(a) No person may make a plastic pipe joint unless that person has been qualified under the applicable joining procedure by:
(1) Appropriate training or experience in the use of the procedure; and
(2) Making a specimen joint from pipe sections joined according to the procedure that passes the inspection and test set forth in paragraph (b) of this section.
(b) The specimen joint must be:
(1) Visually examined during and after assembly or joining and found to have the same appearance as a joint or photographs of a joint that is acceptable under the procedure; and
(2) In the case of a heat fusion, solvent cement, or adhesive joint:
(i) Tested under any one of the test methods listed under § 192.283(a) applicable to the type of joint and material being tested;
(ii) Examined by ultrasonic inspection and found not to contain flaws that would cause failure; or
(iii) Cut into at least 3 longitudinal straps, each of which is:
(A) Visually examined and found not to contain voids or discontinuities on the cut surfaces of the joint area; and
(B) Deformed by bending, torque, or impact, and if failure occurs, it must not initiate in the joint area.
(c) A person must be requalified under an applicable procedure, if during any 12-month period that person:
(1) Does not make any joints under that procedure; or
(2) Has 3 joints or 3 percent of the joints made, whichever is greater, under that procedure that are found unacceptable by testing under § 192.513.
(d) Each operator shall establish a method to determine that each person making joints in plastic pipelines in