The three I&E QC records that get skipped until turnover
On most industrial and oil & gas jobs, the wire list, the tubing test records and the hazardous area inspection are the paperwork everybody means to keep up and nobody does — until the client's turnover package reviewer asks for them. Then someone spends a week reconstructing termination checks from memory and re-testing tubing that was already covered in insulation. The free workbook above puts all three on tabs in one file, with status and pass/fail done by formula, so the record gets built while the work gets done.
Tab 1: Cable termination / wire list
Build it from the cable schedule and termination drawings before the wire is pulled: one row per conductor, including shields, drains, grounds and spares. Each row carries the cable tag, pair or core, color, the from device and terminal, the to junction box or panel and terminal, the wire tag, and the ferrule.
How the status works
- OPEN — not landed yet.
- CHECK PENDING — the installer has initialed Terminated By.
- CLOSED — a second person checked it and marked Yes.
- REWORK — the checker found a problem. Write it in Remarks.
The roll-up counts conductors listed, terminated, checked and in rework, and shows % checked — a real progress number for terminations, which are otherwise hard to measure. If two conductors are landed on the same terminal of the same box, the To Terminal cell turns red so someone confirms it's intentional.
What a termination check should actually cover
- Right conductor on the right terminal per the drawing.
- Wire tags readable and matching at both ends.
- Ferrule sized for the conductor, fully crimped, no strands outside it, no insulation under the clamp.
- Tug test on every conductor.
- Shields and drains landed only where the drawing shows — usually the panel end only.
- Spare cores terminated or insulated as the spec requires, and labeled.
Tab 2: Instrument tubing pressure test record
Impulse lines and instrument air tubing get pressure-tested before insulation and before the loop check. Group runs into test packages and record one row per run: from/to, tag, material, OD and wall, test medium, test pressure, required hold time, actual hold time, start and end pressure, and allowable drop.
The test pressure and hold time come from your project's piping or tubing specification, or from the engineer. The template doesn't pick them, and you shouldn't either. The sheet calculates the pressure drop and marks the row:
- PASS — start pressure at or above the test pressure, hold time met, and drop no more than the allowable (blank allowable means zero drop).
- FAIL — anything else. Find the leak, re-make the fitting, and log the retest as a new row so the history stays in the record.
Safety: a pneumatic test stores far more energy than a hydrotest at the same pressure. Follow the site pressure-test procedure, barricade the area, use a relief device and a calibrated gauge, isolate any transmitter or gauge rated below the test pressure, and never exceed the specified pressure. For fitting and thread references see our NPT thread chart and pipe schedule chart.
Tab 3: Hazardous area equipment inspection
Every piece of electrical and instrument equipment in a classified location has to be suitable for that location — and has to stay that way through construction, when covers get left loose, glands get cross-threaded and seal fittings don't get poured. The inspection tab records, per item:
| Column | What to record |
|---|---|
| Area classification | From the approved area classification drawing — Class/Division or Zone. Not from the nameplate. |
| Gas group / T-code required | What that location requires. |
| Nameplate marking | Exactly what the equipment is marked, as found. |
| Protection method | Explosionproof / flameproof, intrinsic safety, increased safety, purged / pressurized, nonincendive, encapsulated, hermetically sealed. |
| Marking suits area? | The inspector's call, Yes or No. |
| Gland / seal fitting | Type, tightness, seal poured and tagged, correct gland for the cable. |
| Enclosure condition | Covers, fasteners, gaskets, damage, corrosion, blanking plugs. |
| Inspection grade | Visual, Close or Detailed. |
The Result formula marks an item DEFICIENT when the marking doesn't suit the area, a gland or seal failed, or the enclosure failed; ACCEPTABLE when the marking suits and the enclosure passed. Each deficiency gets a corrective action and an Open/Closed status, and the summary counts what's still open.
Visual, close and detailed — what each one means
- Visual — look only, from the ground or a platform, nothing opened and no tools. Catches missing bolts, broken glass, damaged cable, missing plugs, corrosion.
- Close — everything in visual, up close with a ladder or lift and hands on the outside: glands, seal fittings, bonding, gaskets, fasteners, and the marking read and compared to the area. The enclosure stays shut.
- Detailed — everything in close, plus opening the equipment with it isolated and the area proven gas-free under permit: flamepath joints, terminations, internal components, intrinsically safe segregation and barrier wiring.
This follows the visual/close/detailed approach used in IEC 60079-17-style inspection programs, in our own words. The requirements themselves live in NEC Articles 500–506 and your client's standards — verify against the edition adopted by your AHJ. For the classification systems, see our hazardous area classification reference and NEMA enclosure types chart.
How these records fit the rest of the I&E package
Terminations and tubing tests come after the instrument index and I/O list are set and before the loop check. A loop shouldn't go to loop check until its wires show CLOSED and its tubing shows PASS; the hazardous area inspection should be done at install and repeated before energization. Deficiencies from any of the three go on the punch list.
Moving QC records off the clipboard
Field PM QA/QC lets your techs and inspectors fill checks from a phone with photos attached, route hold points for QC and client signatures, and file every signed record into the job book for turnover. The form library includes ready-made industrial QC checklists. Start a free 30-day trial.
