Duties Of Welding Inspectors

266
 Main Responsibilities

• Code compliance

• Workmanship control

• Documentation control

267
 Personal Attributes

Important qualities that good Inspectors are

expected to have are:
•Honesty
•Integrity
•Knowledge
•Good communicator
•Physical fitness

268
 Standard for Visual Inspection
Basic Requirements

Welding Inspection Personnel should:

• be fam iliar with relevant standards, rules and specifications
applicable to the fabrication work to be undertaken
• be informed about the welding procedures to be used
• have good vision (which should be checked every 12
months)

269
 Welding Inspection

Conditions for Visual Inspection

Illumination:
• 350 lux m inimum required
• (recommends 500 lux - normal shop or office lighting)
Vision Access:
• eye should be within 600mm of the surface
• viewing angle (line from eye to surface) to be not less than
30°
600mm

30°

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 Welding Inspection

Aids to Visual Inspection

When access is restricted m ay use:

• a m irrored boroscope
• a fibre optic viewing system
} u sually by agreement

Other aids:
• welding gauges (for checking bevel angles, weld profile,
fillet sizing, undercut depth)
• dedicated weld-gap gauges and linear m isalignment (high-
low) gauges
• straight edges and m easuring tapes
• m agnifying lens (if magnification lens used it should have
magnification between X2 to X5)

271
 Welding Inspectors Equipment

Measuring devices:
• flexible tape, steel rule
• Temperature indicating crayons
• Welding gauges
• Voltmeter
• Am meter
• Magnifying glass
• Torch / flash light
• Gas flowmeter

272
 Welding Inspectors Gauges
10m m 10m m 1

G.A.L. G.A.L. 3

4
S.T.D. L S.T.D.
16m m 5
16m m
6

Fillet Weld Gauges

HI-LO Single Purpose Welding Gauge

IN
0 1/4 1/2 3/4

Multi-purpose Welding Gauge Misalignment Gauges

273
Welding Inspectors Equipment

Multi-Meter capable of
measuring amperage
and voltage

274
 Welding Inspection

Stages of Visual Inspection

Extent of exam ination and when required should be defined in
the application standard or by agreement between the
contracting parties

For high integrity fabrications inspection required throughout

the fabrication process:

Before welding
During welding
After welding

275
Duties of a Welding Inspector

• Before Welding.
(before assembly.)
(after assembly.)

• During welding.
• After welding.

276
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector
Before Welding
Preparation:
Fam iliarisation with relevant ‘documents’…
• Application Standard/Code - for visual acceptance
requirements
• Drawings - item details and positions/tolerances etc
• Quality Control Procedures - for activities such as m aterial
handling, documentation control, storage & issue of
welding consumables
• Quality Plan/Inspection & Test Plan/Inspection Checklist -
details of inspection requirements, inspection procedures
& records required

277
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector

Before Welding
Welding Procedures:
• are applicable to joints to be welded & approved
• are available to welders & inspectors
Welder Qualifications:
• list of available qualified welders related to WPS’s
• certificates are valid and ‘in-date’

278
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector
Before Welding
Equipment:
• all inspection equipment is in good condition & calibrated
as necessary
• all safety requirements are understood & necessary
equipment available
Materials:
• can be identified & related to test certificates
• are of correct dimensions
• are in suitable condition (no dam age/contamination)

279
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector

Before Welding
Consumables:
• in accordance with WPS’s
• are being controlled in accordance with Procedure
Weld Preparations:
• com ply with WPS/drawing
• free from defects & contamination
Welding Equipment:
• in good order & calibrated as required by Procedure

280
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector

Before Welding
Fit-up
• com plies with WPS
• Number / size of tack welds to Code / good workmanship
Pre-heat
• if specified
• m inimum tem perature complies with WPS

281
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector
During Welding
Weather conditions
• suitable if site / field welding
Welding Process(es)
• in accordance with WPS
Welder
• is approved to weld the joint
Pre-heat (if required)
• m inimum tem perature as specified by WPS
• m aximum interpass tem perature as WPS

282
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector
During Welding
Welding consumables
• in accordance with WPS
• in suitable condition
• controlled issue and handling
Welding Parameters
• current, voltage & travel speed – as WPS
Root runs
• if possible, visually inspect root before single-sided welds
are filled up

283
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector

During Welding
Inter-run dressing
• in accordance with an approved m ethod (& back gouging)
to good workmanship standard
Distortion control
• welding is balanced & over-welding is avoided

284
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector
After Welding
Weld Identification
• identified/numbered as required
• is m arked with welder’s identity
Visual Inspection
• ensure weld is suitable for all NDT
• visually inspect & ‘sentence’ to Code requirements
Dimensional Survey
• ensure dimensions comply with Code/drawing
Other NDT
• ensure all NDT is com pleted & reports available

285
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector

After Welding
Repairs
• m onitor repairs to ensure com pliance with Procedure
• PWHT
• m onitor for com pliance with Procedure
• check chart records confirm Procedure compliance
Pressure / Load Test
• ensure test equipment is suitably calibrated
• m onitor to ensure com pliance with Procedure
• ensure all records are available

286
 Typical Duties of a Welding Inspector

After Welding
Documentation
• ensure any m odifications are on ‘as-built’ drawings
• ensure all required documents are available
• Collate / file documents for m anufacturing records
• Sign all documentation and forward it to QC department.

287
 W. I. Duties Before Welding

Resume:
• Check all documentation

• Check all consumables

• Check m aterials, dimensions and condition

• Preheating, m ethod and tem perature

• Check fit and set-up.

• Ensure no undue stress is applied to the joint

• Check welding equipment

288
 W. I. Duties During Welding

Resume:
• Check am perage, voltage, polarity

• Ensure the correct technique, run sequence.

• Check run out lengths, time lapses.

• Cleaning between passes

• Interpass tem peratures

• Consumable control

• Maintenance of records and reports

289
 W. I. Duties After Welding

Resume:
• Post cleaning
• Visual inspection of completed welded joint
• Check weld contour and width
• PWHT
• Dimensional accuracy
• Weld reports
• Tie up with NDT
• Monitor any repairs

290
 Summary of Duties
It is the duty of a Welding Inspector to ensure all the welding and
associated actions are carried out in accordance with the
specification and any applicable procedures.
A Welding Inspector m ust:
• Observe
To observe all relevant actions related to weld quality
throughout production.

• Record
To record, or log all production inspection points relevant to
quality, including a final report showing all identified
imperfections.
• Compare
To compare all recorded information with the acceptance
criteria and any other relevant clauses in the applied
application standard

291