edition offered; pump type not the one the spec prefers |
| Operating conditions | Rated and other operating points, liquid properties, NPSH available against NPSH required and the margin the spec asks for | NPSH margin below the owner's requirement |
| Materials class | The API 610 material class code selected on the datasheet against the owner's material table, plus any sour-service requirement | Different class offered; owner table and datasheet disagree |
| Seal and seal plan | Seal arrangement, category and piping plan to API 682, and who supplies the seal support system | Plan 53A offered where 53B is specified; seal system by others |
| Nozzle loads | The allowable nozzle forces and moments the owner asks for against what the pump and baseplate are designed for | Owner asks for higher allowable loads than the design basis |
| Testing and witnessing | Performance test, NPSH test, mechanical run and any string test, and which are witnessed, observed or by certificate only | Test not offered, or offered non-witnessed |
| Baseplate | Baseplate design, grouting, drainage and alignment features the spec asks for | Different baseplate design or grouting basis |
| Vibration | Vibration limits and where they are measured, against the API 610 limits and any tighter owner limit | Owner limit tighter than the guarantee offered |
| Driver and auxiliaries | Motor, coupling, guards and lube system, and any electrical or hazardous-area requirement | Driver to a different standard; scope split unclear |
| Documents | Curves, drawings, test reports and data the owner requires, and when | Document not offered or late |
How to record API 610 deviations
Record each gap as one row: the owner clause, the requirement, what you offer, the status, a justification and a cost of withdrawal. Quote the datasheet line as well as the specification clause, because many pump requirements are set on the datasheet rather than in the text. The rows below use an invented specification, PS-PMP-001; it is fictional and does not quote API 610 or any owner standard.
| Clause | Requirement | Offered | Status | Justification | Cost of withdrawal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PS-PMP-001 §3.2 | Pump to API 610, edition stated in the requisition | API 610, edition as requested | Complies | None | Not applicable |
| PS-PMP-001 datasheet line 22 | Material class as selected by the purchaser | Alternative class with the same casing material | Clarification | Confirm the alternative class is acceptable for this service | No cost |
| PS-PMP-001 §5.1 | Dual seal to API 682, plan 53B | Dual seal, plan 53A | Deviation | Barrier pressure is within the plan 53A range for this duty | Plan 53B: +6%, +3 weeks |
| PS-PMP-001 §6.3 | Allowable nozzle loads above the design basis | Design-basis nozzle loads | Deviation | Piping loads to be confirmed by the buyer's stress analysis | Reinforced baseplate: +4% |
| PS-PMP-001 §8.2 | Witnessed performance and NPSH tests | Witnessed performance test; NPSH test by certificate | Deviation | NPSH test not witnessed; certified report supplied | Witnessed NPSH test: +1.5% |
| PS-PMP-001 §8.6 | Owner vibration limit tighter than the standard | Vibration to API 610 limits | Deviation | Owner limit not guaranteed for this pump size | Not available |
Start from the technical deviation list template, and use the compliance matrix template if the owner wants a status for every clause. The buyer will score your offer in something like the technical bid evaluation template, so make each row easy to accept or reject. The technical deviation list guide covers status values and wording, and the datasheet vs specification checklist covers the remaining checks.
Find the requirements before you check them
Paste a section of the pump specification into the free spec requirement extractor to list its clauses, the standards it calls up (such as API 610 and API 682), values with units, and costly items such as witness tests. It runs in your browser and nothing is uploaded.
OdysseyGPT reads the full package, including datasheets, and drafts the compliance matrix and deviation list with a source quote for every row. It does not size pumps or judge performance curves; your engineers decide every open item. See pump manufacturers and OdysseyGPT for manufacturing.
Checking an API 610 pump package?
Bring one past pump tender to a demo and see the cited deviation list OdysseyGPT drafts. Managed plans are from $999/month.