3 Key Factors Affecting the Quality and Cost of Welds

Quality and cost go hand in hand, or at least they should.  Poor quality may be cheap during the fabricating process, but very costly when it comes to warranty repairs and potentially losing customers.  Many of the companies we work with have seen substantial cost reductions when we help them address quality concerns.  For the […]

What Causes Welding Spatter

17 reasons why you are getting spatter in your welding operations

Spatter is present in welding.  It’s all over welding.  But it doesn’t have to be.  Spatter costs fabricators millions of dollars every year.  Its removal constitutes rework that significantly and negatively impacts productivity.  Many fabricators work under the assumption that spatter is a necessary evil, a part of welding.  However, this couldn’t be further from […]

Are Concave Fillet Welds Bad?

You may be surprised to know that sometimes they are desired

The following is an exerpt from:  TROUBLESHOOTING FOR NON-WELDING ENGINEERS There is nothing wrong with concave welds so long as they attain the desired throat dimension. AWS D1.1/D1.1M:2020 Structural Welding Code (Steel) states that “there is no restriction on concavity as long as minimum weld size (considering both leg and throat) is achieved.” Concave welds […]

Troubleshooting Weld Cracking – The importance of crack location

One of the first steps in analyzing cracks to find their root cause and take corrective action is to categorize the cracks.  We categorize cracks based on three elements. Location Direction Timing In today’s article we discuss the importance of crack location when trying to determine what caused it.  What follows is an excerpt from […]

The Importance of Weld Repair Procedures

A repair procedure is necessary any time there is a defect in welding that must be corrected.  The repair procedure is not just a welding procedure specification, but rather a set of instructions and rules on how to repair different types of defects.  There is no standard format for a repair procedure, or a standard […]

Weld Troubleshooting for Non Welding Engineers

NOW AVAILABLE! Troubleshoot common welding and welding equipment problems the way welding engineers do. For more information CLICK HERE or the image  below. Learn and follow the process used by welding engineers to find the root cause of welding problems and their solutions. This troubleshooting guide goes beyond your typical troubleshooting charts on the back […]

Why you should take Undercut very seriously

Can it lead to catastrophic failure?

Undercut is a surface discontinuity resulting from melting of the base metal at one or both toes of a weld which remains unfilled by the weld metal.  It can also occur at the root of groove welds.  Undercut presents two problems. First, it forms a mechanical notch which acts as a stress riser and is […]

3 Keys to Troubleshooting Welding Problems

Troubleshooting of welds and other welding problems increases costs in welding, causes delays and affects weld quality.  Even a moderate understanding of welding problems, their symptoms, causes and potential solutions can help tremendously.  The more informed you are the better. To successfully troubleshoot and fix welding discontinuities, welding defects and other welding problems we need […]

9 Maintenance Problems that Cause Bad Welds

Maintenance-related problems are responsible for a large portion of bad welds in every day welding. However, these causes go unnoticed and unresolved because they happen slowly over time. A proper preventive maintenance program for welding machines, CNC cutting tables and other industrial equipment is absolutely necessary. Many of the problems related to maintenance that cause […]

3 Reasons Why You Need to Make Smaller Welds

Bigger is not always better, at least not in welding.  Making welds bigger than they need to be is not only wasteful and costly, but can cause other problems such as distortion and premature failure. Below are 3 reasons why you may need to pay close attention to your weld sizes.  1. Bigger welds cost […]