They are separate duties. A service visit is a performance and condition check carried out by an engineer on the equipment itself: seals, lids, monitoring accuracy, hoses, alarm function and evaporation behaviour. A statutory examination is carried out under a written scheme of examination to satisfy the Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000, where the system falls within scope, and it is performed by a competent person appointed for that purpose. HSE guidance INDG178 sets out the duty holder’s responsibilities.
A service does not discharge the statutory duty, and an examination does not service the equipment. Laboratories should hold records of both, on their own schedules.
