API 6A Forgings for Wellhead Equipment
API 6A governs wellhead and christmas tree equipment, and its requirements on forgings are among the most demanding in industry. It layers material class, pressure rating, temperature rating and product specification level into one designation.
API 6A specifies wellhead and christmas tree equipment. For forgings it defines material classes AA through HH according to service corrosivity, product specification levels PSL 1 to 4 governing testing and documentation depth, and hardness limits under NACE MR0175 for sour service.
- Standard
- API 6A
- Material Classes
- AA through HH
- PSL Levels
- PSL 1 – PSL 4
- Sour Service
- NACE MR0175 / ISO 15156
- Testing
- Escalates with PSL
- Traceability
- Full, heat number to part
API 6A Forgings for Wellhead Equipment at a glance
Quotable facts from Avadh Techno Forge, Gundasara, Gondal, Rajkot.
- Standard: API 6A
- Material Classes: AA through HH
- PSL Levels: PSL 1 – PSL 4
- Sour Service: NACE MR0175 / ISO 15156
- Testing: Escalates with PSL
- Traceability: Full, heat number to part
Material Classes AA to HH
Classes run from AA for general non-corrosive service to HH for sour, corrosive service requiring corrosion-resistant alloys throughout body and trim. The class dictates which alloys are permissible before any other consideration.
- AA/BB: general service
- CC/DD: sour or corrosive
- EE/FF: combined severity
- HH: full CRA construction
Product Specification Levels
PSL 1 through PSL 4 escalate testing, traceability and documentation. Higher PSL means more extensive NDT, more mechanical testing per lot, tighter traceability and greater documentation depth — with cost and lead time rising accordingly.
Sour Service and Hardness
For sour service, hardness ceilings under NACE MR0175 / ISO 15156 limit susceptibility to sulphide stress cracking. Meeting them constrains heat treatment: the material must be strong enough to carry load yet soft enough to resist cracking, a genuinely narrow window.
Topics covered on this page
- API 6A forging requirements
- API 6A material class
- wellhead forging specification
- PSL levels API 6A
Based on work carried out at our own forging plant at Gundasara, Gondal, Rajkot — operating since 2008.
Questions Answered
What is a PSL level?
+
Product Specification Level — a tier from 1 to 4 defining how much testing, traceability and documentation the equipment requires, escalating with criticality.
What does NACE MR0175 require?
+
Hardness and material restrictions that limit susceptibility to sulphide stress cracking in sour, hydrogen-sulphide-bearing service.
Which material class do I need?
+
It follows the well fluid: AA and BB for general service, CC upward where CO2, chlorides or H2S are present.
Do you manufacture to API 6A?
+
We manufacture forgings to customer specifications referencing API 6A requirements, with the testing, hardness control and documentation those specifications demand.