What is a CRN?
CRN is an acronym for Canadian Registration Number. It is a number issued by each Canadian Province or Territory indicating that a boiler, pressure vessel or fitting has been accepted and registered for use in that province or territory. A heat exchanger can be considered a Pressure Vessel (ASME), a Fitting, or neither.
Do I require a CRN?
Understanding heat exchangers can be somewhat complicated, understanding whether a heat exchanger requires a CRN can be more complicated. Providing a “definitive guide” to access whether any heat exchanger requires a CRN is impossible, however, general guidelines can be developed to assist designers and owners of heat exchangers to assess whether they may require a CRN. We are providing this document for information purposes only. Pressure Vessel Registrations and Fitting Registrations in Canada are too complex and can change and there are exemptions for certain applications to be considered as well. Please consider this information as general guidance.
Each Province and Territory have a regulating body for this legislation. The regulating body in Ontario is the TSSA.
The information below is derived from the CSA B51 Standard, which is Canada wide, but each Province has its own registration requirements. It is recommended that the end user clearly understand the jurisdictional requirements before making the decision whether a heat exchanger is a pressure vessel, fitting or does not need to be registered. Manufacturing a heat exchanger with an ASME stamp if it is not required can add considerable cost to a project, so can delays in starting a process because one of the heat exchangers does not have a CRN.
- Every Province has a different assessment process to determine the classification. The heat exchanger must satisfy the regulations of the province in which it would be installed.
- Each Province has applications where a heat exchanger may be exempt depending on the service in which it is installed. Sometimes these applications are unclear and difficult to interpret.
- The classification of the heat exchanger is dependent on; the size, the fluids contained, and design pressure and temperature.
Linked below are three flow charts to help determine the classification of a specific heat exchanger.