Have you ever wondered if there is one type of welding discontinuity or defect that is the absolute worst one to have? Have you heard that cracks are by the far the worst? Or do you think others like lack of fusion, undercut or overlap can be worse? The reality is that there isn’t a […]
Developing welding procedures requires an understanding of all the different essential variables as well as the process of qualifying or prequalifying such procedures.
When writing a welding procedure one of the most critical steps is selecting our welding parameters. This means determining the appropriate amperage and voltage as well as other critical aspects that the welder must adhere to such as travel speed and travel and work (transverse) angles. What follows is an explanation as to the importance […]
One of the most common questions we get around the topic of welding procedure qualification is regarding the differences between qualified and prequalified welding procedures. The main question is typically: is one better than the other? Before we answer this question, let’s first discuss the need for qualified, or prequalified, welding procedures. If you have […]
Continuous learning is something that is very important for both personal and professional development. This applies to all industries and to all positions. The welding industry, as many of its counterparts, is challenged with a workforce that is lacking the skills necessary to do the job. This is driven by the increased demand for welders, […]
In today’s article we’ll be discussing a critical aspect of welding which is crucial in ensuring the safety and long useful life of structures. When engineers conduct a fitness for service analysis of structures they are looking for flaws. These flaws may be cracks, loose bolts, deformations, rust damage (thinning of structural members) and other […]
There are four types of loading experienced by welds and welded structures. These types of loading are a function of the strain rate (the rate at which deformation occurs in a material due to an applied load) and the number of loading cycles experienced by the welded member. The 4 types of loading are: Static […]
Whenever you hear that a welding procedure needs to be qualified it simply means that its suitability for use in a welded structure needs to be proven by testing. This means that the welding procedure must be capable of producing sound welds. But what are sound welds? Sound welds are welds that will perform in […]
A question we often ask of our customer is “how to do you determine the minimum level of quality for your welded product and how do you verify you are reaching or exceeding that quality level?” Responses included comments such as: We just weld and know our welds will hold because we know our trade […]
The majority of industrial equipment and welded structural components are subjected to repeated fluctuating loads. These loads are typically of magnitudes that are within the elastic region of the material and well below its yield strength. This means that any deformation of the structure caused by the applied stress will then return to its normal […]
