Under the direction of the Steering Committee on Piping Systems of the Pressure Vessel Research Committee the Technical Committee on Piping Systems is developing positions in a number of areas which will have an effect on the design of piping systems.In the areas of criteria and loading this effort is currently concentrated on seismic issues but will also include other dynamic loads.In addition, the practices applied by industry in developing piping design are addressed.The major goal of the Technical Committee is to make recommendations for modification to Codes, standards, regulations and practices, so that a better balance exists between protection of piping against dynamic loading on the one hand while providing flexibility for expansion considerations on the other.It has been the opinion of a number of organizations and individuals in the industry that current criteria and practice are weighted on the side of protection against dynamic loading resulting in piping systems that are inflexible, over-supported and not as reliable as they could be.