Recommended for global players in the steel industry

International Comparison of Steels

In a time of growing international interdependence in the
steel industry, the comparison of materials is crucial for
identifying the closest possible correspondence between
different national types of steel. This book is a vital source of
information for all those involved in the global steel industry.
This English and German tabular comparison of steels
covers materials from the most globally active regions in
the sector. The chemical values for each material are in-
cluded as a further tool for identifying comparable steel ty-
pes. The European material numbers provide the basis for
this comprehensive tabular comparison of steel types from
major industrial regions of the world (EU, USA, Russia,
China, India and Japan).

Contents

1. Country codes
2. Steel grades compared with chemical analysis
3. Steel names, listed alphanumerically by
index number (EU/DE material no.)
4. List of cited standards
4.1 German and European material standards
4.2 Chinese material standards
4.3 Indian material standards
4.4 Japanese material standards
4.5 Russian material standards
4.6 US material standards
4.7 ISO material standards

Internationaler Stahlvergleich /
International Comparison of Steels
German/English, Peter Marks, Walter Tirler,
1st edition 2010, 784 pages
Order no 500091

Preis: 128.00 EUR

DVS Media GmbH • Aachener Straße 172 • 40223 Düsseldorf

T +49. (0)2 11. 15 91-161 • F +49. (0)2 11. 15 91-250 • media@dvs-hg.de • www.dvs-media.info

The UK Editorial Advisory Panel
of “Welding and Cutting“
Since it was founded in 2006, the UK Editorial Advisory
Panel has become established as an expert body which
provides advice to the editorial team of “Welding and Cut-
ting“, actively accompanies the development of the journal
and is available as a contact for the readers as well as for
the companies and institutes dealing with joining, cutting
and coating technology in the United Kingdom.
All panel members have long working experience in
these industries and they make use of their contacts,
knowledge and expertise to keep the journal a source of
up-to-date technical information as well as a valuable
platform for knowledge exchange and an attractive medi-
um for advertising customers.
The UK Editorial Advisory Panel meets up once per
year at TWI – The Welding Institute in Cambridge. Since
a few members have left the body and new members have
been added in their places compared with the last pres-
entation in “Welding and Cutting“ (see No. 2/2006), the
five current members (in addition to the Editor-in-Chief
from DVS Media in Düsseldorf/Germany, Dietmar Rippe-
gather) are introduced below.
Norman Cooper
Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, UK
e-mail:
norman.cooper@baesystems.com
Norman Cooper has worked in the military shipbuild-
ing and engineering industry at BAE Systems Barrow-in-
Furness England for 25 years, working on a range of proj-
ects from nuclear submarines and warships to self pro-
pelled howitzers. Having graduated with a degree in Met-
allurgy and Microstructural Engineering, he joined the
Company, then Vickers Shipbuilding and Engineering Lim-
ited, as a graduate trainee. Following training, he joined
the Metallurgical Laboratory, engaged in production/weld-
ing metallurgy and troubleshooting, and over the years,
through a series of promotions became Chief Metallurgist.
In 1996, Norman Cooper was appointed Technical
Production Services Manager and is currently responsible
for Materials and Welding Technology for the new UK As-
tute Class nuclear hunter killer submarine. He is a Euro-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
EDITORIAL
Issue
01
The
Welding
Institute
2014
www.welding-and-cutting.info Technical journal for welding and allied processes
pean Engineer, Chartered Engineer, Chartered Scientist,
Fellow of the Welding Institute and a Fellow of the Institute
of Materials Minerals & Mining. As well as being a member
of the American Welding Society (AWS) D1N Committee
on Titanium welding, Norman is BAE Systems Organisa-
tion Representative with TWI and is also a member of
TWI Council.
Alan Denney
Hammersmith, London, UK
e-mail: alan@denney1.freeserve.co.uk
Eur Ing Alan Denney is a metallurgist and welding
engineering consultant in the offshore, onshore process
and pipeline industries. He is a freelance consultant fol-
lowing nine years as Manager of Welding and Materials
at Saipem Ltd in the UK. He has wide ranging technical
interests in welding, non-destructive testing, quality con-
trol, material selection, corrosion engineering and integri-
ty management in the upstream oil and gas industries.
He was with John Brown for more than twenty-four years,
fifteen of which he was Chief Engineer Materials Engi-
neering during which time he worked in offshore platform
engineering and construction, pipelines, onshore termi-
nals, refineries, defence engineering and flue gas desul-
phurisation.
Alan Denney started his working life in the Research
and Development Group of Ove Arup and Partners, and
has a love of architecture and structural engineering which
was a result of his time there, and the projects on which
he worked. He has a long term interest in pipeline integrity
and rehabilitation and was awarded the Pipeline Indus-
tries Guild J.W. Jones Award in 1994 for a paper on this
topic. He has written more than 50 papers on materials
applications in the offshore and process engineering in-
dustries, and lectures to universities, colleges and profes-
sional societies on welding and materials matters. Alan is
a Council Member of TWI, a member of Professional
Board , a past-President and programme secretary of the
London Branch of TWI . He is currently Chairman of the
Offshore Technical Group of TWI.
3

EDITORIAL
Chris Eady (Chairman)
Abington, Cambridge, UK
e-mail: chris.eady@twi.co.uk
Chris Eady is a professional engineer with extensive
experience in operation and maintenance of complex sys-
tems, research and development, and training and com-
petence assurance. Chris is the Associate Director for Pro-
fessional Affairs at The Welding Institute, the institution
licenced by the Engineering Council for professional de-
velopment of technicians and engineers in our sector, is
Chief Executive of TWI Certification Ltd, a UKAS-accred-
ited personnel and manufacturer certification body and
a Notified Body for the Construction Products Regulation,
and is the Executive Officer of the Institute of Rail Welding,
the independent network for rail welding providers and
customers.
Having commenced his career as an engineering ap-
prentice, gaining a BTEC Higher National Diploma, a
Bachelor of Science Degree with Honours, and a Master
of Science Degree, Chris has professional registrations
with FEANI as EUR ING, the Engineering Council as Char-
tered Engineer and is a Member of the Royal Aeronautical
Society and a Fellow of The Welding Institute. With a spe-
cialisation in gas turbine technology and from service as
a senior officer in the Royal Air Force and as Chief Power-
plant Engineer for British Airways, he has detailed expe-
rience of management of safety-critical systems, the ap-
plication of regulations and standards to engineering ac-
tivities, and the high technology materials, materials join-
ing and coatings employed in high-integrity thermal pow-
er machinery.
Whilst managing applied research and development
programmes for the UK Ministry of Defence, Chris au-
thored a chapter on material damage mechanisms for a
NATO-AGARD publication on health and usage monitor-
ing systems, and presented papers on propulsion systems
reliability and availability, high cycle fatigue, and foreign
object damage at conferences in the UK, USA, Canada
and Australia. At TWI Ltd. Chris has been engaged in busi-
ness development activities, and was the operations man-
ager for the large and rapidly growing Non-Destructive
Testing Technology Group.
Since taking over his current roles in January 2009,
and as a permanent member of the TWI Executive Board,
a Director of EWF and a Vice President of IIW, Chris has
been active in delivery and development of education,
training and certification of personnel in the welding and
joining sector.
4 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
Issue
01
The
Welding
Institute
2014
www.welding-and-cutting.info Technical journal for welding and allied processes
David Millar
Glasgow, Scotland, UK
e-mail: david@nst.no
Since establishing the company NST Welding (UK)
Ltd in 1996, Eur Ing David Millar has held the position of
Managing Director, in this role he has held full P&L re-
sponsibility for both the UK and several other overseas
market areas, and provides technical support to all of the
Norsk Sveiseteknikk AS group of companies worldwide.
He has also been a member of the UK Editorial Advisory
Panel of “Welding and Cutting“ since its inception in 2006.
David has been involved with TWI for many years and
has held positions in both the WJS/TWI Scottish Branch
committee, TWI Council, TWI Professional board, Asses-
sor for Engineering Council, and Assessor for TWI mem-
bership, and is involved in the training of new assessors
for the Institute.
On a professional level, he is a Fellow of The Welding
Institute, a Chartered Engineer and International Welding
Engineer, a European Engineer and a certified European
Welding Engineer. He also holds a Master of Philosophy
Degree from Strathclyde University, the Welding Engi-
neering Diploma from TWI/Cranfield, a Diploma in Mgt
studies from Caledonia University and the Full Techno-
logical Certificate (FTC) from the City & Guilds.
Paul Woollin
Abington, Cambridge, UK
e-mail: paul.woollin@twi.co.uk
Paul Woollin joined TWI in 1992 after obtaining MA
and PhD degrees from the University of Cambridge. His
work at TWI has concentrated on the performance of
welded stainless steel and included many weld failure in-
vestigations, and consultancy and research and develop-
ment programmes to find solutions to the underlying
problems. Specific subjects have included avoiding crack-
ing of duplex stainless steels under cathodic protection,
weldability and stress corrosion cracking resistance of su-
permartensitic stainless steels and corrosion fatigue be-
haviour of carbon manganese steels and stainless steels.
He is currently Research Director at TWI.
 EDITORIAL

Got the Ticket?

Just the Tick-it, or is it?
A tick in the box is often the record of compliance on checklists
and forms, but ‘tick-the-box compliance‘ does not discharge your
responsibilities for compliance. With personnel competence being
a key element in achieving weld quality, effective competence
assurance is essential in compliance with regulations, standards
and customer expectations.

Read the editorial on page 39 for an insight into the right ‘Ticket‘
to ‘Tick-it‘.

Eur Ing Chris Eady BSc(Hons) MSc CEng MRAeS FWeldI

Associate Director Professional Affairs
The Welding Institute

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 5

 CONTENTS WELDING AND CUTTING 01/2014

News 08 Research project EMFWELD aims to

help fabricators to meet requirements of
the new EU EMF Directive
08 Study shows resilience of joining
technology in Europe
10 EU programme “Horizon 2020“ launched
with Euro 15 billion over the first two years
10 DVS-TV news now in the English
language too
12 Aviation Industry Corporation of China
to advance welding and joining research
capabilities with TWI
The first
12 Stable outlook for the European
EB machine
steel industry
from 1952.
13 Conferences and Exhibitions

14 From Companies 14 50 years of Steigerwald Strahltechnik

16 Getting a complete handle on quality
18 Arc Machines’ know-how is fertile ground
for GrowHow
19 BOC’s new gas cylinder proves a hit in
customer trials
20 AWL-Techniek laser welds tracks for
car seats
21 Short Messages
22 Products

When welding hot-dip aluminised sheets, the crucial

factor is to prevent the aluminium coating from ”bur-
ning off”. Welding Practice 24 Information about practical welding

Events 26 “wire & Tube 2014“ will open their

doors in April
26 27th International Colloquium Plastics
Technology

Reports 28 The importance of the joint gap when

joining by brazing – Part 5: The pre-
placement of filler material
32 The Eskom Weld Rule Book
34 Narrow gap GMA welding on the basis of
examples from turbine construction –

19 Network Rail has completed successful trials A high-tech process for stringent quality
with BOC’s new oxygen “Genie“ gas cylinder for demands in all welding positions
use on maintenance works. (Photo: Linde)

6 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1

 Issue

01
The
Welding
Institute

2014

www.welding-and-cutting.info Technical journal for welding and allied processes

Technical journal for welding and allied processes of

the DVS – German Welding Society, Düsseldorf,
the Professional Division of The Welding Institute, Cambridge,
and the Institut de Soudure, Paris

Produced in Collaboration between

20 AWL-Techniek has already more than
ten years experience in laser welding.

“wire & Tube 2014“

will open their doors
in April

Specialist Articles 43 Joining of structured sheet metals – Remote

laser beam welding in comparison with
resistance spot welding
Ina Sasse, Leander Schleuß, Ralf Ossen-

48
brink, Vesselin Michailov
Avoidance of hot cracks and seam
quality improvement of CrNi steels
26
Niyameddin Süleymanov, Driss Bartout

48
52 Laser/GMA hybrid welding with the aid
of lowenergy arcs
Uwe Reisgen, Simon Olschok, Michael
Mavany

57 Editorial Preview
58 Books Cracking in the case of
58 Imprint/Ad Index the chromium-nickel
steels welded without
any pulse modulation.

National Pages 30 Information from the DVS – German

Welding Society
39 TWI News – The Newsletter of
The Welding Institute

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 7

 NEWS
Research project EMFWELD aims to help fabricators to
meet requirements of the new EU EMF Directive
Some welding and non-destructive test-
ing processes are high emitters of electromag-
netic fields (EMF) and yet there is a recognised
lack of knowledge concerning the source and
magnitude of the field in comparison to ex-
posure limit values. The European fabrication
industry, among others, regularly utilises
equipment that emit EMF and will be required
to ensure that workers‘ exposure is minimised
and below the levels set out by the European
Union‘s (EU)EMF Directive (2013/35/EU),
published on 26 June 2013.
This research project, coordinated by the
European Federation of Welding, Joining
and Cutting (EWF) aims to lower the com-
panies’ cost of compliance by providing an
innovative, economic, easily accessible and
accurate software tool for EMF exposure risk
assessment in welding and non-destructive
testing processes.
Challenge for the fabrication
industry
Electromagnetic fields are a form of non-
ionising electromagnetic radiation having
both magnetic and electric field compo-
nents varying with time. This new EU Di-
rective, which member states must imple-
ment by July 2016, promotes the safety and
health of individuals working in environ-
ments likely to be subjected to electromag-
netic fields.
Small and medium-sized enterprises
(SMEs) in the fabrication industry will be
Study shows resilience of joining technology in Europe
The results of a recent study show the
extent that the manufacture and applica-
tion of joining technologies represent in
both added-value and jobs. The goal of this
study is to evaluate all the statistical infor-
mation available to estimate the value
added contribution and the number of em-
ployees resulting from the manufacture
and application of joining technology in
the European Union as a whole in 2010
and 2011, the latest data boundary of this
study.
The results of this latest study are a clear
demonstration of the relevance of the in-
dustry in Europe and the existing opportu-
8 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
put at a competitive disadvantage as they
will incur a heavy and disproportionate fi-
nancial cost in order to meet the Directive‘s
requirements and ensure a safe working en-
vironment for their workers. An assessment
for EMF exposure can be complex and ex-
pensive. In many cases a simple measure-
ment may not be sufficient to demonstrate
compliance with the forthcoming Directive,
so complex numerical modelling may be re-
quired to make a full assessment.
The EMFWELD project
The ambitious EMFWELD project aims
to lower SME‘s cost of compliance to the
new EMF Directive by providing an EMF
exposure risk assessment software tool. The
envisaged web-based software application
will require expertise and extensive re-
search and understanding of welding
processes and their associated EMF para-
meters. EWF and CEEMET (Employers’ Or-
ganisation of Metal Trades in Europe), the
associations involved in this consortium,
do not have the necessary research cap-
abilities and have therefore engaged lead-
ing Research and Technological Develop-
ment performers (RTDs) with world class
knowledge in welding processes, software
development (TWI) and simulation of in-
ternal body fields (CHALMERS), to develop
the EMFWELD concept. In addition to pro-
viding decisive cost benefit for the SMEs,
EMFWELD will also contribute towards the
nities to grow as part of the global strategy
outlined in the “Manufuture“ technology
platform. The study was financed by DVS
(German Welding Society), EWF (European
Welding Federation) and EWA (European
Welding Association).
In this study, the manufacture of joining
technology is fundamentally understood to
refer to the manufacture of goods and the
rendering of services which are necessary
for the joining in each case. The manufac-
ture and application of joining technology
has three direct value added effects: the
value added of production of joining de-
vices, the value added for the manufacture
establishment of new EU standards for the
assessment of EMF in metal fabrication in-
dustries as well as promoting a safe working
environment and benefiting Europe as a
whole.
The goals of the project are to:
• improve knowledge of EMF in welding
and inspection processes;
• provide tools for the correct assessment
of workers‘ exposure to EMF;
• reduce the cost of compliance with the
EMF Directive for SMEs.
The software toolkit will provide a simple
yet very effective and accurate risk assess-
ment to the user regarding the potential
EMF exposure caused by certain welding
processes. The software toolkit will inform
if there is a risk for the user of the specified
welding process, and whether exposure is
likely to be below or above the limits im-
posed by the Directive.
The project consortium includes seven
partners (EWF, CEEMET, SWANTEC, INA-
CEINOX, LINK MICROTEK, TWI, and
CHALMERS). The research leading to these
results has received funding from the Euro-
pean Union‘s Seventh Framework Pro-
gramme managed by REA-Research Execu-
tive Agency http://ec.europa.eu/rea (FP7/
2007-2013) under grant agreement no. FP7-
SME-2012-2-315382.
For further information see: www.em-
fweld.com. (According to press information
from EWF)
of complementary goods and finally the ap-
plication of joining technology.
Joining technology constitutes a cross-
sectional technology, used for the manufac-
ture of a variety of products across different
sectors. For the purposes of the study, the
following broad trends and figures were
identified, that are particularly relevant for
welding and joining professionals:
1. In 2010, the manufacture and applica-
tion of joining technology represented
Euro 65.1 billion and provided employ-
ment to 1.2 million people in the EU(27).
2. In terms of production values, for de-
vices and systems, total production for
 the joining sector represents Euro 7,950
million:
a. 74% (aprox. Euro 5,900 million) of
these represented by welding, braz-
ing and cutting ,
b. 10% (aprox. Euro 829 million) rep-
resented by robot systems,
c. 7% (aprox. Euro 548 million) repre-
sented by adhesive bonding.
3. In terms of production values for com-
plementary goods and services, amount-
ed to Euro 7,539 million of which:
a. Welding consumables represented
27% (Euro 2,027 million),
b. Adhesives represented 25% (Euro
1,860 million),
c. Gases represented 23% (Euro 1,728
million).
4. In terms of employment by application The ITW Orbital Cutting & Welding group with
its brands ORBITALUM TOOLS and E.H. WACHS
of joining technologies, of a total of 1.2
provides global customers one source for the
million in EU(27): finest in pipe & tube cutting, beveling and orbital
a. Welding currently employs 647,000 welding products.
people as welders,
b. 311,300 as welding inspectors, re-
searchers, designers, trainers and
robot operators,
c. 165,900 in terms of joining-related
personnel.
This study highlights the relevance of this
industry in Europe as a means to increase
competitiveness of EU(27) companies and
provides further evidence to encourage its
development as part of the strategy to sup-
port the reindustrialisation of Europe. (Ac-
cording to press information from EWF) Open Orbital Weld Heads
ORBIWELD

ORBITAL | CUTTING & BEVELING

ORBITALUM E.H. WACHS ORBITALUM

Pipe Cutting and Portable Milling Tube Squaring Machines
Beveling Machines Machines Trav-LCutter: RPG: The required,
GF & RA: Safe cold cutting and high-quality tube
The optimum prepara- beveling. Compact end preparation for
tion for automated design, easy set-up. orbital welding! Space
welding! Square, Horizontal and vertical saving, light weight
burr-free and cold preparation. and portable machine;
machining process. burr-free and square
tube end.

ORBITAL | WELDING

ORBITALUM ORBITALUM ORBITALUM

Open orbital weld P16 AVC: Tube-to-tube- HX 16 series: Open weld
heads ORBIWELD with sheet orbital weld heads especially made
extremely compact heads with electronic for heat exchanger
design: Arc length is arc voltage control applications – the
kept at a constant gap (AVC). Welding with optimum solution for
mechanically. Water- the highest of accuracy welding of pre-mounted
cooled TIG Torch head and consistent quality. elbows.
can be swiveled in any
direction.

www.orbitalum.com

ORBITALUM TOOLS GMBH | An ITW Company

Josef-Schuettler-Str. 17 | 78224 Singen, Germany
Tel. +49 (0) 77 31 792-0 | Fax +49 (0) 77 31 792-524
tools@orbitalum.com | www.orbitalum.com

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1

CUT. PREP. WELD. ONE SOURCE.
 NEWS
EU programme “Horizon 2020“ launched with Euro
15 billion over the first two years
In December 2013, the European Com-
mission has for the first time presented calls
for projects under “Horizon 2020“, the Eu-
ropean Union’s Euro 80 billion research and
innovation programme. Worth more than
Euro 15 billion over the first two years, the
funding is intended to help boost Europe’s
knowledge-driven economy and tackle is-
sues that will make a difference in people’s
lives. This includes 12 areas that will be a
focus for action in 2014/2015, including top-
ics such as personalised healthcare, digital
security and smart cities.
European Research, Innovation and Sci-
ence Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn
said: “It’s time to get down to business. ‘Hori-
zon 2020’ funding is vital for the future of re-
search and innovation in Europe, and will
contribute to growth, jobs and a better quality
of life. We have designed ‘Horizon 2020’ to
produce results, and we have slashed red tape
to make it easier to participate. So I am calling
on researchers, universities, businesses in-
cluding SMEs, and others to sign up!“
For the first time, the Commission has
indicated funding priorities over two years,
DVS-TV news now in the English language too
www.dvs-tv.de/
international
For five years, the Web TV station DVS-
TV has been a top-class address for moving
pictures about everything to do with the
fields of joining, cutting and coating. The
expert public receives information not only
in a weekly news programme but also with
special reports (e.g. on events and technical
developments from industry and research)
and practical tips.
For 2014, there will now be a new feature
on DVS-TV. A “DVS-TV International“ sec-
tion has been set up by popular request at
www.dvs-tv.de/international. In the English
language too, the viewers will then learn in-
teresting facts from the world of joining, cut-
ting and coating. These may relate, for ex-
ample, to fairs and events all over the world,
to conferences with English as the event lan-
guage, to product launches in country-spe-
10
providing researchers and businesses with
more certainty than ever before on the di-
rection of EU research policy. Most calls
from the 2014 budget are already open for
submissions, with more to follow over the
course of the year. Calls in the 2014 budget
alone are worth around Euro 7.8 billion, with
funding focused on the three key pillars of
“Horizon 2020“:
• Excellent Science: Around Euro 3 bil-
lion, including Euro 1.7 billion for
grants from the European Research
Council for top scientists and Euro 800
million for Marie Skłodowska-Curie fel-
lowships for younger researchers.
• Industrial Leadership: Euro 1.8 billion
to support Europe’s industrial leader-
ship in areas like information and com-
munication technology, nanotechnolo-
gies, advanced manufacturing, robotics,
biotechnologies and space.
• Societal challenges: Euro 2.8 billion
for innovative projects addressing Hori-
zon 2020’s seven societal challenges,
broadly: health; agriculture, maritime
and bioeconomy; energy; transport;
cific markets or to newly opened factories
or branches in Europe or overseas.
Six times per year, the English-language
news programme on DVS-TV will provide
information on these subjects. The English-
language section will also include selected
The English-language news programme on
“DVS-TV International“ informs about everything to
do with the fields of joining, cutting and coating.
climate action, environment, resource
efficiency and raw materials; reflective
societies; and security.
“Horizon 2020“ is the EU’s biggest ever re-
search and innovation framework pro-
gramme with a seven year budget worth
nearly Euro 80 billion. Most EU research
funding is allocated on the basis of competi-
tive calls, but the budget includes funding
also for the Joint Research Centre, the Eu-
ropean Commission’s in-house science
service; the European Institute for Innova-
tion and Technology and research carried
out within the framework of the Euratom
Treaty. Separate calls will also be published
under specific Partnerships with industry
and with Member States. In 2014 the total
EU research budget, including these items
and administrative expenditure, will be
around Euro 9.3 billion, rising to around Eu-
ro 9.9 billion in 2015.
More information about „“Horizon
2020“ is available online at http://ec.eu-
ropa.eu/programmes/horizon2020/ (Ac-
cording to press information from the Eu-
ropean Commission)
reports from industry, skilled trades and uni-
versities. Please send subject suggestions
and material (preferably moving pictures)
for news to the editorial team: info@dvs-
tv.de. (According to press information from
DVS-TV)
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
Böhler Welding
know-how joins steel
Metallurgical know-how
for the best welding results

As a world leading provider of filler metals voestalpine Böhler Welding

is now an integrated unit of the steel producer voestalpine.
The three brands provide the deepest portfolio of filler metal solutions
and the most competent technical support in the market for
Joint Welding, Repair & Maintenance and Brazing applications:
Böhler Welding | UTP Maintenance | Fontargen Brazing

voestalpine Böhler Welding

www.voestalpine.com/welding
 NEWS
Aviation Industry Corporation of China to advance
welding and joining research capabilities with TWI
TWI – The Welding Institute, Cam-
bridge/UK, welcomes the start of a technical
collaboration with the Aviation Industry Cor-
poration of China to create new opportunities
for the Corporation‘s Aviation Foundation
Technology Establishment known as AVIC
Tech, in the innovation and application of
advanced research in novel welding and coat-
ing technologies, along with additive manu-
facturing. The initiative is part of AVIC‘s drive
for technology advancement through co-op-
eration with key international partner organ-
isations. AVIC Tech will join TWI as an In-
dustrial Member in an agreement which will
Stable outlook for the European steel industry
Moody’s Investors Service’s outlook for
the European steel industry is stable. This
outlook reflects the expectations for the fun-
damental business conditions in the indus-
try over the next 12 to 18 months.
The outlook on the European steel in-
dustry was changed to “stable“ from “nega-
tive“ at the end of 2013 because Moody’s be-
lieves that conditions for the European steel
industry will improve very slightly in 2014.
The European Purchasing Manager Index
(PMI) has been above 50 since July which
indicates that sentiment is improving, which
is expected to translate into a tepid recovery
in end user sectors in 2014.
The Euro area economy is improving,
but recovery is fragile. Moody’s latest macro-
economic forecast is for euro area GDP
growth of 0.5% to 1.5% in 2014 versus flat to
a 1% contraction in 2013 and there are signs
that economic activity may be bottoming
out in peripheral states. In Russia GDP
growth of 2.5% to 3.5% in 2014 is forecast af-
12
see an exchange of knowledge and knowhow
between teams of materials engineers from
both organisations. The opportunities for in-
novation and extended research will focus
on technologies specific to the advancement
of aviation engineering together with software
development, and training support.
Beijing-based AVIC Tech employs more
than 12,000 members of staff across China,
engaged in aero engineering disciplines cov-
ering aerodynamics, strength, materials,
manufacturing, standards, metrology, meas-
urement and control as well as information
technology. The company is planning to es-
ter a slowing to 1% to 2% in 2013. This is ex-
pected to help growth in steel end user mar-
kets.
Steel end-user markets growth will aid
demand growth. Moody’s has a stable out-
look on the European building materials
sector where volumes are expected to sta-
bilise at low levels in 2014 and a Western
European light vehicle sales growth of 3% in
2014 is forecasted versus a 5% contraction
in 2013. Moody’s believes apparent steel use,
which is a good proxy for end user demand,
in the European Union will be flat to up 1%
to 2% in 2014, versus an expected 1% to 2%
decline in 2013.
The capacity utilisation in the EU is ex-
pected to remain at its current level, which
is estimated at about 75% to 77%, but it will
continue to remain lower than the global
average (currently 79%). This is unlikely to
increase further in 2014 because capacity
closures are difficult to implement while the
economy remains weak.
AVIC Tech signs a technology collaboration
agreement with TWI: Deputy General Manager
Mr Guoqiang Zhou with TWI‘s Group Manager of
Industrial Membership Services, Dr Chris Peters.
tablish seven new innovation centres to
drive and support its current laboratory ac-
tivities.
Mr. Zhanbing Xu, Vice President of AVIC
said: “We are pleased to extend our collab-
oration with TWI. This will allow us to de-
velop more advanced technologies together.
We look forward to our collaborations in fu-
ture.“
Chief Executive of TWI, Dr Christoph
Wiesner, said: “This is an unprecedented
opportunity for our specialists to work
alongside development scientists at one of
the largest aviation groups in the world. We
are looking forward to supporting AVIC Tech
as it scopes the development its new inno-
vation centres to study advanced materials
joining and manufacturing technologies.“
For more information, please contact Dr
Steve Shi at steve.shi@twi.co.uk. (According
to press information from TWI)
Moody’s expects the European steel in-
dustry‘s average profitability to be flat to
slightly higher in 2014 versus 2013. Hot rol-
led coil prices are expected to bottom out
in 2014 after an 8% to 10% decline in 2013.
Robust iron ore prices will benefit vertically
integrated steelmakers. Iron ore prices have
been robust in the year to date and Moody’s
believes they will remain around current lev-
els in 2014. This will benefit producers with
iron ore operations such as NLMK, Severstal
OAO, Evraz Group S.A., Metinvest B.V. and
ArcelorMittal.
The report “European Steel Industry:
Improving Sentiment and End-User Markets
Support Flat to Slightly Higher Profits for Eu-
ropean Steel Industry“ is now available on
www.moodys.com. Subscribers can access
the report at: https://www.moodys.com/re-
search/European-Steel-Industry-Improv-
ing-Sentiment-and-End-User-Markets-Sup-
port--PBC_161416. (According to press in-
formation from Moody’s Investors Service)
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
 Conferences and Exhibitions
Date Place Event/Information
19.03.-20.03.2014 Aachen/ 27th International Plastics Technology Conference
Germany Information: IKV Aachen, Internet: www.ikv-colloquium.com
01.04.-03.04.2014 Hanoi/ MTA Hanoi 2014 – 3rd International Precision Engineering, Machine Tools and Metalworking
Vietnam Technology Exhibition and Conference
Information: Singapore Exhibition Services, Internet: www.mtahanoi.com
09.04.-11.04.2014 New Delhi/ IIW International Congress 2014 on Advancements in Welding, Cutting & Surfacing Technologies
India Information: The Indian Institute of Welding, Internet www.iiwindia.com
10.04.-12.04.2014 New Delhi/ 7th International Welding Technology Exhibition “Weld India 2014“
India Information: The Indian Institute of Welding, Internet www.iiwindia.com
10.04.-11.04.2014 Stade/ International Conference & Exhibition “Euro Hybrid – Materials and Structures 2014“
Germany Information: Deutsche Gesellschaft für Materialkunde, Internet www.dgm.de/hybrid
06.05.-07.05.2014 Halle (Saale)/ 3rd European Conference „Join-Trans 2014 – Joining and Construction of Railway Vehicles“
Germany Information: SLV Halle, Internet: www.jointrans.eu
06.05.-09.05.2014 Jönköping/ International Welding and Joining Technology Fair “Elmia 2014“
Sweden Information: Elmia AB, Internet: www.elmia.se/en/svets
13.05.-16.05.2014 Kuala Lumpur/ 9th International Materials Technology Conference & Exhibition “IMTCE 2014“
Malaysia Information: MTE, www.imtce2014.com
21.05.-23.05.2014 Barcelona/ ITSC 2014 – International Thermal Spray Conference and Exposition
Spain Information: DVS, Internet: www.dvs-ev.de/itsc2014/
03.06.-06.06.2014 Moscow/ International Exibitions „“Metallurgy Litmash“ / “Tube Russia“ / “Aluminium Non-Ferrous“
Russia Information: Messe Düsseldorf, Internet: www.metallurgy-tube-russia.com
10.06.-13.06.2014 Beijing/ International Trade Fair “Beijing Essen Welding & Cutting 2014“
China Information: Messe Essen, Internet: www.beijing-essen-welding-cutting.com
11.06.-14.06.2014 Surabaya/ Manufacturing Surabaya 2014 – 10th International Manufacturing Machinery,
Indonesia Equipment, Materials and Services Exhibition
Information: Singapore Exhibition Services, Internet: www.manufacturingsurabaya.com
24.06.-27.06.2014 St. Petersburg/ Essen Welding Pavilion at “Svarka 2014“
Russia Information: Expoforum, Internet: www.svarka.de
01.07.-03.07.2014 Dresden/ “Nanofair 2014“ Conference
Germany Information: Fraunhofer IWS, Internet: www.nanofair.com
08.07.-11.07.2014 Ho Chi Minh City/ MTA Vietnam 2014 – 12th International Precision Engineering, Machine Tool and
Vietnam Metalworking Technology Exhibition & Conference
Information: Singapore Exhibition Services, Internet: www.mtavietnam.com
13.07.-18.07.2014 Seoul/ The 67th IIW Annual Assembly & International Conference
Korea Information: IIW 2014 Secretariat, Internet: www.iiw2014.com
03.09.-05.09.2014 Madrid/ 37th IABSE Symposium “Engineering for Progress, Nature and People“
Spain Information: IABSE, Internet: www.iabse.org/madrid2014

Upgrade your favorite welding tool

with a Push-Pull from Mechafin.
Mechafin AG (Head-Office)
Attach every kind of feeder with
Chrummacherstrasse 3 the new electronic controller.
CH-8954 Geroldswil
Switzerland
Fon 0041 44 749 30 60
Fax 0041 44 749 30 70

Mechafin (U.K) Limited

Leigh Street
High Wycombe
Bucks. HP11 2QU
England
Fon 0044 1494 44 11 10
Fax 0044 1494 47 30 49
 FROM COMPANIES
50 years of Steigerwald Strahltechnik
Company
founder
Dr Karl-Heinz
Steigerwald.
Steigerwald Strahltechnik GmbH of
Maisach, near Munich/Germany belongs to
the international group Global Beam Tech-
nologies AG, together with PTR Präzisions-
technik GmbH of Maintal, near Frank-
furt/Germany and PTR Precision Technolo-
gies Inc. of Enfield/USA.
It is not by chance that the name Steiger-
wald has become firmly associated with
electron beam welding technology around
the world. A short journey through the 50-
year history of the company impressively
demonstrates why this is the case.
Dr Karl-Heinz Steigerwald was a pioneer
in the field of electron beam technology. He
developed and constructed the world’s first
electron beam welding machine in 1947
when part of a working group at AEG’s re-
search institute. The first electron beam pro-
cessing machine followed in 1952.
After making a career detour to Zeiss in
Oberkochen (from 1953), Dr Steigerwald
discovered the deep welding effect in 1958
and founded his own company five years
Company headquarters in Puchheim/ Germany.
14
The first EB machine from 1952.
later. He had long recognised the potential
of the electron beam within welding tech-
nology and wanted to further advance the
technology under his own supervision from
then on. What began in 1963 with the found-
ing of Steigerwald Strahltechnik GmbH in a
garage in Wasseralfingen (Baden-Württem-
berg)/Germany, was to develop rapidly over
the next few years. The garage soon became
too small and the company relocated its
headquarters to Munich.
1968: a milestone
The year 1968 was one of the first major
milestones in the company’s history: the first
EB welding system was proudly delivered to
prestigious British aircraft engine manufac-
turer Rolls Royce – and the foundation stone
was laid for Steigerwald Strahltechnik’s in-
tensive activities in the aerospace industry,
which continue to this day.
In the years that followed, many more
EB machines were developed, constructed
and supplied throughout the world. The
company continued to grow.
In 1980, Steigerwald Strahltechnik, now
based in Puchheim, incorporated laser tech-
nology into the company’s activities after it
was taken over by Messer Griesheim, and
three years later it supplied Volkswagen with
the first 3D laser processing machine for
prototype construction. This foray into laser
technology lasted until 2000, whereupon the
company began to concentrate intensively
once again on its core competence of elec-
tron beam technology.
During this period, further advances
were also made in the engineering and con-
struction of EB machines for different areas
of application, including energy technology,
the automotive sector and research and de-
velopment. The first EB machine for welding
airbags was supplied in 1989. That was at a
time when most cars in Germany were not
yet equipped with this protection system.
In a vacuum and in an
atmosphere
Until 2000, welding tasks in the Steiger-
wald plants were exclusively performed in
a vacuum. In that year, the engineers and
technicians at Steigerwald developed the
first SST EB machine for welding at atmos-
pheric pressure. The high productivity of
these machines means they are used pre-
dominantly in the automotive industry for
welding aluminium instrument panels.
The year 2003 deserves a special men-
tion. It is necessary to take another short
excursion into history at this point. In 1959,
the firm Carl Zeiss granted a licence to
Hamilton Standard (USA) to build an elec-
tron beam gun. Hamilton Standard in turn
granted licences in the 1970s to Nippon
Electric (Japan), Hawker Siddeley (UK) and
Leybold Heraeus (Germany and USA). Af-
ter further sales, only PTR (formerly Ley-
bold) and Nippon Electric still remain, in
addition to Steigerwald. GBT Global Beam
Technologies AG was founded together
with PTR in Enfield, PTR in Maintal/Ger-
many and Steigerwald Strahltechnik. What
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
 Welding process (Cu, VA) with “Ebojump“ – 2 x
preheating, welding and cosmetics in one cycle.

had once been separated was now united

again.
As part of the group Global Welding
Technologies AG together with igm Robot-
ersysteme AG, Polysoude and Oxitechnik,
the company is even more strongly posi-
tioned in the market as a specialist for EB
technology from now on.
In the same year Steigerwald moves in
to the new company premises in Maisach,
where GBT is also based. Bigger and better
development and production facilities mean
the company can respond to increasing cus-
tomer demand even more effectively with a
view to the future.

Development and expansion

The first decade of the 21st century is
characterised by the steadily increasing
number of machines produced and sold.
They are supplied all over the world. Mean-
while, technological software and hardware
developments are not left behind. From
2005 onward, strategic development priori-
ties were defined to enable the company’s
own development team based in Maisach
to continue to perfect the electron beam as
a tool for the GBT Group. In the years that
followed, the Steigerwald engineers develop
“Ebojump” fast beam deflection that – in ad-
dition to an automatic beam adjustment,
electron-optical view and automatic online Company premises in Maisach/Germany.
seam tracking – also comprises multi beam
technology, enabling the welding of multiple
joining positions or the simultaneous exe- The year of superlatives – for the first time. As a result of this opera-
cution of several welding processes. think big! tion, the chamber volumes and the pump
As a result of these technological refine- The year 2013 was the year of superla- output are also reduced, further increasing
ments and innovations, the customer struc- tives for Steigerwald Strahltechnik GmbH. efficiency.
ture also develops. Increasingly, EB fa- The “Ebodisc” modular chamber system Another milestone in the company’s his-
cilities are now also supplied for re- has been evolving and revolutionising tory was achieved last year: Steigerwald built
search purposes. These include, for welding with electron beams. One, two its third chamber facility of 55 m3. Hardly
example, to the Forschungszentrum or three precision-mounted eccentric was it supplied before the largest SST EB
Jülich and, in 2012, to a special test fa- discs form a rotation system that, com- chamber machine so far was under con-
cility for CERN, the European Organ- bined with moveable and pivotable struction, with an impressive volume of 63
ization for Nuclear Research in Switzer- generators, enables the three dimen- m3. (According to press information from
land. sional spatial handling of a workpiece Steigerwald Strahltechnik GmbH)

“Ebodisc“: effective beam

control through the disc ro-
tation system,

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 15

 FROM COMPANIES
Getting a complete handle on quality
Tungsten inert gas welding (TIG) offers
various benefits, including visually superior
weld seams. However, it is regarded as ex-
tremely challenging. For quality reasons,
Eisenmann from Böblingen/Germany – a
manufacturer of special plant and equip-
ment – relies on this method when joining
together hot-dip aluminised sheets. The
specific material properties of such sheets
call for welders with in-depth experience.
To assist its employees, the company has
introduced ”Invertig.Pro” welding power
sources and is now benefiting from low er-
ror rates, higher quality and improved pro-
ductivity.
Globally, Eisenmann AG has 3,700 em-
ployees at 21 sites and a turnover of approx-
imately 640 million euro (2012), making it
one of the leading providers of systems and
services in the areas of finishing and thermo
processing technology, material flow au-
tomation and environmental technology. All
across the world, the company advises cus-
tomers in the planning and construction of
flexible, energy-efficient systems or even
complete treatment lines.
As far as systems for the automotive in-
dustry are concerned, particular attention
is paid to weld seams, as they have to be
100% tight and corrosion-resistant. To en-
sure this level of quality from a process en-
gineering perspective, Eisenmann uses the
TIG welding method, even though it impos-
es heavy demands on welders. “The TIG
method is the only one that results in the
weld seam quality levels that we are aiming
for”, explains Helmut Knecht, Senior Man-
ager Production at the company (Fig. 1).
Fig. 2 • When large systems are being assembled, the welders must work
at height, which makes the welding process extra difficult.
16
The challenge: TIG welding of
hot-dip aluminised thin sheets
In addition to the process engineering
challenges, application-specific ones also
have to be tackled: the out-of-position weld-
ing that is necessary to weld the sheets to-
gether (Fig. 2), the thin sheet thicknesses of
between 1 and 2.5 mm and the hot-dip alu-
minised surfaces (Fig. 3) that require welders
to have experience of the material-specific
weld properties involved. The coated sheets
are characterised by a high level of resistance
to corrosion, which is a requirement of var-
ious industries, including car production.
However, the advantages go hand in hand
with a particular risk: During welding, the
aluminium coating can ”burn off”, as the
melting point of aluminium is lower than
that of sheet steel; if this happens, the sheets
lose their corrosion protection. To prevent
this, the welding power source must allow
Fig. 3 • When welding hot-dip aluminised sheets, the crucial factor is to
prevent the aluminium coating from ”burning off”.
Fig. 1 • The aim is to
achieve high-quality
and finely rippled TIG
weld seams with high
repeatability.
users to control the level of heat input very
precisely and they must be perfectly trained
in how to guide the welding torch in accor-
dance with the material properties – a tough
requirement for welders, not least because
there is practically no awareness of the ap-
plication outside of special plant engineer-
ing and construction. “I only became ac-
quainted with the welding of hot-dip alu-
minised sheets myself when I started work-
ing at Eisenmann”, recalls Markus Olscher,
an expert welder and trainer at the compa-
ny. The aluminium-coated steel sheets are
welded in positions PA, PB, PC, PG and PF
using the AC TIG method. The type of
process gas used is argon.
The solution: User support thanks
to special operating philosophy
Eisenmann spent several months ex-
ploring the market in search of a suitable
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
TIG power source. After carrying out prac- Fig. 5 • The advantage of the digital operating
tical tests with welding power sources from concept is the way it provides user support.
several manufacturers, they opted for the
machinery produced by Rehm GmbH u. Co.
KG Schweißtechnik in Uhingen/Germany.
Helmut Knecht, who is Head of Production,
emphasises the major plus points of the “In-
vertig.Pro” and ”Invertig.Pro digital” (Fig. 4)
units by explaining that they offer precise
setting options and handy user support. “For
an experienced welder, the difference is not
that significant, but for a beginner the level
of support provided by the unit is absolutely
crucial.” As an example, he cites Rehm’s
patented automatic frequency system,
which automatically matches the AC fre-
Fig. 6 • Trainees at Eisenmann AG can achieve a
quency to the current strength during AC high level of quality while they are still in their
current welding. As a result, even novice training period. (Photos: Rehm)
welders can weld high-quality seams when
engaged in out-of-position welding, explains
Knecht. “Without this special function,
welders would have to make constant man-
ual settings to achieve the optimum AC fre- Fig. 4 • Both the
quency themselves. We could not find any “Invertig.Pro” and
other manufacturer that offered this kind of the “Invertig.Pro
user assistance.” digital” TIG welding
The product feature that ultimately power sources (“240
clinched it for the company was Rehm’s AC/DC” version) are
patented digital operating concept for the in use
“Invertig.Pro digital” (Fig. 5): Thanks to the at the Eisenmann
way the welding task is visualised dynami- welding shop.
cally, plus the ideal characteristic curves
stored in the unit and the wide range of
practical tips, even novice welders can
"Invertig.Pro digital 240 AC/DC" technical data
process customer orders (Fig. 6). The ex-
perts were particularly impressed by the fol- Welding current at 100% duty cycle TIG welding 240
[A]
lowing: For the welding of hot-dip alu- Manual arc welding 240
minised sheets, the “Assist” application con- Duty cycle at Imax TIG welding 100
[%]
tains exactly the right setting in the form of (10 min/40°C) Manual arc welding 100
a stored characteristic curve. Previously, Mains voltage [V] 3 × 400
this had to be set manually. This cuts down Fuse [A] 16
the preparation time and avoids errors, be- Torch cooling Gas/water
cause the welding power source is always Weight [kg] 27
configured correctly. Dimensions L × W × H [mm] 520 × 360 × 460
The most important welding function Operating concept involving the central, high-resolution "R-Pilot" graphical control, four multifunctional
offered by the TIG inverter is called “Dual selection buttons, two "Quick Choice" buttons and four applications:
Wave”. This special function reduces the ex- • "Classic" – Dynamic graphical representation of the entire welding process at a glance
cess AC component in the arc to an absolute • "Program Manager" – Program memory with intuitive "Explorer" structure
minimum. Thanks to the lower heat input, • "Assist" – Ideal characteristic curves with practical expert tips
the weld pool can be controlled more easily, • "System" – Customisable unit settings with comprehensive diagnostic area.
particularly during out-of-position welding
CAN-networked multiprocessor architecture called the "iSystem" for connecting "R-TIG" welding torch,
and when welding sheet edges. Only the sur-
remote foot control and water cooling unit
face melts when the thin sheets are being
Memory for up to 1000 programs
joined and, as a result, the aluminium does
"AC-Matic" for an automatically adapted AC wave form
not burn off. According to the supplier of
"Dual Wave" function for aluminium welding
the welding power sources, none of the oth-
Automatic frequency system for automatically adjusting the frequency during AC current welding
er TIG units available on the market offer
"HyperPuls" – TIG pulses of up to 15,000 Hz
this capability. Since the company switched
over to the “Invertig.Pro digital 240 AC/DC”, Spot, stitch and manual arc welding

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 17

 FROM COMPANIES
this welding function has helped it to reduce
the problem of burn-through considerably.
A major plus point: Practical
training for the next generation of
welding specialists
Trainer Markus Olscher explains why
the digital operating concept is also such a
bonus from the perspective of training: “The
large central display allows you to see the
entire welding curve at a glance”. This
means that he can see straight away if the
trainee has made a setting mistake. What’s
more, novice welders can learn – in a clear
and practical way – how changing individ-
ual parameters affects the weld seam. “Dur-
ing aluminium welding, the seam often col-
lapsed on trainees and they couldn’t un-
derstand why. The ‘Invertig.Pro digital’ al-
lows us to check directly which parameters
have to be changed,” explains Olscher. He
then adds the following: “Without the visu-
Arc Machines’ know-how is fertile ground for GrowHow
Fertiliser manufacturer GrowHow UK
Ltd, Ince/UK, says deploying Arc Machines’
(AMI) automated orbital welding systems
enabled it to complete a critical pipework
project at the company’s plant near Chester
in half the time compared to using manual
welding.
GrowHow, the country’s largest manu-
facturer of ammonia, nitric acid and agri-
cultural fertilisers, had previous experience
of AMI’s technical expertise. This time the
company enlisted AMI’s equipment to ac-
curately join high temperature, primary re-
GrowHow
socket weld.
18
alisation system you would have to have a
lot of experience to work that out.” His final
summary: “With other units, welders would
need more practice to achieve the same lev-
el of quality.”
Martin Drasch, Head of Supply Produc-
tion & Pre-assembly at Eisenmann is de-
lighted with the commercial added value of
the units: “We can integrate our trainees into
the production process right from the start.
The user support provided by Rehm’s tech-
nology makes up for a lack of experience,
which clearly improves our productivity
when you consider that 10% of our work-
force is made up of trainees.”
Summary: Enables faster and
more reliable TIG welding
As the systems and lines manufactured
by Eisenmann are generally custom-made,
there is no series production at the com-
pany in the conventional sense. As a result,
former catalyst tubes that carry a mixture of
steam and natural gas for converting
methane to CO and CO2, leaving nitrogen
and hydrogen available for ammonia pro-
duction.
AMI, Daventry/UK, provided full train-
ing and weld procedure qualification to a
nominated sub-contractor appointed by
GrowHow as well as supplying three “M95-
2375” orbital welding systems and a “M227”
power supply for the project, which required
guaranteed high weld quality and speed un-
achievable by a manual process.
the benefits of the welding power sources
cannot be quantified, explains Drasch:
“The user benefits of the power sources
have a positive commercial impact. Thanks
to the Rehm welding machines, we can
achieve higher levels of quality more quick-
ly.”
Specifically, Eisenmann is now enjoying
the following advantages:
• Time savings and, in turn, cost benefits
thanks to the preset ideal characteristic
curves,
• Lower error rates even on the part of
career entrants and novice welders
thanks to the special operating concept,
• Higher product quality, e.g. thanks to
the “Dual Wave“ process variant,
• Improved productivity due to fewer er-
rors, less rework and shorter set-up
times.
(According to press information from Rehm
GmbH u. Co. KG Schweißtechnik)
GrowHow’s Ammonia Mechanical En-
gineer, Nick Oates, said: “The catalyst tubes
are heated up to around 890°C on their out-
side so it was crucial the weld quality met
our strict criteria. Access was difficult and
the work had to be carried out in a confined
space, even so the Arc Machines equipment
coped very well. Productivity was around
50% higher than using manual welding and
the weld quality was excellent, but I was not
surprised as we had used them before.”
In a situation where the quality of every
weld is vital, the ability of AMI’s equipment
to cope with the thickness of the pipe wall
and maintain weld integrity under very high
acceptance standards for NDT gave the
company significant advantages.
The “M95” weld head is rugged and easy
to set up, which is also ideal for small diam-
eter pipe and fitting welds that have limited
axial and/or radial clearance, while the
“M227” is designed for the high production
welding of schedule pipe. It is a 225 A pre-
programmed or programmable, inverter-
type, GTAW welding power supply and con-
troller for automatic orbital welding appli-
cations that require the addition of filler ma-
terial.
High-integrity welds produced at the
touch-of-a-button by the “M227” portable
suitcase-sized machine match or exceed the
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
specifications required by industries such
as chemical manufacturers, power genera-
tion and nuclear. Its compactness and
rugged casing makes it ideal for field appli-
cations.
AMI’s technical sales manager, John
Morris, said: “Arc Machines’ range of equip-
ment is ideally suited for applications in-
volving difficult working conditions. The au-
tomated orbital welding process offered not
only reduced manufacturing time but also
the fatigue aspect from the welder’s point of
view. In this particular case Arc Machines’
automated orbital welding equipment
helped GrowHow to make significant pro-
duction savings compared to going down
BOC’s new gas cylinder proves a hit
in customer trials
After several months of testing BOC’s
new oxygen (O2) “Genie” gas cylinder with
Network Rail for use on maintenance works,
the cylinder has proven ideal for manoeu-
vring into hard-to-access locations. The “Ge-
nie” cylinder has been a great success for
railway engineers who need to carry out alu-
minothermic welding activities and/or cut-
ting work within the rail infrastructure.
Often the engineers need to carry a
cylinder of compressed oxygen through dif-
ficult strategic access points, sometimes at
night, to allow access to the infrastructure.
Aimed at mobile gas users who need to ma-
noeuvre cylinders into hard-to-access or off-
grid locations for applications such as weld-
ing, heating or cutting, or for security cam-
eras, task lighting or environmental moni-
toring, the new O2 and H2 “Genie” range is
now available in the UK from BOC, Guild-
ford, Surrey/UK.
The launch of the new range of “Genie”
for compressed O2 and H2 gas follows the
successful introduction of the first phase of
“Genie” cylinders, for the inert gases nitro-
gen and argon, last year. Engineers and man-
agers from Network Rail have been trialling
and testing the O2 “Genie” over a four month
period at various locations throughout the
UK. They subjected the “Genie” cylinder to
a wide range of extreme locations and tem-
perature changes and also incorporated var-
ious processes that Network Rail uses to
weld and repair rail defects. The trial has
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
the manual route. Without utilising the
‘M95’ it would have been a really labour in-
tensive job and the impact would have been
a longer production time.”
GrowHow prides itself on technical ex-
cellence so AMI’s system had to match up
to very high specifications. Not only did its
automated orbital welding complete the job
faster and more accurately than a manual
system, but it also provided a clean, high
quality surface finish. (According to press
information from Arc Machines UK Ltd)
“M227“ is designed for
the high production welding of schedule pipe.
concluded with data provided from the users
that the cylinder meets the primary require-
ments for manual handling and production
issues. It also reduces wear and tear on the
vehicle fleet and, for the first time ever, Net-
work Rail can now manage and budget the
gas it uses on a shift basis.
It was introduced into the UK market by
BOC, the UK’s largest industrial and medical
gases business and a member of The Linde
Group, which developed the cylinders. The
H2 “Genie” cylinder, for example, weighs 23
kg which is one third the weight of a stan-
dard large H2 cylinder but it carries two-
thirds of the contents. The H2 “Genie” is
aimed at customers of hydrogen fuel cells,
in particular the BOC “Hymera” hydrogen
fuel cell power generator, which is an eco-
nomical and clean way of supporting today’s
lower power, efficient electrical applications
such as lighting, security cameras and envi-
Network Rail has completed successful trials
ronmental monitoring, where grid power is with BOC’s new oxygen “Genie“ gas cylinder for
not available. When used with a small fuel use on maintenance works. (Photo: Linde)
cell the H2 “Genie” can deliver up to 7,000
Wh of electrical energy, which is enough to
provide continuous (24/7) power to a 10 W 300 bar version, which has 30% more ca-
security camera for a month or to power a pacity than its standard bar steel counter-
20 W LED floodlight/ security light, for two part. These cylinders are easy to carry and
hours a day, for six months. because of the Digital Intelligence Unit
“Genie” comprises a steel-lined, car- the user knows how much gas is left. The
bon fibre wrapped pressure vessel encased new cylinders are available from all BOC
within a tough, all-weather and recyclable outlets, agents and delivery channels.
High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) jacket. (According to press information from
It is available in two sizes, including a large BOC Ltd)
19
 FROM COMPANIES
AWL-Techniek laser welds tracks for car seats
Two tracks are placed per seat in every
car, each consisting of an upper and a lower
part, meaning 8 parts needing to be placed
in the average car. Considering that the Eu-
ropean automobile industry is still produc-
ing more than 10,000,000 cars each year, the
volume of tracks is extremely interesting.
AWL from Harderwijk/The Netherlands
has secured a substantial number of projects
over the last few months, projects which in-
volve these products being welded in an in-
novative way. Because of the large numbers,
laser welding is being used, a technique
which is much faster than conventional
welding methods.
AWL first began applying laser welding
in 2003, since when it has built up a leading
position, particularly in the car seat and
body part sectors. But that expertise is dif-
ferent from the expertise needed for laser
welding tracks. The laser welding of tracks
involves specific features which make guar-
anteeing the quality of the welded end-prod-
uct a challenge. AWL has done extensive re-
search into the characteristics of the track,
the required welding quality and other de-
tails. By carrying out the research and vari-
ous tests, AWL has proven that it is able to
make a successful laser weld in the tracks.
Tracks form the connection between the
car seat and the base plate and ensure that
the seat can slide backwards and forwards,
allowing the driver to adjust the ideal posi-
tion. In the event of a crash, it is essential that
the tracks are crash-resistant in order to guar-
antee the safety of driver and passengers. The
track must therefore be able to resist heavy
stress loads. To ensure this, larger sheet thick-
nesses are used than are usual in the design
20
of seats and rests. When laser welding, this
sheet thickness results in different welding
seams being needed than for thinner sheet,
without the heat input negatively effecting
the straightness of the material.
Contrary to the lap joints which are nor-
mally used for both seats and rests, T-joints
and flange joints are normally used when
laser welding tracks.
With lap joints the joint between the
sheets is relatively narrow. This is not a
problem for thin sheets; the width of the
weld is sufficiently proportionate to the
thickness of the sheet, but a broader joint
between weld parts is necessary for thicker
sheets. This can be achieved by using the
T-joint and the flange joint. The weld joint
is thereby stronger than the parts, making
optimal use of the material. An additional
advantage of the T-joint is that no flange is
required for this type of seam, as opposed
to the lap joint. This results in material being
saved and the weight of the part minimised.
When welding the T-joint and the flange
AWL-Techniek has
already more than ten
years experience in
laser welding.
joint, the position where the weld has to be
made is extremely narrow. This defines the
quality of the weld. There is more margin
with a lap joint; even if the seam in not ex-
actly in the correct position, it has no effect
on the strength of the welded seam. Welding
T-joints and flange joints therefore imposes
higher demands on the accuracy of the
welding machine.
In extensive research, AWL has shown
that it is possible to achieve the required tol-
erances and good welding results by means
of robotised laser welding. However, con-
sideration must be given to the high de-
mands on the positioning accuracy for the
weld seam. This precision is achieved by
critically testing the complete chain of po-
sition-determining parts. This chain consists
of the robot with optics, of course, the fixture,
the turntable on which the fixture is mount-
ed and the precision of the parts to be weld-
ed. Various tests showed that with a T-joint
the permitted tolerance on robot movement
is extremely restricted, but what was also
evident was that this tolerance is obtainable
and that extremely good reproducible weld-
ing results are achievable.
AWL has now processed its findings in a
number of technical measures. The fixture
must be constructed in such a way that the
parts to be welded are exactly clamped. The
robot also has to be extremely carefully pro-
grammed with a camera, mounted on the
optics, assisting the robot programmer.
In addition, optics should be used with
a short focal length in order to optimally
utilise robot precision. All this results in
good, reproducible laser quality and pro-
duction of high-quality laser-welded tracks.
(According to press information from AWL-
Techniek B.V.)
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1

Short Messages
NDC appointment of a new VP of
Global Customer Care
Terry Patterson, Vice President of NDC Global
Customer Care.
NDC Infrared Engineering announced
the appointment of Terry Patterson as Vice
President of Global Customer Care for its
Sensors, Systems and Metals divisions. Mr
Patterson’s responsibilities involve manag-
ing NDC’s Customer Care division and de-
veloping its various Support Products that
are designed to maximise the return on in-
vestment for its customers. Mr Patterson
brings with him 25 years of experience in
the field of service management in higher
education and high technology companies
such as NCR, AT&T, Northrop Grumman,
Art Center College of Design and most re-
cently Vice President of Service at Rapiscan
Systems. He holds both a Bachelor of Sci-
ence and an MBA from the University of
Redlands (California). NDC Infrared Engi-
neering is headquartered at Irwindale,
CA/USA as well as Maldon/UK and Alleur/
Belgium in Europe. Operating companies
are in Germany, Italy, China, Japan and In-
dia to provide local support to key world
markets, and NDC Infrared Group is pre-
sented in more than 60 countries worldwide
by a network of specialist distributors.
Hauzer wins China Business
Award 2013
During a festive diner in the Steigen-
berger Kurhaus Hotel in The Hague/The
Netherlands IHI Hauzer Techno Coating B.V.
received the Cathay Pacific China Business
Award 2013. According to the jury, the SME
company from Venlo /The Netherlands dis-
tinguishes itself with innovative technology.
It is a good example of successful manufac-
turing industry. To the jury it was striking
that the company had invested heavily in
research and development during the crisis,
especially in the field of automotive industry
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
where solutions for fuel economy and re- Industrial and
duction of CO2 emissions are continuously automation
control sys-
sought after. Another reason was that the
company collaborates intensively with re- tems specialist
Yokogawa UK
search institutes, universities and customers.
Ltd has ap-
In 2010 Hauzer officially opened its compe-
pointed Simon
tence centre in Shanghai and in 2013 this Rogers as the
subsidiary was expanded for the automotive company’s new
market. Hauzer develops and supplies plas- Managing Di-
ma coating technology worldwide and the rector.
company designs and builds vacuum equip-
ment with this technology. Since 1996 the tomers optimise oil refineries using the busi-
China Business Award has been presented ness’s pioneering refinery simulation soft-
as an initiative of Cathay Pacific Airways and ware. He then worked for ABB and later
the Dutch Centre of Trade Promotion. Dutch Honeywell, managing the implementation
companies that do business in China and/or of state of the art advanced process control
Hong Kong in an innovative, creative, re- and on-line optimisation solutions in the
sponsible and successful manner will be oil, gas and petrochemical industries glob-
considered for the award. ally. Rogers brings in depth experience from
his previous roles as Director of Honeywell
Hi-Spec Solutions and Chief Information Of-
ficer for KBC. He also has a wealth of knowl-
edge in supply chain planning and optimi-
sation solutions for the process industries.
On the road to robotics
Today’s conventional automated weld-
ing solutions are restricted in most cases to
linear or rotary movements due to the torch
holder. However manufacturers are increas-
ingly having to deal with complex welding
or cladding trajectories or limited accessi-
A. Barclay, GM Europe Cathay Pacific, D. Driese-
bility or environmental constraints. Robots
naar, MM Hauzer, A. Kaland delegated to China
– essentially multi-functional, multi-direc-
in the start-up years of Hauzer Shanghai, J.
Haakma, President NCH, chairman of the jury.
tional and multi-tasking tool holders – are
New MD to focus on business
growth for UK and Ireland
Industrial automation and control sys-
tems specialist Yokogawa UK Ltd, Run-
corn/UK, has appointed Simon Rogers as
the company’s new Managing Director. In
his new role, Rogers will extend the compa-
ny’s focus on process control and safety sys-
tems success in the oil and gas sector
through an enhanced Aberdeen presence.
Furthermore, Rogers will further develop
business in the chemicals industry and con-
tinue the recent order growth in Yokogawa’s
world class field instrumentation, whilst also
providing the engineering and life cycle sup-
port services essential to the customers.
Rogers, who joined the team in October,
graduated from The Imperial College of Sci-
ence and Technology with a first class degree
in Chemical Engineering. Rogers started his Polysoude brings full integration into the realms
career as a Chemical Engineer in 1986, with of possibility through its commitment to supply
KBC Process Technology helping its cus- “turnkey“ systems.
21
 FROM COMPANIES

particularly suited to welding by focusing
on the torch – the decisive component in
the tools developed by Polysoude, Nantes/
France. The “robotics” approach is however
not a recent phenomenon at Polysoude. On
numerous occasions over the last decade
or more, the company has integrated dif-
ferent brands of robot to meet customer
needs as closely as possible. Therefore,
wherever irreproachable joint quality is a
compulsory factor, the axes of movement
and motion peripherals are designed on a
case-by-case basis to transform the robot
into a more suitable control device. More-
over, the robot can accommodate all types
of torch depending on the cold-wire or hot-
wire TIG or plasma welding process adopt-
ed, not only for standard joints but also nar-
row gap applications. This approach has re-
sulted in the acquisition of new program-
ming skills within the company’s Applica-
tions Department for the development of
welding procedures. At the Polysoude head-
quarters in Nantes, the company – which
boasts 50 years of experience in welding
and cladding techniques – has invested in
a robot to develop specific tools and to study
these applications. This opens up other
channels in which technological solutions
can be optimised to ensure that perfect in-
tegration can be achieved. The synergy be-
tween knowledge of welding and cladding
techniques and robot integration represents
a culmination in technological support to
provide the best solution to industrial man-
ufacturers’ specific needs.
Yaskawa Ibérica moves into new
facilities Opening ceremony of new Yaskawa Ibérica buil-
Yaskawa Ibérica, the Spanish subsidiary ding in Gavá/Spain (from l. to r.): A. Santiago,
Head of Yaskawa Ibérica; J. Balsera, Mayor of
of Yaskawa Europe GmbH, has moved into its
Gavá; M. Stern, COO of Yaskawa Europe GmbH;
newly built facilities in Gavá, near
T. Fuchigami, Japanese Consul General in Barce-
Barcelona/Spain. The new opening is part of lona.
Yaskawa’s European growth strategy. The
company is expecting considerable growth in Various cells demonstrate robotic applica-
the coming years, particularly with regard to tions, such as fixtureless welding and auto-
the Spanish market. In addition to modern mated packaging. Yaskawa Ibérica is also pre-
administration and development areas, the senting the latest generation of 7-axis robots
new facilities also boasts a representative in Gavá. Furthermore, the new building also
showroom. Spanish customers can experi- provides space for the extensive training and
ence the different potential applications of continuous professional development courses
Motoman industrial robots there at first hand. offered by the “Yaskawa Academy” in Spain.

to withstand tough environments, the

Products
Fibre-coupled, multi-bar module
The diode laser company announces a
fibre-coupled, multi-bar diode laser mod-
ule. This micro-channel-cooled unit
(Fig. 1) is capable of delivering up to 6-kW
output at a wavelength mix of 9xxnm
through a 1,000 μm, 0.22NA fibre. It com-
bines multi-kW fibre-coupled diode laser
power with a small footprint and high effi-
ciency. The 19-inch rack-mountable unit
is designed to meet the requirements for
OEM customers and system integrators.
The fibre-coupled, multi-bar diode laser
module is designed as a beam source with-
out an integrated power supply and also
without a cooling unit, allowing system in-
tegrators a deep integration into their ma-
chine. The module is equipped with inter-
nal electronic sensoric elements which
monitor the important parameters like hu-
midity, temperature operating current and
other parameters, to ensure safe operation
of the unit. In addition, the unit is
equipped with a pilot beam for positioning
purposes. Typical applications are
cladding, brazing, hardening and heat con-
duction welding. With its fibre interface
Fig. 1
based on QD fibre connector it can be
combined with many commercially avail-
able processing optics. (Dilas Diodenlaser
GmbH, Galileo-Galilei-Straße 10, 55129
Mainz-Hechtsheim/Germany; www.dilas.
com)
Welding and rigging gloves
The “Roll Cage” welding and rigging
gloves deliver complete hand protection
for both welding and rigging, eliminating
the need for a separate pair of gloves for
each task. Rugged, dual-purpose “Roll
Cage” welding and rigging gloves (Fig. 2)
are ideal not only for welding and rigging,
but also for cutting and grinding. Designed
gloves are constructed with durable fire-
resistant cowhide and sewn with “Kevlar”
thread, then enhanced with segmented,
high-temperature-resistant silicon pads for
knuckle protection. The finger-structure
design enhances grip and durability. The
gloves offer numerous safety features, in-
cluding a special, protective overlay on the
palm that reinforces high-wear areas, an
inside lining that helps protect against cuts
and a longer-length cuff that guards wrists
and forearms against heat and sparks. Fire-
resistant “Velcro” wrist guards secure the
gloves, while allowing for quick removal.
(Lincoln Electric, 22801 St. Clair Avenue,
Cleveland, OH 44117/USA; www.lincoln-
electric.com)
Fig. 2

22 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1

New features for cutting software
A new software update to the “ProNest”
CAD/CAM software (Fig. 3) is now available.
The update is available at no charge to cus-
tomers with a current “ProNest” subscrip-
tion. Current subscribers simply need to log-
in to the “ProNest” online knowledge base
and select the “download” option. For non
subscribers, there is a possibility to experi-
ence this CAD/CAM software by requesting
a free trial at www.hyperthermCAM.com. A
few of the features found in the new update
include:
• Improvements to the software’s scribe
text function so customers can add var-
ied information to parts such as a heat
number or customer ID. In addition,
the new changes allow customers to
easily select the font they would like to
use on their parts.
• Tab enhancements for people who cut
with laser. The enhancements include
lead out on tabs, the ability to set a max-
imum size for tabbed profiles and to
lock undertravel on start point “tab”
leads.
• A new Customer Experience Improve-
ment Program. This new program col-
lects information about how people are
using “ProNest“ in an effort to identify
which “ProNest“ features to improve.
(Hypertherm, Vaartveld 9, 4704 SE
Roosendaal/The Netherlands; www.hyper-
therm.com)
Fig. 3
Gas blender mixes shielding
gases on site
The new, easy-to-use blender enables
users to create precise custom-blended gas
mixtures on site for GTAW (TIG) and GMAW
(MIG) industrial welding applications. De-
signed to increase productivity by eliminat-
ing time-consuming cylinder handling, the
“BlendMaster 657” series provides 0 to 25%
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
blend adjustability for two-component gas-
es. Blending pure argon and carbon dioxide
gases, the “BlendMaster 657” (Fig. 4) en-
hances quality by maintaining a +/- 1.5% ac-
curacy and eliminates the hassle of stratified
high-pressure cylinders in storage. The
“EquiBlend” technology allows for full flow
regardless of the mix or blend ratio, a con-
trast to fixed-orifice technology. A pressure
equalisation system minimises inlet pres-
sure fluctuations to stabilise the mix, broad-
ening the inlet pressure range difference be-
tween the major and minor component gas-
es. The “BlendMaster” is also compatible
with a wide variety of cryogenic supply
sources, such as liquid cans, micro-bulk and
bulk gas supply systems. The “BlendMaster
657”, available as either a wall- or floor-
mounted unit for installation and mainte-
nance flexibility, provides up to 1,750 SCFH
at delivery pressures from 10 to 50 PSIG. A
lockable enclosure assures process control,
and an integral line regulator supports
flowmeters, regulators and flowmeter instal-
lations. Other options include a continuous
binary analyser for single or multiple gas
types. Power requirements are 110 or 220
VAC, and ambient atmosphere and gas sup-
ply temperature requirements are 32°F to
100°F (0° to 38°C). (Concoa, 1501 Harpers
Road, Virginia Beach, VA/USA; www.con-
coa.com)
Fig. 4
Multi-process welder
Fig. 5
The “Tweco Fabricator 141i” (Fig. 5) is a
3-in-1 welder, a multi-process welder that
runs off 115 V household power. Built to
meet professional standards, the MIG, Stick
and TIG performance of the “Tweco Fabri-
cator 141i” is perfect for DIY and home hob-
by use, as well as other light duty welding
projects in motorsports, auto repair,
farm/ranch, metal art and maintenance ap-
plications. It offers 10 to 140 A of power for
MIG & Lift TIG welding and 90 A for Stick
welding. Push button controls, LED displays
and a Quick Start Guide enable first time
welders to set up the unit and start welding
in a very short time. An easy to use set-up
chart inside the side panel guides users with
helpful diagrams and welding parameter
recommendations. The machine is a fully
integrated system; it incorporates a built-in
gas solenoid valve and wire feed system for
MIG welding, and accepts 4” or 8” spools of
wire. The “Tweco Fabricator 141i” is the first
welding power source from Victor Technolo-
gies to carry the Tweco brand name with the
black and yellow Tweco colours. (Victor
Technologies,16052 Swingley Ridge Rd.
Suite #300 St. Louis, MO 63017/USA;
www.victortechnologies.com)
The Media Information 2014
is available!
It can be requested
by contacting
Iris Jansen, iris.jansen@dvs-hg.de,
F: +49 211 / 1591-151
Boris Hanisch, boris.hanisch@dvs-hg.de,
F: +49 211 / 1591-152
23
 WELDING PRACTICE
Letter to the editor
Fig. 1
Dear Editor,
May I draw your attention to the article on
theoretical root point on page 299 of “Weld-
ing and Cutting“ issue 5/2013 in the “Weld-
ing Practice“ section which I believe is mis-
leading. The article recognises that the
measurement of this dimension is important
to structural integrity and its correct inter-
pretation is essential. There is no ambiguity
in the interpretation of throat dimension for
a standard fillet weld as shown in Fig. 1.
However, Fig. 2 of the published article
proposes that the load carrying throat of a
deep penetration weld is computed as the
nominal throat of a symmetrical fillet weld
plus the penetration. This is not the case and
the proposed method may overstate the true
throat dimension which is in fact the mini-
Well-prepared is half-welded –
Tacking of the components
In order to counteract any shrinkage
and thus stresses during the welding, it is
necessary to execute an adequate number
of sufficiently large tacks. Reference values
are given in Table 1. The root gap (the gap
between the components) before the tack-
ing must also be large enough for the root
Table 1 • Reference values for the tacking
Sheet thickness Length of the tacks
Up to 5 mm Approx. 10 to 25 mm
More than 5 to 30 mm To 60 mm
More than 30 mm To 100 mm
24
Fig. 2
mum dimension as measured from the face
of the weld to the intersection of the weld
bead fusion line with the unfused joint line.
This is illustrated in Fig. 1 above where
it can be seen that the actual weld throat is
equal to t1 and not a–+e as stated and that in
fact a< a–+e.
Using the guidance provided in the arti-
cle to establish the achieved throat from a
deep penetration weld procedure macro
would require an inspector to measure the
dimension from the weld face to the weld
bead fusion line at the point of maximum
penetration when in fact the correct dimen-
sion is as stated above.
This could be very significant in the case
of a deep penetration submerged arc welded
web to flange joint where an asymmetric fillet
pass to be welded with good penetration af-
ter the tacking.
The tacks should either be removed before
the overwelding or it must be ensured that
they are melted completely. Any cracked
tacks must not be overwelded but they
must instead be removed. Otherwise, there
Distance between the tacks
Approx. 10 to 25 × sheet thickness
Depending on the process and the component size;
10 to 25 × sheet thickness; up to 500 mm
Fig. 3
weld (with the short leg length equal to the
specified minimum) can be demonstrated
by procedure qualification to achieve an in-
creased weld throat if the welding procedure
is made with the flange vertical and the web
horizontal, Fig. 2. Using the methodology as
described in the W&C article there would be
no apparent change in the throat dimension
of this weld if the joint set up was changed
in production to execute the weld with the
flange horizontal and the web vertical.
In fact such a change would lead to a
significant reduction in the throat dimen-
sion, Fig. 3, with a consequent unanticipated
increase in shear stress. I believe that some
clarification of this point would be valuable.
Eur. Ing. Greg Marshall
FIMMM, FWeld I RWE1 (Retired)
is the danger of components failing in op-
eration. Steels which must be preheated
before the welding must be preheated be-
fore the tacking as well in order to avoid
any cracks. In the case of MAG welding
(primarily at lower arc powers), tacking
should be replaced by clamping in order
to avoid any defects in the weld. With
chrome-nickel steels, tempering colours
already arise during the tacking (the cor-
rosion protection is lost). This can be
avoided using forming. It is recommended
to position the first tack in the centre of
the weld and the others towards the out-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
side in each case, but not as far as the start
or end of the weld. An angle stipulation,
e.g. in the case of single V welds and one-
sided fillet welds, should not be forgotten
either. This serves to compensate for any
angular shrinkage during the cooling of
the weld (see Figure).
Besides, the „arc blow“ during manual
metal arc welding can be decreased by a
large number of strong tacks.

Interruption in work due to the overheating

of the welding device
Most welders have already experienced
it: During the welding, the welding device
switches itself off and can only be switched
on once again after a certain time. What is
the cause of this interruption in work? The
welding device is heated extremely by the
load during the welding. When the so-called
„overtemperature“ is reached, a circuit
breaker switches the welding device off – it
demands a cooling time. This is intended to
prevent any damage and to extend the serv-
ice life of the welding device.
The ratio of the welding time to the
cooling time is called the duty cycle which
is related to a cycle duration of 10 min, cor-
Fig. 1 • Welding and cooling time of a welding device: 60% duty cycle at 200 A (top) and 35% duty
responding to 100%. This means that, e.g.
cycle at 250 A (bottom).
with a duty cycle of 60%, the welding time
should be 6 min and the cooling time 4 min
(Fig. 1, top). Moreover, the welding current
plays a role for the duty cycle since the load
on the welding device does indeed rise
along with the welding current as well.
Therefore, the duty cycle also indicates to
what welding current it applies. The duty
cycle drops at a higher welding current (Fig.
1, bottom).
For a welding process sequence largely
without any interruptions, it is recommend-
ed to choose a welding device with a high
duty cycle at the highest possible welding
current. Information about the duty cycle
can be found on the rating plate of the weld-
ing device (Fig. 2) and in the operating in-
structions. The welder is responsible for
complying with the cooling times and for
choosing the amperage.
Fig. 2 • Rating plate of a welding device.

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 25

 EVENTS
“wire & Tube 2014“ open their doors in April
Interview with Friedrich-Georg Kehrer, Director wire 2014 und Tube 2014
From 7 to 11 April 2014, the trade fairs
wire and Tube will take place again si-
multaneously in Düsseldorf. What is the
economical status in these industries?
As we all know, the steel industry is at
the beginning of the supply chain, making
it a reliable indicator for the rest of the econ-
omy. As the largest raw steel producer in the
EU, Germany – with 42.7 million tons in the
year 2012 – is number 7 worldwide. Ger-
many is also number 7, behind South Korea,
in the area of hot-rolled products.
The steel industry is looking to 2014 with
optimism: According to the Steel Trade As-
sociation, an upswing in the steel industry
is expected. In spite of all uncertainties, the
association expects a production increase
of approximately 3% in 2014. The global de-
mand for steel also remains on a growth
course.
The NE metal industry also recorded an
economic upswing in the first half of 2013.
70% of the companies surveyed in the NE
metal industry assess their current business
situation as good or typical for the season,
as was reported by the German Metals Trade
Association. The production level for this
year is anticipated to be similar to that of
2012.
27th International Colloquium Plastics Technology
On March 19 and 20, 2014, the Institute
of Plastics Processing (IKV) in Industry and
the Skilled Crafts at RWTH Aachen Univer-
sity, Aachen/Germany will stage the Inter-
national Plastics Technology Conference for
the 27th time. Every two years, the Institute
invites plastics experts from around the
world to attend this important event in
Aachen. In 2012, more than 600 experts from
nearly 300 companies and 15 nations took
up the invitation. The IKV Colloquium has
26
The perspectives are also on the positive
side: More than 85% of the companies pre-
dict equally good or better business in the
coming six months.
Aluminium manufacturers can expect
stable business results. In fact, production
levels in 2013 may surpass those from 2012.
The mood in the industry, which is benefit-
ing from the trend to increasingly lighter cars
and aircraft, could be described as ”cau-
tiously optimistic”.
German NE companies produced a total
of approximately 4 million tons of NE metals
in the first half of 2013. 43% of this product
was exported.
In summary, the economic climate in-
side of which wire and Tube will take place
in April seems quite favourable.
What is the state of affairs today, a few
months before the trade fairs begin?
To begin with, we are confident that we
will achieve a good level of registrations
again with the 2014 fairs. Once more we are
expecting more than 2,500 companies and
more than 100,000 m2 of rented space. 15
exhibition halls are occupied.
A few months before wire 2014 begins,
more than 58,000 m2 are booked in halls 9
At the IKV Colloquium
2012, more than 600
experts from the plas-
tics sector met in the
Eurogress Aachen
(Photo: Brixius/IKV)
enjoyed success for more than 60 years now,
and the organisers feel this is good reason
to stick with its proven strong points, but
they also see it as an incentive to come up
with something new.
“Recruiting, Networking, Innovating” is
a guiding theme of the IKV Colloquium. Its
scientific staff will present the broad spec-
trum of IKV research in 18 sessions with
more than 50 papers. Numerous innovations
have arisen from this in the past. Recognised
through 12 and 15 through 17. That is al-
ready more than the total space booked in
2012, and with that the exhibition halls for
wire 2014 are full. It is still possible, however,
to get onto a waiting list.
For Tube, 49,000 m2 have already been
booked. In 2012 the total space occupied in
halls 1 through 7a was 48,500 m2. Again here
we are seeing the trend toward larger stands
and a more substantial trade fair presence –
a development that was observed in the pre-
vious events.
What status do the wire and Tube trade
fairs have internationally?
The two trade fairs are worldwide by far
the leading trade fairs in their respective in-
dustries. As a platform for ”mother trade
fairs”, Düsseldorf is internationally the num-
ber one meeting place for steel experts and
external experts from industry and research
will open the sessions as moderators with
presentations of their own, viewed through
practical eyes. An accompanying trade show
with more than 40 exhibitors will offer plenty
of opportunity for discussions with business
partners and for making new contacts.
The IKV engineers will present their cur-
rent research results from the fields of in-
jection moulding, extrusion and rubber
technology, part design and materials tech-
nology, and composites and polyurethanes.
On the afternoon of the first day, IKV “360°”
is on the agenda. Here, IKV will be opening
its doors to those attending the Colloquium.
IKV will be presenting its research live at the
running machines in its laboratories and pi-
lot plants. The papers on the second day will
deepen the impressions gained during the
tour.
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
professionals in the NE metals segment from
around the globe. Here, technological inno-
vations in the wire, cable and tube industries
are presented. Exhibitors meet with their in-
ternational clientele and establish new con-
tacts for future business. No expanding com-
pany can afford not to show their colours in
Düsseldorf.
What is different compared with the
previous events in 2012?
One thing that is different in 2014 is an
even stronger classification of the individual
exhibition areas. For example, we have the
very first PTF – Plastic Tube Forum – in hall
7.1. Here, plastic tube manufacturers, deal-
ers and consumers have the opportunity to
present their combined competency in one
special area. Why a separate forum? Because
the plastic tube market is facing major chal-
lenges as well as opportunities in the areas
of energy and environmental technology.
There is also a shift of emphasis at wire:
For the first time, all exhibitors in the area
of mesh welding machines are consolidated
together in hall 16. Around 20 companies
will be presenting their latest products on
roughly 2,000 m2. Here, companies such as
Schlatter, EVG, Ideal and PEDAX will show
concentrated technological power in one
exhibition hall.
How are the focal points of the offerings
distributed among the halls?
Some of the plenary lectures will add
counterpoint to the selected topics and thus
further stimulate debate. The networking
concept will also move more into the spot-
light. Prof. Dr.-Ing. Christian Hopmann,
head of IKV, will open the event with a pres-
entation of the IKV research highlights. A
special and unique item on the agenda will
be the presentation by Professor em. Georg
Menges, who celebrated his 90th birthday
last year. IKV will honour its former Institute
head with a special session. Other plenary
speakers are Prof. Dr.-Ing. Dirk Abel, Insti-
tute of Automatic Control, RWTH Aachen,
Dr.-Ing. Heinz Neubert, Bosch GmbH, Dr.
Georg Oenbrink, Evonik Industries, and Dr.-
Ing. Hans Wobbe, who is responsible for
technology transfer at IKV.
The presentation of two awards will round
off the program. The Georg Menges prize, do-
nated by VDMA, PlasticsEurope and the IKV
Sponsors’ Association will be presented for
the ninth time, with the recipient being a per-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
Friedrich-Georg Kehrer, Director wire 2014 and
Tube 2014.
At wire 2014, wire, cable and fibreglass
machines will be located in halls 9 through
12, 16 and 17. The areas of wire and cable
production will also be found there, as will
trade.
Forming (fastener technology) will again
be presented in hall 15, and spring making
and mesh welding machine exhibitors will
be in hall 16.
sonality in the plastics industry who has made
a particularly valuable contribution to coop-
eration between industry and science. The
“Fibre-Reinforced Plastics Study Prize” will
be awarded for the fourth time. The prize is
presented to an outstanding study thesis in
the field of FRP and is donated by a former
member of IKV, Dr.-Ing. Peter Ehrentraut.
The sessions of the International Collo-
quium Plastics Technology are:
• Thermoplastic FRP – customised man-
ufacture of lightweight components,
• Innovative processing methods for the
rubber industry,
• Tailor-made materials through new
compounding processes,
• Increased efficiency in film extrusion,
• New materials and fluids for the gas and
water injection technique,
• New simulation tools for joining tech-
nology,
• Clear vision with precision plastic op-
tics,
At Tube 2014, tube accessories will be
located in halls 1 and 2. Tube trade and man-
ufacturing will be in hall 2, as well as in halls
3, 4, 7.0 and 7.1. The China Pavilion will also
be in hall 2.
Tube-Forming technology will be locat-
ed in hall 5, and tube processing machines
will be shown in halls 6 and 7a. Machines
and systems will also be in hall 7a.
The premiere of the PTF special exhibi-
tion will be in hall 7.1. Profiles will be located
throughout halls 1 through 7.0.
Where do most of the exhibitors come
from?
Traditionally, exhibitors from Italy, the
United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands,
Austria, Switzerland, Spain and Germany
are strongly represented. The majority of the
exhibitors from overseas are from the USA,
India, Taiwan and China.
Which countries do most of the visitors of
wire and Tube come from?
Once again we are expecting around
70,000 trade visitors over the five days of the
trade fairs. The majority of the visitors come
from the strongest production and customer
countries, such as Italy, Belgium, United King-
dom, France, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzer-
land, Austria, Russia, Turkey and Germany.
Overseas visitors come primarily from the
USA, Brazil, India and China. (According to
press information from Messe Düsseldorf)
• Plasma coating in plastics processing
and application,
• New production strategies for polyure-
thane parts,
• Integrated production concept for elec-
trical and electronic components,
• New approaches for injection moulding
simulation,
• Prediction and detection of damage in
FRP parts,
• Raising efficiency in mass production
by optimised mould technology,
• Designing highly stressed plastics parts,
• Process optimisation and functionali-
sation in forming,
• Alternative matrix materials for FRP,
• Considering internal properties in part
design,
• New approaches for the processing of
silicone rubbers.
For more information visit: www.ikv-collo-
quium.com. (According to press information
from IKV)
27
 REPORTS

The importance of the joint gap when joining by

brazing – Part 5: The pre-placement of filler material
In furnace brazing, because workpieces
are not accessible once loaded to the fur-
nace, it is necessary to pre-place the filler
metal on the workpiece. The filler metal may
be a preformed ring, slug or a tracing or blob
of paste. Alternatively it may be placed with-
in the joint either quite simply on the inside
diameter of, say, a tubular joint or at proba-
bly considerably greater cost housed in a
loading groove within the joint itself. As an
alternative it may literally be placed between
the surfaces to be brazed as a foil.
This is in marked contrast to torch braz-
ing when, if filler metal is to be applied ex-
ternally, it is very often applied when the
joint is already at temperature and immedi-
ately ready to receive the filler metal. In this
case the filler metal melts and flows to com-
plete the joint very rapidly.
Some users will recoil in horror at the
additional cost implications of many meth-
ods of internally placing filler metal but un-
less such users at least try such methods
they will never know when the advantages
will be justified. Flux users are likely to al-
ready know that it may interfere with the
flux access to the joint and its displacement
Fig. 1 • Three pre-placement options for tube-to-fitting joints.
by flowing filler metal and possibly only
techniques such as that in Fig. 1b may be
suited to their circumstances.
A specific mention must be made of an
accurate but low cost proprietary internal
preparation ideally suited for high reliability
flux brazing. This was the “Yorkshire Fitting”
which had an integral internal ring of braz-
ing filler metal or solder, but we understand
is now available only with an insert of soft-
solder in which form it is used in extremely
large quantities (refer to Yorkshire Fittings
Ltd/UK). There is no direct equivalent for
fluxless brazing although copper brazed as-
semblies are very often designed to accept
a snap-in ring pre-form in a pre-machined
groove or recess.
The theory behind internally loaded
filler metal is very easy to understand. Con-
sider the simple tube fitting joint in Fig. 1b.
The heat will flow to the outer surfaces of
the work piece by convection or radiation
from the torch, heating elements or radiant
muffle. The heat will only travel down a tem-
perature gradient so the surface of the work-
piece will be hotter than the interior, partic-
ularly if the construction is double-skinned
or lapped. The temperature differences are
likely to be greater in the absence of flux to
assist inward heat transfer.
In Fig. 1a the filler metal deposit on the
outer surface is liable to be heated ahead
of the workpiece and is almost certain to
melt before the workpiece joint is hot
enough to receive the molten filler metal.
That is, it remains molten but static and
inactive for an appreciable time during
which various undesirable processes may
occur. If the workpiece is lightweight and
the heating rate is quite fast, then the delay
between melting and flow may not be long
and an acceptable joint may be obtained.
In any event, this method of placement is
often used. However if applied to large,
high thermal mass workpieces, the results
are often poor and suffer variously from li-
quation, erosion and, dependant on the
process, oxidation. It may not be easy to
use internal witness of the filler as an in-
spection aid to check the completeness of
flow.
Fig. 1b shows a generally easy alternative
for internal placement and it is clear that
the filler metal will melt only when the work-
piece is already nearly at brazing tempera-
ture. The filler metal flow is therefore prompt
and, frequently, only enough is drawn
through the joint to ensure fill, leaving very
small and neat external fillets. There is the
important advantage that such fillets, being
remote from the point of pre-placement,
provide excellent proofs of braze flow.
Fig. 1c is a more elaborate arrangement
often used for critical pipe-fittings where the
filler metal reservoir is placed in the middle
of the joint itself, halving the required flow
path length for the filler metal. When filler
metal is to be applied as flux-free paste the
cross sectional area of the housing groove

2/20 12

ST IC S EN
2/2012

The professional journal for JOINING PLASTICS – Subscribe now!

74999

G PL A PLASTICS
by Supported by
Supported

TSTOFF
74999

JO IN IN
JOINING
N KUNS
VO VON KUNSTSTOFFEN
FÜGEN
FÜGEN
cs.info n s
Energie
oining-plasti rbaren ble energie
www.j erneue renewa
au und ction and
fen.de aus Leichtb ight constru
nststof dungen lightwe
www.joining-plastics.info
von-ku in Anwen
www.fuegen-von-kunststoffen.de
www.f
uegen- echnik tions from
applica
Verbindungsttechno logy in in Anwendungen aus Leichtbau und erneuerbaren Energien
rteil zur Sonderteil zur Verbindungstechnik
Sonde n for joining en applications from lightweight construction and renewable energies
erfahr
l sectio Special section for joining technology in
-EWS-V
Specia

Das KVT
Das KVT-EWS-Verfahren

Within the framework of your online subscription, you will receive: Subscription price 2013
20 7-0, e
521 / 93
vt-bielefeld.d

The e paper issue of JOINING PLASTICS A comprehensive online archive. Subscription Foreign Country Print + Online 62,00 € + Postage ld GmbH
KVT Bielefe 521 / 93 20
, Werke
ring 6,
711, E-Mail
33609
Bielefe
: info@
kvt-bie
n: +49
ld, Telefo Web: www.k
lefeld.de,

viewe
d Papers
7-0, ely
Peer-re521 / 93 20 extrem
: +49 GmbH, Werkering 6, 33609 Bielefeld, Telefon:
KVT Bielefeld of the +49 s with

in the latest form on to your monitor. The possibility of downloading the content.
Telefax Topics www.kvt-bielefeld.de
Web:plastic
Telefax: +49 521 / 93 20 711, E-Mail: info@kvt-bielefeld.de,

Single Magazine 19,50 € + Postage Theme

Themen
n der
Fachbe
der Fachbeiträge
iträge
rtiger Kunsts
toffe mit
ßen gleicha chaften mit stark
stark
Weldin

TopicsJoining
using
Welding
g of similar properties
differen
t rheolog
of thedissimi
of similar
ical
lar thermo
Peer-reviewed
plastics
n
plastics
Papers tool welding
laser radiatio time in heated
extremely
cycle with local mecha
nical
Schweigleichartiger
Schweißen Eigens Kunststoffe mittels ng the
ischen plaste Reduci ime
properties
rheolog Eigenschaften
rheologischen leicher
Thermo n different rheological
ing the
short-t
in PE100
pipes
artung hweiße JoiningAssess
dissimilar thermoplastics
welds
artungleicher Thermoplaste mittels
FügenFügen mentsc ties of
Laserst
rahlung beim Heizeleßnähten proper
using laser radiation
Laserstrahlung zierung
Zyklusz
eitredu n von Schwei
beim Heizelementschweißen Reducing the cycle time in heated tool welding
Zykluszeitreduzierung schafte
iteigen Assessing the short-time local mechanical
Kurzze
Kurzzeiteigenschaften von Schweißnähten
Rohren

DVS Media GmbH • Aachener Straße 172 • 40223 Düsseldorf • Tel: +49 (0) 211/1591 159 • Fax: +49 (0) 211/1591 250 • media@dvs-hg.de • www.joining-plastics.info in PE100-
in PE100-Rohren properties of welds in PE100 pipes

28 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1


(a)
(b)
Fig. 2 • Example assemblies where foil would be
recommended as the filler material.
for such a paste fill might be 2½ to 3 times
the maximum cross sectional area of the
joint.
The gains in braze joint quality for 1b or
1c can be impressive. In one example several
hundred high pressure lubricating oil feed
tubes for gas turbine bearings were fabri-
cated generally as Fig. 1c using high preci-
sion tube and fittings and ISO 17672 Type
Ni 710 filler metal paste with no braze joint
leaks or reported service failures. It is com-
mon practice for hydraulic service fittings
to be similarly brazed, often with internally
loaded copper wire preforms as the filler
metal.
In another example using the layout of
Fig. 1c, over 200 fabricated valve bonnets
were brazed for cryogenic natural gas serv-
ice. The tube diameters varied between 60
mm and 80 mm and tests included thermal
shocking by immersion in liquid nitrogen
baths. The author can provide a write-up of
the procedure and the investigations carried
out. Knurling was used as an assembly aid
allowing greatly relaxed tolerances.
An alternative method of placement of
filler metal within the joint is to use fully
dense foil such as copper foil, usually man-
ufactured by an electrolytic route, or nick-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
el-base alloy foil of the amorphous type.
There are two distinct processes. In the first,
the surfaces to be brazed are ground accu-
rately flat, usually with silicon carbide
wheels. The foil is inserted, often with a mar-
gin outside the joint to provide a small ex-
cess of filler material, the surfaces are
clamped and tack welded together prior to
brazing. The rigid assembly that is produced
cannot close during brazing and success de-
pends on very accurately mating surfaces
and is therefore likely to involve relatively
high preparation costs. The principle is
shown in Fig. 2a and is well known as a
method of pairing gas turbine stator vanes
(NGVs).
The second process is to use an assem-
bly method that allows the surfaces that are
to be brazed to close on each other at braz-
ing temperature. The most usual method is
gravity loading, a weight being placed on
top of a stack in a furnace. The large scale
manufacture of brazed plate heat exchang-
ers uses this principle: a single weight may
compress the plates of one large heat ex-
changer or many smaller ones stacked on
top of one another. Fig. 2b indicates how
one weight may economically compress a
complete stack. Manufacturers have devel-
oped highly efficient stacking arrangements
for high volume production.
With the gravity closure of the surfaces
to be brazed, it becomes possible to use less
costly powder filler metal applied as a coat-
ing with adhesive. This is because, unlike
foil, powder layers are not fully dense when
applied. To obtain a fully dense filler metal
layer it is usually necessary for the surfaces
to be pressed together at temperature, both
to exclude voids in the filler metal and also
to ensure the pressed plates, which may not
be perfectly flat, deform to fit each other.
Other techniques may be available to
achieve tight closure when using particulate
filler metal.
In conclusion although pre-loading filler
metal into a brazed joint may appear more
costly, and possibly in some quarters raise
theoretical questions whether it is truly “cap-
illary brazing”, it remains an extremely useful
technique. It may be used when, for exam-
ple, it is necessary to produce highly reliable
joints. Also, because the requirement for
filler metal flow is less, it may also be used
for filler metals with very limited flow under
the conditions of brazing.
The techniques described in this short
paper should be considered as a very useful
additional ‘weapon’ in the armoury of the
brazing specialist.
However, it has to be understood that
many in-joint filler metal pre-placements
will only provide the optimum result when
flux-free brazing methods, and specifically
vacuum brazing, is used as the heating
method.
P. M. Roberts,
Technical Director, European Association
for Brazing and Soldering (EABS),
Congleton, Cheshire/UK
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Mr Peter Walter, a true world expert in vacuum
brazing technology and high-temperature nickel-
base filler materials and a personal friend for
more than forty years, made the original sugges-
tion for this series of articles to me in 2006. He
and I worked together on the initial drafts of
these articles, but sad to relate he died suddenly
in 2011 just prior to their final completion. How-
ever, now that they have appeared in print, his in-
valuable work on this project lives on.
P. M. Roberts
29
Welder training across borders
tween the teachers and the students was
very pleasant and relaxed. This had a posi-
tive effect on the success of the training too.
The absolutely good relationship between
the guests and SK was also shown in the very
friendly dealings with each other and in
tremendous joint activities which offered
the setting for getting to know each other
better on the human and cultural levels.
All the participants made a totally posi-
tive assessment of this project and will en-
deavour to extend the cooperation even fur-
ther.
Ten Iraqis completed a ten-day advanced training course at SK Mönchengladbach.

In September 2013, the Welding Train-

ing Centre (SK) Mönchengladbach had a
particular task to perform. On behalf of SMS
Meer from Mönchengladbach, ten highly
qualified and motivated “trainees“ from Iraq
came to SK for two weeks for a basic training
course in welding technology. Most of the
guests were technologists and engineers
with very good specialist knowledge in the
field of welding technology; the training at
SK was intended to bridge the gap to prac-
tice. SK procured DVS’s own teaching ma-
terial in the Arabic language with a lot of ta-
bles, photographs and sketches. Thus, the
best prerequisites were created in order to
guarantee the success of the learning.
There was initially quite a bit of scepti-
cism on the part of the course centre as to
whether and how a training course satisfying Honorary membership for
the quality requirements of DVS could be
guaranteed in the short time of ten days. In DVS President
the preparatory phase which took almost
one year, SK elaborated a training pro- “Honour to whom honour is due“ was The DVS Presi-
gramme which was adjusted to the ideas of the decision of the Executive Board of DVS dent, Professor
the Iraqi customer in a detailed way. For ex- which awarded the honorary membership Dr. Heinrich
Flegel, was
ample, there were instruction courses in of DVS to the incumbent DVS President,
awarded the
GMA/brazing and TIG/E for two groups in Professor Dr. Heinrich Flegel, in October
honorary
each case. Welding teachers and a welding 2013. With the mark of distinction, the Ex-
membership of
engineer presented this programme in Ger- ecutive Board is highlighting the services of DVS in October
man. During both the practical and theoret- Professor Flegel to the cooperative work in 2013.
ical training, the language barriers were welding technology and at DVS of which the
overcome thanks to the excellent work of President has been a member since 1997.
two simultaneous interpreters. Professor Flegel was initially the Chair- of the DVS Executive Board since 2011 and
Five of the ten Iraqis managed to pass a man of the DVS Baden-Württemberg state performed the function of the Vice-Presi-
(simple) welder qualification test according branch and a member of the Governing dent from 2003 to 2006. He was finally elect-
to the European standard EN 287-1 in the Council before being elected as the Chair- ed as the DVS President in 2007 and was en-
short period available. The atmosphere be- man there in 1998. He has been a member trusted with another term of office in 2010.

30 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1


Changes in the management of DVS
The new year of 2014 is starting with a
new General Manager for DVS – German
Welding Society. Since the beginning of the
year, the 52-year-old Dr.-Ing. Roland Boeck-
ing has been the head of the society.
Dr. Boecking, a qualified building lock-
smith and wrought iron craftsman, studied
Mechanical Engineering at the University of
Dortmund, with Design and Materials Tech-
nology as his main subjects. Furthermore, he
became a Welding Engineer (SFI/EWE) at the
Welding Training and Research Institute
(SLV) in Duisburg in 1992. After his studies
and his doctorate, the father of two was, from
1991 to 1998, a Scientific Employee at the Pro-
fessorship of Materials Technology at the Uni-
versity of Dortmund and a Member of the
Management Board of DVS’s affiliated com-
pany at that time ISOT GmbH (Innovation
Centre for Welding and Surface Technology
in the Dortmund Technology Centre). In this
way, Dr. Boecking already got acquainted with
Since Janua-
ry 2014, Dr.
Roland Bo-
ecking is the
DVS some years ago. Also due to his office as
new General
the Deputy Technical Manager of DVS in 1999
Manager of
as well as due to his many years as a personal
DVS. (Photo:
member, he is optimally familiar with the Foto Schatz)
structures and activities of the society.
From 2000 to the end of 2013, Dr. Boeck-
ing worked in industry in the field of surface
technology (electroplating and thermal
spraying), most recently as the Managing
Director of a medium-sized enterprise in the
Berthold
Rhineland region. At the head of DVS, he is
Kösters, the
now devoting himself, above all, to the fields
Deputy Ge-
of research and technology as well as edu- neral Mana-
cation and certification. ger of DVS
Berthold Kösters who has worked as a (Photo: DVS)
commercial employee in various functions
at DVS since 1992 and as the Deputy General
Manager of DVS already since 2006 will also
continue to assume responsibility, in par-
ticular, for the fields of personnel, finances
and organisation as the Deputy General
Manager.

DVS Practical Workshop at Fronius

23 students were able to sniff the air of practice during the Practical
Workshop of DVS at Fronius Deutschland GmbH on 21 to 22 November
2013. In the distribution centre in Neuhof-Dorfborn near Fulda, the
prospective academics were given theoretical and practical insights into
new arc welding devices. Several subject packages provided compact in-
formation about the development of various models and every guest could
try out the welding devices under expert instruction. Things got exciting
towards the end of the Practical Workshop: The first three winners were
honoured after a competition on the welding simulator.
Once again, interested students without DVS membership cards were
also able to take part in this Practical Workshop. This time, just under
half of the participants were not (yet) members and took up the DVS
offer. At Fronius, all the prospective academics were given a practical in-
sight into the work of engineers in joining technology and into the newest
developments of welding devices and also learned things worth knowing In total, 23 students took part in the DVS Practical Workshop at
about DVS. Fronius Deutschland GmbH.

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 31

 REPORTS
The Eskom Weld Rule Book
Introduction
Eskom is South Africa’s largest electricity
supply utility, and as such generates about
95% of the electricity used in the country
and approximately 45% of the electricity
used on the African continent. Eskom can
generate 41,194 MW with its fleet of power
stations.
Currently, it is under severe pressure to
keep the lights on, with limited system ca-
pacity and strict maintenance and General
Outage schedules. One area that was identi-
fied that can have a high impact on the dura-
tion of maintenance and outages is the weld
repair rate. Reduce the weld repair rate and
you can save a significant amount of time that
would lead to better scheduling and more
capacity. One of the most important initia-
tives to reduce the weld repair rate was the
creation of the Eskom Weld Rule Book. It is
a collection of Eskom Standards, Procedures
and Guidelines for welding on Eskom plants,
and contains new and updated documents
to support Eskom’s position on all welding
related issues and disputes.
The Eskom Weld Rule Book incorporates
the Occupational Health and Safety Act, the
Pressure Equipment Regulations (PER), ISO
3834, International Standards, International
best practices, required design codes and
applicable welding codes.
Background
Internationally there has been an increase
in interest in the weld repair rates for different
manufacturing sectors for various reasons,
such as costing exercises or rating vendors [1].
Eskom started looking at the weld repair rate
as a means to save time, so that an outage can
be completed in the allotted time.
The results from a TWI Industry survey
of international TWI welding partners across
all sectors, conducted in 2011, are given in
Fig. 1, with the Eskom data included.
The average weld repair rate is com-
pared to the maximum rate per industry sec-
tor. The maximum rate comes typically from
unique situations, with difficult environ-
mental or material conditions, not indicative
of the norm. It is included to highlight that
welding operations sometimes occur under
very difficult conditions.
The greatest number of welds conducted
in Eskom is on the piping systems, with some
pressure vessel welds where required.
32
Fig. 1 • Schematic results of the average weld repair rate compared to the maximum rate per
industry sector [1] with the piping system welds for Eskom.
From the information, it can be seen that
Eskom’s weld repair rate should be 3% for the
piping systems, which is currently sitting at
5.6% for the 12 months moving average until
September 2011, down from a high of 7.5%
in August 2011 (also a 12 months moving av-
erage). The Weld Rule Book is one of the most
important initiatives implemented to reduce
the weld repair rate to the required 3%.
Weld Rule Book
This Weld Rule Book is the authority on
all welding related matters on Eskom com-
ponents, done on or off site. Actions and sit-
uations that fail to meet these requirements
will be assessed by the Eskom Research Test-
ing and Development department to deter-
mine the nature and significance of the
shortcomings with the aim of determining
if a concession can be granted. In some cas-
es a concession will only be granted if strict
requirements are met.
This collection of documents was writ-
ten to address the need to improve the qual-
ity of welding and thereby reducing the weld
repair rate. The documents are structured
in the way shown in Fig. 2.
Eskom is also working on standards for
the welding of casings, valves and pumps.
Until these documents are implemented,
the requirements covering Critical Plant, in
the Technical Specific documents, will also
cover these.
Technical General
The documents under this section are
applicable to all welding activities, on all Es-
kom plants and components, on and off site:
36-775: Control of Plant Construction, Re-
pair and Maintenance Welding Activities
This document incorporates the Pres-
sure Equipment Regulations, ISO 3834, the
BS EN Standards and AMSE code.
The aim of the document is to achieve
good quality weldments through proper
welding documentation approval, verifica-
tion and control.
It states the basic requirements of ISO
3834 Part 2 certification for companies that
will work on Safety Critical Plant; it covers
material and welding consumable control,
acceptance levels for imperfections, heat
treatment, calibration of equipment used
during the welding operations, NDT and the
minimum requirements of records for the
data packages.
36-1162: Weld Defect Classification and
Reporting Procedure
This document is based on BS EN ISO
6520-1 and uses each of the listed defects to
identify possible causes and remedies for
each cause.
The document is aimed at tracking the
weld repair rate on a day-to-day basis, so
that trends can be identified early and cor-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
rected, such as welder technique, in the case
of lack of fusion defects.

Technical Specific
These documents are component or
process specific and address welding in
greater detail.

36-321: Construction and Repair Welding

of Primary, Induced and Forced Draught
Fans
This document puts forth the require-
ments for the construction and repair weld-
ing of fans used on Eskom and is applicable
to on and off site welding.
The standard defines the type of material
certification, the steel making process, weld
preparations, processes and procedures,
welding qualification, welding consumables,
preheating, tack welding, heat treatment and
records and data package requirements.
36-504: Welding of High Pressure, Tem-
perature Tube and Pipework
This Eskom Standard is applicable to all
tube and pipe welding, on and off site. The
welding requirements are also applicable to
other Critical Plant components.
The document covers general welding
and AIA (Authorized Inspection Agency) re-
quirements, welding procedure and welder
qualification, design of welding, pressure
boundary materials, consumable require-
ments, preparation for welding, preheating,
execution and dressing of welds, post weld
heat treatment, inspection of completed
welds, weld repairs and records and data
package requirements.
36-732: Requirements for Radiographic
Acceptance Levels for Welds Inspection
on Eskom Plant
The document focuses on radiography
and looks at the application of radiographic
inspection, with respect to roles and respon-
sibilities of the NDT personnel and the AIA.
Fig. 2 • Schematic structure of the documents in the Eskom Weld Rule Book.
It also covers the required codes for the
classification of indications and the correct
application of BS EN 5817 to visual and vol-
umetric inspections.
Training
This document covers the minimum
qualification requirements of all personnel
involved in welding and is applicable to Es-
kom and Contractor personnel.
36-505: Personnel and Entities Perform-
ing Welding Related Special Processes on
Eskom Plant
The minimum qualification require-
ments for Welders, Welding Supervisors,
Welding Inspectors, Welding Coordinators
and Welding Engineers are given in this doc-
ument. The premise is to have IIW qualifi-
cation for each of the career paths.
The aim is to increase the skill level of
each person involved in welding, equipping
them with the necessary technical knowl-
edge so that they are in a better technical
position to understand their roles and there-
by reduce the weld repair rate and improve
productivity.
Conclusion
The Eskom Weld Rule Book was created
to serve as the standard to support Eskom’s
position on all welding related issues. It is
based on national legislation, international
codes and standards. The aim is to reduce
the weld repair rate, thereby improving the
quality of welding so that this optimisation
can support Eskom’s position on keeping
the lights on.
Louise Petrick,
Chief Welding Engineer, Eskom,
Johannesburg/South Africa
Literature
[1] Consonni, Marcello: Repair rates in welded
construction: An analysis of industry trends.
TWI Report 19374/1-1/11. August 2011.
[2] 36-505: Personnel and Entities Performing
Welding Related Special Processes on
Eskom Plant.
[3] 36-775: Control of Plant Construction, Re-
pair and Maintenance Welding Activities.
[4] 36-321: Construction and Repair Welding of
Primary, Induced and Forced Draught Fans.
[5] 36-504: Welding of High Pressure, Tempera-
ture Tube and Pipework.
[6] 36-732: Requirements for Radiographic Ac-
ceptance Levels for Welds Inspection on
Eskom Plant.
[7] 36-1162: Weld Defect Classification and Re-
porting Procedure.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Philip Doubell, Morris Maroga, Johan Du Preez,
Martin van Dalen.

 



 Issue
The
Welding
Institu e 03
2013

allied processes
for welding and
Technical journal

www.welding-and-cutting.info

Spirit
and Inventive
With Tradition
for Metal Working
and Processing. The
Cutting, Joining Issue
Know-how in
Welding

03
Institute

2013

tion 2014
Media Informa
www.welding-and-cutting.info
Technical journal for welding and allied processes

CUTTING – With Tradition and Inventive Spirit

WELDING AND allied processes
for welding and
for Metal Working

Technical journal
Know-how in Cutting, Joining and Processing.
by Kjellberg Finsterwalde
Made in Germany

Media Information 2014

www.kjellberg.de

it seems –
Nothing is as the
of the joint gap to changes in
a contribution
The importance materials during
testing by brazing – base and filler
“PolyTank“ project: when joining

WELDING AND CUTTING – welded joints

storage tanks
in thermoplastic Part 1: Setting
the scene fusion brazing

Technical journal for welding and allied processes

ng.info
www.welding-and-cutti

Order the latest media information and a sample copy today!

Made in Germany by Kjellberg Finsterwalde
www.kjellberg.de

www.welding-and-cutting.info “PolyTank“ project: testing

welded joints in thermoplastic
storage tanks
The importance of the joint gap
when joining by brazing –
Part 1: Setting the scene
Nothing is as it seems –
a contribution to changes in the
base and filler materials during
fusion brazing

DVS Media GmbH • Aachener Straße 172 • 40223 Düsseldorf • Tel: +49. (0)2 11. 15 91-151/-155 • Fax: +49. (0)2 11. 15 91-150 • iris.jansen@dvs-hg.de | britta.wingartz@dvs-hg.de • www.dvs-media.eu

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 33

 REPORTS
Narrow gap GMA welding on the basis of examples
from turbine construction – A high-tech process for
stringent quality demands in all welding positions
1 Introduction and overview
Since the 70s, Siemens AG has been
dealing with the narrow gap welding of thick
cross-sections. In around 1983, the first nar-
row gap TIG welding facility was introduced
into the company’s own fabrication in Mül-
heim/Ruhr, Germany, for the welding of
steam turbine components. Although nar-
row gap GMA welding had been developed
to the point where it was ready for fabrica-
tion before the narrow gap TIG process [1],
the first narrow gap GMA welding facility
only took up its fabrication operation in the
gas turbine factory in Berlin in around 1996.
The main cause of the time delay until
the GMA welding process was utilised in
fabrication may primarily be seen in the fact
that no sufficiently well-suited welding
fillers for demanding applications on valves
and other housing components were avail-
able at that time. The attainable material
quality values using GMA welding were not
able to compete with those of the estab-
lished standard submerged arc processes.
However, this has improved considerably
in recent years. Together with refined mul-
ticomponent shielding gases and the im-
proved device technology of modern weld-
ing power sources, the process technology
designed for high reproducibility achieves
a material quality in the weld region which
is now not very far away from that of the
narrow gap TIG welding.
Fig. 1 • Principle of the oscillating arc.
34
The principle of the narrow gap arc
welding processes of Siemens is based on
the fact that the arc is transversely oscillated
from one groove sidewall to the other with
forced mechanical guiding, Fig. 1 [2]. The
adjustment of the oscillation width and the
dwell times on the sidewalls to the set arc
power guarantees definable and reliable
sidewall penetration of more than 0.5 mm.
The sword version or the pipe version is
utilised depending on the geometry and ori-
entation of the groove shape, Fig. 2.
The gap width may be 14 mm according
to the curvature radius of a circular weld
shape while a groove with a straight course
permits gap widths of 12 mm as standard
and even merely 10 mm in special cases. By
changing the oscillation angle, it is possible
to weld gap widths up to 18 mm as standard
and even up to 20 mm or 22 mm in special
cases with the same equipment.
Usually, the arc oscillates from one side
to the other and forms one bead per pass. As
an alternative, it is also possible to advanta-
geously use a two-bead technique per pass
in order to set desired material values, to com-
ply with specified energies per unit length or
to achieve (for example) cooling specifica-
tions (t8/5) and in certain welding positions
such as PC, Fig. 2. Weld thicknesses up to 300
mm have been implemented until now.
Within the corporate group, the narrow
gap GMA welding facilities have previously
Fig. 2 • Different groove shapes, torch types and welding positions.
been integrated into the existing infrastruc-
ture because of the subassembly sizes of
steam and gas turbine components. For ex-
ample, Fig. 3 shows a gantry application for
the welding of steam turbine rotors. Espe-
cially whenever the most diverse compo-
nents are to be fabricated with the narrow
gap GMA welding technique ever more fre-
quently in the production of large parts with
the fabrication of single parts such as in tur-
bine construction, a robot-based welding
system can be utilised in a particularly flex-
ible way with relatively low investments. The
newest generation of the narrow gap weld-
ing system at Siemens was therefore consis-
tently refined with regard to modularity and
robot capability. Fig. 4 shows a GMA sword
version on an industrial robot from Yaskawa.
2 Examples of applications
2.1 Flange ring segments for gas turbine
housings
One of the first narrow gap GMA appli-
cations was the welding of flange ring seg-
ments for gas turbine housings. The posi-
tions of the welds can be recognised on Fig.
5. The components, including those made
of 16 Mo 3, are prepared for the welding from
plates with wall thicknesses up to 300 mm
by means of flame cutting. The ring seg-
ments are fixed in a plane position on
clamping plates and are welded from one
side in the PA position, as can also be recog-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
 Fig. 3 • Narrow Fig. 5 • Flange ring segments of a
gap TIG and GMA gas turbine housing.
welding on a
gantry system.

Fig. 4 • Narrow gap GMA welding with an in-
dustrial robot.
nised in the transverse section on Fig. 6.
By rotating the torch itself by 180°, the
direction can be reversed at the ends of the
groove and the welding-back operation can
be performed. This is continued until the
slag has to be removed. The utilisation of
narrow gap welding meant that it was not
necessary to carry out any turning, gouging
or sealing run welding in the case of the pre-
viously customary double-V weld. The de-
tails from Fig. 11 relate to this application.
the circulating travel carriage. The macro- The individual parts with wall thick-
section through such a weld can be seen be- nesses up to approx. 80 mm are merely ther-
low that. mally trimmed, bent and tacked. For the
housing parts weighing tonnes, the assem-
2.3 Hydroturbine housings bly conditions result in gap width differ-
The narrow gap GMA welding of hydro- ences between 12 mm
turbine housings constitutes another future and 20 mm. The
challenge, Fig. 8. In this respect, the welding system must in-
must be performed not only in the PA posi- dependently
tion but also in the PC and PF positions. In recognise the cur-
each case, the materials to be joined are low- rently existing groove
alloyed (similar to S355) or high-alloyed width and, depend-
(similar to 1.4301) or, also as a combination, ing on this, read-
as a black-and-white mixed joint. just the oscilla-
Fig. 8 • Turbine housing
Fig. 7 • Execution of an inspection weld
welded from plate parts.
in situ, position: PC, two beads per pass.

2.2 Inspection weld for the closing of a

heat exchanger
Another example is the narrow gap GMA
welding of an inspection weld in situ for the
closing of a heat exchanger with a dome cov-
er. This application from a nuclear technol-
ogy installation must satisfy the most strin-
gent requirements with regard to quality and
production reliability. The diameter is ap-
prox. 4.5 m, the wall thickness approx. 110
mm, the gap width 12 mm and the welding
position PC. Fig. 7 shows the welding facility
from above with the narrow gap torch on

Fig. 6 • Narrow gap GMA weld, wall

thickness: approx. 140 mm, position: PA.

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 35

 REPORTS

Fig. 9 • Comparison of the requirements with the attained results. Fig. 10 • Narrow gap GMA welding of the low-
pressure rotor material.

tion width, the centre of the groove and the and stability of this process were the yard- Not only the visual observation possibility
welding speed. stick for a refinement with a view to higher and the “one bead per pass“ technique made
It has already been possible to success- productivity and economic efficiency. All possible by the slight and easy-to-remove slags
fully demonstrate the desired reactions for over the world, narrow gap submerged arc but also the good interpass quenching and
the welding of a witness specimen in the PA welding is also an established process for tempering effects and the development po-
position. The control of the filling ratio is the welding of the filler passes on rotors at a tential for achieving even smaller gap widths
being optimised even further on the basis high melting rate [3]. Table 1 shows the se- with a given suitability out of position were
of the initial results. The functions of the lection criteria which ultimately led to the additional arguments in favour of the GMA
other controllers based on the evaluations decision in favour of the GMA process. process with its well-known flexibility [4].
of the arc parameters with the arc as the sen-
sor could be proven beyond doubt. The ul-
trasonic test did not result in any impermis- Fig. 11 •
sible weld indications. Narrow gap
The PC and PF positions set stringent re- GMA welding
of flange ring
quirements on the process stability which
segments.
must be guaranteed across the entire toler-
ance range. In this respect, it is easier to sta-
bilise weld large gap widths in the PF position
and small gap widths in the PC position. The
results until now highlight the feasibility for
the specified gap width differences. Thus, the
optimisation of welding and control processes
is being continued beyond the current status.

2.4 Steam turbine rotors

The profile of the requirements for the
narrow gap GMA welding of steam turbine
rotors set the most stringent demands on
the reliability level with regard to pores and
lack of fusion (NDT and CRT), the material
properties in the weld region as well as the
reproducibility and stability of the process
sequence.
In the meantime, a large fleet of rotors
welded with the narrow gap TIG process
have been running reliably in fossil-fired
power stations for many years. The quality

36 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1

Table 1 • Selection criteria for rotor welding processes. unmachined parts, the existing degree of rate may last longer than the filling of a gap
Selection criterion WIG MAG UP mechanisation and/or predominantly man- only half as wide at 60 or 70% of that melting
++ ++ ○ ual welding work exert a strong influence rate. Therefore, a higher filling speed and
Welding position PA, PC Pa, PC PA on the consideration of the yield and make thus economic efficiency sometimes result
Arc observation Yes Yes No it more difficult to specify a generally appli- from decreased gap widths in spite of a low
Melting rate ○ + ++ cable calculation formula. melting rate.
Radial filling speed ○
+ Fig. 11 shows an example from the fab- This connection can be portrayed with
(++) +
rication of housings for gas turbines. Not on- the so-called 2E number or EEN = economic
Weld properties ++ + + ly the weld volumes but also a few other efficiency number. This number describing
○ – Satisfies requirements, + Oversatisfies, ++ Best comparative values are compared in this ex- the filling speed makes it possible to com-
ample. A precise consideration of the spec- pare the economic efficiencies of various
In order to meet the demands on the ified values makes it clear that the melting narrow gap welding processes. The higher
weld quality on the base material level, rate which is highlighted for the economic the EEN is, the higher the economic efficien-
block specimens were welded within the comparison of narrow gap welding process- cy is in relation to the attainable welding
framework of a preliminary development. es in many cases is by no means sufficient time.
In this respect, the welding parameters as and that the gap width has an essential in- On Fig. 12, lines for different gap widths
well as the heat management and the set- fluence on the result. This ultimately means between 8 and 25 mm are plotted over the
ting of the control technology parameters that the filling of a wide gap at a high melting abscissa with the melting rate in [kg/h]. The
of the narrow gap head were optimised in
relation to the best possible material prop- Table 2 • Tests on the mock-up.
erties of the weld. Close in-house coordi-
Scope of testing Method
nation between the participating develop-
ment departments, the welding laboratory NDT Visual inspection and magnetic particle, ultrasonic and radiographic testing
and the manufacturer of the welding device
led to a tailor-made solution. Table 2.2 lists Residual stresses Drill hole and toroidal core methods
the tests for the qualification of the narrow Micrograph Transverse section, hardness profiles according to HV10, HV0,51)
gap GMA welding process.
Static strength Tensile test (transverse to the weld RT, > RT)
Fig. 9 compares the attained material
properties with those demanded for the sim-
ilar joint on the NiCrMoV-alloyed low-pres- Toughness Notched-bar bend impact test (various notch positions), FATT 50%2)
sure rotor material. The outstanding prop-
Fatigue HCF strength (RT, > RT)
erties of the TIG process are not quite
Cyclic crack growth (RT, > RT)
reached. However, it can be recognised that
the specified values are exceeded by far. Long-time properties Creep rupture test (for high-pressure and medium-pressure rotors)
Fig. 10 shows a transverse section from
the procedure qualification test. The mixed 1)
Hardness according to Vickers,
joints with low-alloyed and high-alloyed ma- 2)
Fracture Appearance Transition Temperature 50% Ductile fracture
terials which contain chromium and are
thus creep-resistant are also possible in ad-
dition to the similar material combination.
The zonally adjusted post-weld heat treat-
ment makes it possible to set optimum ma-
terial properties in very tightly coordinated
temperature ranges and, in the case of mixed
joints, opens up the possibility of doing with-
out any intermediate buffering.

3 Economic assessment
With regard to the decision in favour of
utilising the narrow gap welding process,
smaller workloads for weld preparation as
well as a significantly lower consumption of
cost-intensive welding fillers with a shorter
fabrication time and an improved fabrica-
tion quality are counterbalanced by the re-
quired investment volume in the case of in-
creasing weld thicknesses and quantities.
The individual conditions of fabrication
such as the internal or external supply of Fig. 12 • Economic efficiency number (2E number).

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 37

 REPORTS
Fig. 13 • Camera
image during
narrow gap MAG
welding.
ratios with gap widths of 20 mm and 12 mm
are compared as an example. The dashed
lines with “A“ stand for a single-wire version
and those with “B“ for a two/twin-wire vari-
ant. In the single-wire version, a 2E value
of 2E = 0.63 results on the ordinate for the
combination of a gap width of 20 mm with
a melting rate of 6 kg/h compared with 2E
= 0.79 for 12 mm at 4.5 kg/h (values with
“A“). Analogously, the values of 2E = 1.27
and 2E = 1.58 are obtained for the twin-wire
version “B“.
That signifies a greater economic effi-
ciency in the case of the process with the
narrower gap. From the widening and slopes
of the lines towards the right side of the dia-
gram, it is also recognised that a reduction
in the gap width tends to entail a greater ef-
fect with regard to economic efficiency than
an increase in the melting rate.
4 Quality assurance and
controllers
The times for one welding pass, for ex-
ample, on large housing parts and especially
on continuously revolving rotors are so long
that they may last one hour or more without
interruption. Since incorrect reactions can
hardly be avoided in these circumstances
even if the operator exhibits maximum con-
centration, it was the objective, from the be-
ginning, to organise the process sequence
in a way largely independent of the operator.
This is all the more applicable if significance
is attached not only to sufficient sidewall
penetration but also to defined dilution for
uniform weld metal properties.
38
The demand for such high quality and
fabrication reliability was met by developing
predominantly arc-based online process
control algorithms which can even compen-
sate for a variable gap width and thermally
cut groove surfaces. Thus, control software
modules are available for a constant torch
distance, for constant sidewall penetration,
for seam tracking and also for the constant
filling height per welding pass with a vari-
able gap width.
5 Monitoring, welding data
recording and documentation
The video technology with special cam-
eras, lenses and filters was refined in the
course of the development and optimisation
work relating to the narrow gap GMA weld-
ing of various applications and in the course
of the rotor welding in particular. One cam-
era is attached upstream of the welding
process and one camera downstream of it.
These cameras enlarge the arc and are char-
acterised by a particularly good contrast ra-
tio between the arc and the immediate sur-
roundings of the groove base, Fig. 13.
Both images can be portrayed on one
monitor and are rotated to oscillation syn-
chronism. This simplifies the observation in
a pleasant way. For documentation purpos-
es and as proof of the quality, the video se-
quences can be stored not only in real time
but also in a compressed form. An incorpo-
rated time-synchronised display also run-
ning in the image facilitates the assignment
to the date and time stamps on the welding
data recording.
The welding data acquisition encompasses
three functional levels:
• administration of the welding task/pro-
ject/job and registration of the machine
setting/torch motors and, if necessary,
of the changes in them during the weld-
ing;
• recording and portrayal of ten process
signals in a freely selectable way from
up to 60 simultaneously acquired sig-
nals with a resolution of 100 to 500 Hz
per channel;
• monitor image in order to display up to
ten parameters in a freely selectable
way from the process signals, in each
case as moving bar graphics portrayed
in traffic light colours.
The monitor image permits online process
observation. Set warning and switching-off
limits lead to the changeover of the colours
on the bar graphics. Furthermore, they lead
to indications, for example, of the wear con-
dition of the wire contact nozzle and, in the
event of a malfunction, to the automatic
switching-off of the process even before any
weld defects can arise. That torch position
of the rotating angle and the weld depth
which is also recorded during the rotor weld-
ing makes retraceability easily possible in
the case of ultrasonic findings and links the
signal course and the video sequence via
the common time stamp.
Karl-Heinz Gunzelmann, Nuremberg,
Henning Hanebuth, Munich,
and Karsten Niepold, Mülheim/Germany
Literature
[1] Gunzelmann, K. H.: German Patent DE
3220242 C2, 1982.
[2] Gunzelmann, K., Götsch, D., Janssen, W.,
Metz, M.: Engspaltschweißen – Ein Prinzip
für drei Verfahren. Schweißen und Schnei-
den 60 (2008), issue 5, pp. 270/78.
[3] Keller, S., and W. Balbach: 80 Jahre Erfah-
rung bei der schweißtechnischen Fertigung
und Reparatur von Rotoren für Gas- und
Dampfturbinen. DVS Berichte Band 255:
Schweißen im Anlagen- und Behälterbau
2009., DVS Media, Düsseldorf 2009.
[4] Killing, R.: Schweißen mit engen Fugen
spart Zusatzwerkstoff bei herkömmlichen
Verfahren. Maschinenmarkt 91 (1985), pp.
1612/614.
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
 NEWS
Editorial
Got the Ticket? Just the Tick-it, or is it?
Having the right ‘Ticket’ is often essential in getting you the job, but
what is the ’Ticket’? When an employer refers to a ‘Ticket’, they are
usually referring to a card, certificate or licence to practise that ver-
ifies an individual’s competence for the job role and responsibilities
in question. The employer’s choice of ‘Ticket’ should be based on an
understanding of the competence requirements of the role, that is
the minimum knowledge, skills, experience and behaviours that the
individual should be able to demonstrate before being authorised to
undertake the role. The ‘Ticket’ or combination of ‘Tickets’ specified
by the employer for the job should verify the role-specific compe-
tence of the ‘Ticket’ holder, based on validation of their knowledge,
skills, experience and behaviours.
Sometimes, ‘Tickets’ are mandatory, often where the tasks or respon-
sibilities are safety-related; a regulation or standard will stipulate the
level of competence necessary for that role, and will set a require-
ment that only individuals with evidence of that level of competence
will be permitted to perform the required tasks and hold the relevant
responsibilities for the work. In engineering, relatively few roles
have mandated ‘Tickets’, and even where safety requirements make
compliance with personnel competence requirements a legal require-
ment, it should still be possible to permit employers and individuals
to have choice in the route to gaining a compliant ‘Ticket’.
Welding is a highly regulated process and is subject to a large number
of standards that seek to control its application and quality. This is
because welding is considered to be a special process; weld quality
cannot be readily verified after the weld is made because much of the
evidence of process control will have been concealed or lost once the
weld has been completed. As such, weld quality is highly reliant on
the competence of welding personnel, which means that welders,
welding operators, welding coordinators and welding engineers re-
quire specific knowledge, skill and expertise in planning and execut-
ing its application; this competence is also likely to be process,
material and application dependent.
Welder, welding operator, welding coordinator and welding engi-
neer competence requirements are often set in standards. Compe-
tence requirements may be expressed from a very generic, “shall
have sufficient and competent personnel for …..”, through to spec-
ified requirements such as, “welders shall be qualified by an appro-
priate test”, with direct reference to ISO 9606-1:2013, Qualification
testing of welders – Fusion Welding, for example.
At the generic end of the requirement scale, the employer must follow
guidance such as that given in ISO 9001 that, “personnel performing
work affecting conformity to product requirements shall be compe-
tent on the basis of appropriate education, training, skills and expe-
rience.” This generic requirement makes it the responsibility of the
organisation to determine the competences for each role and assess
personnel, initially and periodically, to ensure that they are and re-
main competent. Sub-contracting of competence assurance is possible
but authorising an individual to work remains the responsibility of
the employer, so it is necessary to have confidence that the compe-
tence assurance provider is itself competent to define and validate
personnel competence in the relevant scope of work. Credible, inde-
pendent, third-party competence assurance can provide added cus-
tomer confidence, and may be specified as a customer requirement.
However, although a preference may be developed through experi-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
January
February
2014
The Newsletter of The Welding Institute
ence, it is rarely in a customer’s best interest to specify a single source
of competence assurance as a monopoly position will not encourage
best practice from the supplier.
Standards that define competence requirements often also define, di-
rectly or through references, requirements for the competence of the
conformity assessment body and its personnel. For example, ISO 9712
for Non-destructive testing – Qualification and certification of NDT
personnel, refers to ISO/IEC 17024, Conformity assessment – General
requirements for bodies operating certification of persons. A conform-
ity assessment body accredited to ISO /IEC 17024 has validated com-
petence in personnel certification. However, it is still necessary for an
employer to have confidence that the conformity assessment body
has a scope of certification that satisfies the competences of the role;
an ISO 9712 Level 2 UT certificate holder will only possess validated
competence in application of the NDT method to the materials,
geometries and flaws included in the competence assessment. Some-
one whose training, experience and competence assessment has been
focused on aerospace materials and applications is unlikely to have
high competence in inspection of pipelines and pressure vessels. They
will undoubtedly have transferable competences that will enable
them to adapt but specific competence requires specific education
and training; generic education and training is only able to support
generic competence. Whenever a new employee joins the organisa-
tion, some amount of training is likely to be required, however, to
avoid severe competence shortfalls and excessive amounts of addi-
tional training, competence assurance that closely matches the role
requirements should be procured.
Competence assurance is not a case of ‘buyer beware’, it more a case
of ‘buyer be aware’. In the same way as for sub-contracting welding,
where you would have a specification for the product and a process
for assessing the supplier, buying-in competence assurance needs
you to understand the competence requirements of the role and a
way of selecting a credible supplier. Credible conformity assessment
bodies will have effective stakeholder-led management that provides
focus on industry requirements without any single interest predom-
inating. This stakeholder involvement should not be a ‘tick-in-the-
box’ element in accreditation, it is your opportunity to work with
the body to ensure that your requirements are included in the con-
formity assessment process and that your role competences are ef-
fectively addressed. If ‘off-the-shelf’ competence assurance products
do not meet your requirements, and your chosen conformity assess-
ment body does not welcome your specific requirements, it is time
to change supplier; ready-to-wear, one-size-fits-all is not the best fit
for personnel competence assurance in welding engineering.
Personnel competence is a key element in achieving weld quality,
whether you subcontract conformity assessment or not, it is essen-
tial that you understand your competence requirements. The
‘Ticket’ that you select must deliver the competence assurance nec-
essary to fulfil the roles and responsibilities you allocate. A ‘Ticket’
just to ‘Tick-it’ on the recruitment form, tender document, or audit
checklist does not absolve an employer of the responsibility to only
authorise competent personnel to perform work affecting conform-
ity to product requirements.
EUR ING Chris Eady BSc(Hons) MSc CEng MRAeS FWeldI
Associate Director Professional Affairs
The Welding Institute
39
TWI NEWS ··· TWI NEWS ··· TWI NEWS ··
Nearing the Diamond Jubilee of Stan Rowden FWeldI
In November 2013 Stan celebrated being awarded the TWI Loyal
Service Award, after having a professional membership span of over
59 years. He celebrated it with colleagues from the Manchester TWI
Branch committee at the Hallmark Hotel near his home.
Chris Eady, Associate Director at TWI Cambridge, brought the news
personally to Manchester when he visited the branch committee meet-
ing on 29 October. Stan will be formally presented with his certificate
and lapel pin at the Annual Dinner in Cambridge in July. And by then
his membership span will be in its 60th year – a longer time than most
people take to complete their education and working career.
Stan’s association with the welding fraternity began in 1954 when
he joined the North East section of the Institute of Welding. He was
at that time employed as a chemist in the Gjers Mills ironmaking
company, and then moved to the ICI Wilton Engineering Research
Department and then as a metallurgist in the Davy Power Gas Cor-
poration. During this time he was working on a wide variety of proj-
ects, such as those for the UK nuclear power programme, and also
as a lead welding engineer for the Blue Streak nuclear defence proj-
ect (cryogenic section); in particular the welding of 3-inch thickness
stainless steel spheres and low temperature piping.
By 1957 Stan had moved to employment in North West England and
transferred to the Manchester branch. He took an active role by join-
ing the Branch committee, being the Social Secretary for over 10
years and finally the Branch Chairman 1992-4. During this latter pe-
riod he regularly attended TWI Professional Board meetings, as well
as giving presentations to both the Knightsbridge and Cambridge
sections on welding topics. He became Group Welding Engineer at
the Mather & Platt Research Laboratories, and later Production Man-
ager of the Pipeworks Section. He then became Marketing/ Sales Di-
rector at Bird Precision Bellows (later Senior Bird Aerospace).
During this time he built up a wide experience in the welding of ex-
otic materials including titanium and clad pipes, especially for cryo-
genic applications. He contributed several technical articles on
welding design and fabrication to trade and other journals and also
presented papers at international conferences including those or-
ganised by PERA. The developments he helped make in titanium
welding led to his firm becoming the Preferred Vendor to the Airbus
Industries Programme for the A310 to A380 aircraft, as well as as-
sisting Rolls Royce Engines on their Trent Programme. Stan’s suc-
cess in developing export markets for his firm was such that in 1983
it gained the Export Times Award and in 1984 it gained the DTI Ex-
porter of the Year Award leading to an invitation to him and his wife
Jean to attend the Queen’s garden party in 1985. He was also a part-
time lecturer in Welding Science at Stockport Technical College.
The year 2000 saw the sale of the company and Stan became a part-
time consultant in the power, energy and aviation sectors of industry.
40
Stan with some works colleagues
and a selection of components,
and also receiving the Export
Times Award (and whisky) from
the Rt Hon Earl Jellicoe in 1983
Stan Rowden (centre) celebrating
with Manchester Branch Com-
mittee members:
John Cardwell, Stephen Billing
(Chairman), Dr Richard Johnson
(Secretary), Prof Michael Bur-
dekin (President)
He continued as a committee member of the Manchester branch after
stepping down as Chairman. In recent years Stan has used his tech-
nical connections with industry to find new committee members for
the Branch, and also helped to find a new home base for the Branch
to develop its continuing programme of technical meetings.
Richard Johnson
Branch Secretary
Pressure and Process Plant Technical Group
Non-invasive inspection as a part of a risk-based asset integrity
regime
Meeting held November 2013
The meeting was well attended by about 20 delegates from a variety
of industry stakeholders including regulators, classification bodies,
integrity assessment consultants and NDT specialists. It was struc-
tured to have discussions on strategic aspects of non-invasive in-
spection (NII) and its place in a risk based inspection regime,
followed by the more tactical aspects of NII implementation using
state of the art techniques. There was a panel discussion towards
the end of the meeting that enabled the audience to ask questions
though many of the speakers encouraged questions during or at the
end of their presentations.
John Marlow, Techical Group Chairman welcomed the Speakers
and the audience and gave introductions.
Paul Stanworth, HM Specialist Inspector of Health and Safety was
the first to speak. His presentation was on ‘Non-invasive inspection
concerns’. In his introduction he mentioned HSE’s legal framework
based on goal-setting and the concept of ‘reasonably practicable’ to
asset integrity management. He presented general attributes of typ-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
·· TWI NEWS ··· TWI NEWS ··· TWI NEWS
ical schemes of examination that would be expected from integrity
assessors; any change of scheme and the corresponding integrity
management regime should be at least equally as effective as the
previous one. Paul mentioned some concerns/factors in the use of
NII that need to be addressed/ considered:
• New NDT techniques need to be validated for their results to be
relied upon.
• Proper identification of degradation techniques and correspon-
ding inspection techniques is key.
• In terms of effort and benefit gained, a long term view needs to
be taken; it may be appropriate to use NII to reduce the frequency
of internal examination rather than eliminate it all together – if so,
this should be made clear in the scheme of examination.
• There are benefits of opportunistic examinations.
Paul then presented a case study application of NII.
John Wintle, TWI Ltd was the next Speaker and his presentation on
‘Justifying pressure vessel integrity with less intrusive examination’.
John started his presentation by giving background information on
how entry into pressure vessels to examine visually internal surfaces
was once normal practice. Cryogenic storage set the precedent for not
regularly entering vessels containing clean, dry, non-corrosive prod-
ucts. Moreover, there were developments in pressure systems safety
regulations, and risk based inspection and ALARP approaches.
He then presented the outcome of a TWI investigation for the HSE
into industry practices relating to non-intrusive inspection, how such
a regime can be justified and whether a complete absence of internal
examination could ever be justified. John presented conditions that
would justify less intrusive inspection and a six-stage RBI Process
that could support the implementation of such a regime. He men-
tioned that more details could be obtained from the HSE report No
729, ‘Establishing the requirements for internal examination of high
hazard process plant’, freely downloadable from the HSE website.
Neil Henry, ABB Global Solutions was the next speaker and his
presentation was called ‘Issues in risk based asset integrity manage-
ment’.
In his opening slide, Neil mentioned how integrity management
was about having confidence in the assets through understanding
risks, identifying deterioration mechanisms, applying NII and NDT
appropriately and drawing meaningful conclusions from these tech-
niques. Neil presented key influential factors across the life cycle of
assets from a risk perspective. He highlighted certain aspects in risk
management: clarity on who ‘owns’ risk, understanding deteriora-
tion mechanisms and identifying inspection and non-destructive
evaluation techniques and qualified personnel who could carry out
such techniques.
Mark Stone, Sonomatic Ltd made his presentation on the Harwell
Offshore Inspection Service (HOIS) recommended practice for NII.
The approach outlined in the HOIS guidance aims at ensuring NII
provides a similar or improved level of assurance compared to in-
ternal visual inspection (IVI). The process relies on recognising the
differences between NII and IVI and, in implementation, means
some significant changes to integrity management practice. The
process includes the following stages: assessment, inspection, justi-
fication, evaluation and planning with strong interaction between
the stages of the process and a high degree of inter-disciplinary ac-
tivity needed at all stages.
Mark mentioned that the approach defined in the RP has been ex-
tensively applied in practice. A good understanding of how quan-
tified inspection data can be used to enhance integrity decision
making is an important part of the process. A change in approach
and mind-set from traditional approaches to inspection is needed
on a number of fronts.
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
Bernard McGrath, AMEC made the next presentation on NDT tech-
niques.
Bernard started with some key NDT techniques including thermog-
raphy, pulsed Eddy current, flash radiography, and ultrasonics. He
mentioned the requirements for non-invasive NDT; capability to
match internal inspection, ability to cover large area, capability for
different damage mechanisms and the ability to spot unexpected
damage. He mentioned some of the attributes of inspection envi-
ronment that influenced the use and effectiveness of NDT tech-
niques. Bernard highlighted the importance of QA and some of the
common NDT pitfalls. No technique is 100% reliable; the limitations
need to be considered in the applications.
Simon Horne from Delta Process Ltd presented on behalf of Stuart
Kenny, Oceaneering. The presentation was titled ‘Ultrasonic inspec-
tion of dissimilar metal girth welds’.
The presentation was about a case study that involved Oceaneering
Specialist Inspection Services who were approached by a major
petrochemical company to propose potential solutions to the inspec-
tion of a weld configuration historically problematic when consid-
ering ultrasonic testing. A two stage feasibility study was carried
out to determine optimum solution given the specific requirements
and constraints.
The presentation sessions were followed by a Panel discussion that
included a recurring theme during the day which was the impor-
tance of the context in which NII could be considered. Another area
of discussion was the (lack of) availability of integrity data follow-
ing a change of management or a change of asset owner. Due dili-
gence often concentrated on commercial aspects rather than transfer
of historical inspection data which is of vital importance to the on
going condition monitoring of process plant.
Dr Ujjwal Bharadwaj
First for UK Welding Engineer
Alan Robinson, managing director of Gloucestershire based weld
overlay cladding and fabrication specialist Arc Energy Resources,
has been presented with an award as the Best Welding Coordinator
2012 by the European Federation for Welding, Joining and Cutting
(EWF). The Award, which is only open to holders of a European
Welding Engineer diploma, recognises Alan’s long-term achieve-
ment in delivering the responsibilities of a welding coordinator in
accordance with ISO 14731 and ISO 3834‐2. Welding organisations
from thirty countries were invited to nominate their best welding
coordinator for the prestigious award and Alan Robinson from the
United Kingdom was selected as overall winner.
Alan has a European Welding Engineer diploma and is a Senior
Member of The Welding Institute. He is also a certified European
Welding Engineer (EWE), has a Masters Degree in welding, and is
a Chartered Engineer registered with the Engineering Council. He
founded Arc Energy Resources 20 years ago and, in addition to his
role as head of welding engineering, he still maintains an active in-
volvement in all aspects of the company’s development
Commenting on the award Alan said, ‘I recognised early in my ca-
reer as a welding engineer that the output of a welded product
could not be judged with any certainty after the event.  I was at that
time moving from the brutal ‘test to destruction’ methods used by
the mining industry to the defect evaluation non-destructive tech-
niques employed in the nuclear industry – both equally as effective.
In the days when BS 5750 reigned as the quality standard, welding
was viewed always with suspicion. Consequently, throughout my
career I have always endeavoured to ensure that the welding
41
TWI NEWS ··· TWI NEWS ··· TWI NEWS ··
welding, automatic circular MIG welding, linear TIG welding, man-
ual MIG (repair), manual TIG, resistance welding (spot and seam)
and metal pressing (80 to 400 ton capacity). An optical tube meas-
uring system termed TubeInspect, which incorporates advanced
technology for the high precision measurement of tubes is used in
the factory. This system determines set-up and correction data and
quality assurance of the final product and is capable of entirely re-
placing mechanical gauges. The tube material used for the exhaust
systems is stainless grade 409, which is a Ti stabilised 11% Cr ferritic
stainless steel.
The Northumbria branch of the Welding Institute wishes to thank
Calsonic Kansei for making its facilities available for a committee
meeting and for providing a presentation and factory visit which
included refreshments and a question and answer session all of
which contributed to a very informative evening.
process was considered as a process that needed to provide proven
evidence of adherence to procedure from start to finish’. Peter Boothby
Today, Arc Energy Resources employs 70 people and has an impres- Journal Correspondent
sive list of qualifications including ASME U, U2 & National Board R
Stamps, ISO 9001:2008 quality management system, ISO 14001:2004
environment management system, Investors in People (bronze) and New members
OHSAS 18001 health and safety management system. The company Name Member Grade Branch
also remains one of relatively few welding specialists that have cer- Paul Woollin Fellow Eastern Counties
tified compliances with ISO 3834-2 welding quality standard, includ- Michael Troughton Fellow Eastern Counties
Isabel Hadley Fellow Eastern Counties
ing conformance to ISO 14731 Welding Coordination. Jackie Dixon Senior Member Teesside
Alan is keen to ensure that future engineers have the opportunity to Daniel Swanepoel Senior Member Overseas
learn about welding and apply their skills in order to develop the busi- Venkata Narasimha Raju Vulla Senior Member Eastern Counties
Adrian Noble IncMember North Western
ness further. Consequently his company is providing both welder and Edward Brian Foakes Member London
graduate apprenticeships and is supporting welding engineering Basab Bhattacharya Member Overseas
training through the TWI training schemes. The company encourages Richard Dominic Smith Member London
Steven J Rooney Member Teesside
young people in engineering learning, regularly entertaining students Ashfaq H. Khokhar Member Eastern Counties
for work experience and supporting educational initiatives that en- Steve Neesam Member Teesside
courage STEM subjects, such as the EDT Go4Set project. Sam David Newman Member London
Michael Leonard Hodgson Member Teesside
Andrew Smith Member North Scottish
Peter Roberts Member East Midlands
Northumbria Branch Thomas Matthew Pinto Member Eastern Counties
Visit to Calsonic Kansei, Washington, Tyne & Wear Dave J Oulton Member Overseas
Sam David Newman Member London
3 October 2013 Vichaar Dimlaye Member Eastern Counties
Sean Wheeler IncMember South Western
The Northumbria branch of The Welding Institute October meeting Ricardas Slinkse IncMember Sheffield
Kevin Derick Honour Technician Kent
was held at Calsonic Kansei in Washington, Tyne & Wear on 3 Oc-
Collin C Frost Technician Overseas
tober 2013. The meeting was followed by a presentation by John John T Mitchell Technician Scottish
Dixon (Executive Manager Quality, Calsonic Kansei) and a tour of George Chalmers Technician Scottish
the vehicle exhaust manufacturing plant that was attended by about Brent Canterbury Technician Overseas
Daniel James Absalom Technician South Western
20 people. Pongsathorn Puttharaksa Technician Overseas
Calsonic Kansei was founded in 1938 and employs over 20,000 Russon Devine Technician North Western
employees worldwide. There are three manufacturing sites in the John McGee Technician Teesside
David William Whittle Technician Eastern Counties
North East located in Washington and Sunderland, which to- Barry Roy Gwilliam Technician South Western
gether employ 1,100 people. The other two sites produce interior Daniel Ian Beveridge Technician London
plastics, cockpit modules and meter, HVAC and system parts as- Stephen Anthony Moss Technician Overseas
Simon Anton Pashley Kandlin Technician Overseas
semblies. Shanmugam Purushothaman Technician Overseas
Calsonic Kansei clients include many of the major vehicle manufac- Stuart Shields Technician Scottish
turers worldwide. The vehicle exhaust plant in Washington prima- Stephen Booth Technician Sheffield
Dennis Oliver Johnson Technician East Midlands
rily supplies the local Nissan Motor Company manufacturing site Yaswanth Bandari Graduate London
and is currently producing 500,000 exhaust systems per year to Callum John William Picken Graduate Eastern Counties
match the Nissan facility production rate of circa 1 car per minute. Martyn Lindop Graduate South Western
Exhaust system product quality is high with reject levels for the last
three years being consistently less than 10 part per million.
Deceased
Manufacturing processes involved at the plant and observed during
the visit included: Name Grade Joined Branch
Tube cutting, bending and sizing, tube perforation, hanger bar pro-
duction, sub assembly of muffler, muffler manufacture, robot MIG Jim Edwards Senior Member 1944 Eastern Counties

42 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1


Joining of structured sheet metals – Remote laser beam
welding in comparison with resistance spot welding
One main problem of thin-walled, large-area sheet components for light-
weight construction solutions is the inadequate stiffness. One approach
for a solution is provided by structured sheet metals which have an in-
creased flexural stiffness due to three-dimensionally incorporated structu-
res. The areas of application of the structured sheet metals (e.g. in subas-
semblies in automobile, rail vehicle and tank construction) necessitate
adapted welding technologies. Since few systematic investigations have
been conducted on structured sheet metals in the field of joining technology
until now, there is a lack of knowledge about the further processing of
these sheets by means of welding technology.
The aims of the presented investigations are to make it possible to utilise
these modern semi-finished products industrially using remote laser beam
welding and to compare this with resistance spot welding. Both are im-
portant joining processes in the areas of applications interesting for structu-
red sheet metals and thus constitute key technologies for industrial utili-
sation. Resistance spot welding has already been qualified for utilisation
on structured sheet metals [1]. In addition, investigations were conducted
into the remote laser beam welding of structured and flat sheets. These
investigations encompass the possibilities of joining structured and flat
joining members by means of remote laser beam welding as well as the
assessment of the joint strength in tensile shear and peel tests. Thereafter,
the results of the investigations are compared with the resistance spot wel-
ding of structured sheet metals and specific application recommendations
are derived.
1 Introduction
Remote laser beam welding (RLBW) is one of the
more recent processes in joining technology and is cha-
racterised, amongst other features, by a high processing
speed. The advantage over resistance spot welding is
primarily the non-contact processing over great dis-
tances which makes it possible to carry out welding in
positions with accessibility which is difficult or from one
side. Until now, few systematic investigations have been
conducted on structured sheet metals in the field of join-
ing technology. The available investigation results pre-
dominantly relate to the properties of these sheets [3-10].
Above all, there is a lack of knowledge about the further
processing of these sheets by means of welding techno-
logy. In contrast with resistance spot welding (RSW) [1],
remote laser beam welding on structured sheet metals
has not yet been a constituent of scientific investigations.
Therefore, investigations were conducted on lap joints
executed between structured sheet metals using remote
laser beam welding and were compared with the results
from [1].
2 Investigation subject and objective
The investigation subject relates to structured sheet
metals (material: DC04, sheet thickness: 0.5 mm) whose
regularly arranged honeycomb structure is produced by
means of hydroforming. The honeycombs have a key
width (KW) of 33 mm and an average structural height of
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
SPECIALIST ARTICLES
THE AUTHORS
Dipl.-Ing. Ina Sasse is a Doctoral Candidate at
the Department of Joining and Welding Technolo-
gy at the University of Cottbus-Senftenberg/Ger-
many. Her research focuses on the flexible laser
beam material processing of structured sheet me-
tals.
Dipl.-Ing. Leander Schleuß is an Academic Em-
ployee at the Department of Joining and Welding
Technology at the University of Cottbus-Senften-
berg. The main focal points of his research encom-
pass the resistance welding and joining of structu-
red sheet metals using various processes (GMA
and TIG welding, adhesive bonding, mechanical
joining, resistance welding, plasma cutting and
brazing).
Dr.-Ing. Ralf Ossenbrink is a Divisional Manager
at the Department of Joining and Welding Techno-
logy at the University of Cottbus-Senftenberg. His
research relates, in particular, to the field of the
structured sheet metals.
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Vesselin Michailov is the Director
of the Department of Joining and Welding Techno-
logy at the University of Cottbus-Senftenberg and
the Chief Executive Officer of the lightweight con-
struction centre of Panta Rhei gGmbH in Cottbus.
2.94 mm. The webs between the honeycombs exhibit a
width of 2 mm [2]. A distinction is made between the po-
sitive and negative structural positions (SPs), Fig. 1.
The aim of the investigations was to qualify remote
laser beam welding on structured sheet metals by making
a comparison with the resistance spot welding of structu-
red sheet metals. Joining possibilities depending on the
structural position as well as the problems arising during
the remote laser beam welding and resistance spot weld-
ing of structured sheet metals were compared in this re-
spect. Thereafter, the joints manufactured by means of
remote laser beam welding were subjected to the same
tests as in [1] and the results were compared with those
of the resistance-spot-welded joints.
3 Specimen geometry and parameters
In order to utilise structured sheet metals for industrial
purposes, it is necessary to join not only structured sheet
metals with flat sheets but also structured sheet metals
with each other. The welds were executed in lap joints.
The arrangement of the joining members as well as the
positioning of the welds are limited because of the struc-
43
SPECIALIST ARTICLES

ture. The combinations specified in Table 1 are under con-
sideration in order to achieve an increase in stiffness.
Because the contact area is too small for a weld, the
WH (web on honeycomb) combination is investigated ex-
clusively in the case of resistance spot welding. Two RLBW
shapes were investigated: The circular weld in the centre
of the honeycomb, with a mean diameter of 4 mm (adap-
Negative structural position
KW
Positive structural position
Web
Fig. 1 • Differentiation of the structural positions
ted to the minimum nugget diameter of the resistance-
welded spot), as well as the cross-weld at the intersection
between the webs (length of one arm: approx. 4  mm).
The punctiform or linear contact existing when the joining
members are positioned (depending on the combination)
results in different requirements on the welding process.
The utilised laser power can be seen in Table 2. It must
be borne in mind that every program was executed with
a power ramp. Thus, only the maximum powers of the
ramps are specified in the table. The welding speed was
kept constant in each case. For orientation close to practi-
cal conditions, full-penetration welding was executed from
one side. However, this was not possible with the HH joint
because of the minimal punctiform contact.
The clamping forces normal to the sheet plane are
adapted for every structural combination and weld type.
On average, a force of approx. 600 N is sufficient. In the
case of the HH structural combination, the force must be
kept low (max. 100 N) since the punctiform contact makes
the honeycombs bulge inwards and causes a void which
does not permit a joint. The specimens used for the tensile
shear and peel tests are single-spot test pieces (Fig. 2)
which were prepared according to DIN EN ISO 14273 (ten-
sile shear test) or DIN  EN  ISO  14270 (tensile peel test).
They correspond to the single-spot test pieces which were
utilised for the resistance spot welding of structured sheet
metals [1]. The tensile tests were performed on all the com-
binations in Table 1. In this respect, a distinction is made
between three reference specimens: BB for the cross-weld-
ed joint, BB (HB) for the circular-welded joint with full pe-
netration from one side as well as BB (HH) for the circu-
lar-welded joint with full penetration (cf. also Table 2). At
least three specimens per combination were tested and
the respective representative curves were analysed.

4 Comparison of the welding processes with

regard to positioning and parameters
HB WB HH WW BB (HB) While an electrode force of 2 kN must be applied dur-
ing the resistance spot welding of the structured sheet
metals, the joining members are only clamped at a force
Fig. 2 • Structural combinations with relevant symbols.
of approx. 600 N in the case of remote laser beam welding.
This is achieved by clamping the joining members using
Table 1 • Structural combinations
a stiff plate provided with boreholes. The boreholes in the
HB Honeycomb on flat sheet Punctiform contact plate serve to give the laser beam access to the welding
WB Web on flat sheet Linear contact point. The scope of clamping during remote laser beam
HH Honeycomb on honeycomb Punctiform contact welding thus turns out to be greater.
WW Web on web Linear contact As in the case of resistance spot welding, the position-
Reference specimen: ing of the joining members necessitates high precision in
BB Two flat sheets Large-area contact remote laser beam welding too. In particular, the HH
structural combination is susceptible to positioning errors.
Table 2 • Maximum laser powers and welding speeds of the individual joints.
If the individual sheets shift slightly, this may lead to an
Designation Joint type Laser power Welding speed inadequate joint.
HB Circular weld 1575 W 1.5 m/min With regard to the subsequent application, it makes
WB Cross-weld 4000 W 4.2 m/min sense to consider the welding of several spots next to each
HH Circular weld 2625 W 1.5 m/min other. One advantage in the case of remote laser beam
WW Cross-weld 4000 W 4.2 m/min welding is that, in contrast with resistance spot welding,
BB (HB) Circular weld 1575 W 1.5 m/min no shunt circuit can arise. The scope of positioning/
BB (HH) Circular weld 2625 W 1.5 m/min clamping and programming may be seen as a disadvan-
BB Cross-weld 4000 W 4.2 m/min
tage. Moreover, the welding speed may be an important

44 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1

 Fig. 3 • Tensile shear tests: force/displacement diagram
(honeycomb joint); a) remote laser beam welding, b) resistance
spot welding according to [1].

criterion for the selection of the process. Starting from the

welding time, approx. 0.8 s (initial pressing force, welding

Force [kN]
time and post-weld upset force) is needed for the resis-
tance spot welding of each welded spot. In the case of re-
mote laser beam welding, approx. 0.65 s is needed for the
Laser beam welding
circle and approx. 0.4 s for the cross. In this respect, the BB (HB)
non-productive times such as the travel from one welding HB
BB (HH)
position to the next are not included in the calculation. HH
As far as resistance spot welding is concerned, the
non-productive times are determined to a very great extent Displacement [mm]
by the approach to the next spot. Because of the remote
technology, shorter non-productive times may therefore Resistance spot welding
be assumed in the case of RLBW. Compared with resist- BB
HB
ance spot welding, there are no changes in the design di- HH
mensions since this is the same honeycomb structure and
the positions of the joints are identical [1].
Force [kN]

5 Tensile shear tests

According to [1], a minimum static tensile shear force
of 2  kN must be withstood for resistance-spot-welded
joints. As far as remote-laser-beam-welded joints were
concerned, it was therefore tested whether these can also
withstand the demanded static tensile shear force. More-
over, a comparison has been made with the reference spe-
cimen as well as with the resistance spot welds. It must Displacement [mm]
be borne in mind that, in the case of the honeycomb joints
of the laser beam welds, HB must be compared with BB Laser beam welding
(HB) and HH with BB (HH). BB
The tests were carried out with a servohydraulic testing WB
machine. Because of the structural height, it was not ne- WW
cessary to use any shims in the clamping jig. The clamping
Force [kN]

jaws levelled the structured specimens in the region of

the clamping.
Representative tensile shear curves of the individual
structural combinations with laser beam joints (a) and
resistance spot welds (b) are portrayed on Fig. 3 and Fig.
4. It becomes evident that the HH combination of the
laser beam joint exhibits the highest maximum force. The
reference specimens manufactured not only with RLBW
but also with RSW show the steepest rise on the force/dis- Displacement [mm]
placement diagram. The curves of the RLBW specimens
consisting of at least one structured joining member ex-
hibit a flatter rise at a higher maximum force. The curves
of the RSW specimens with at least one structured joining
member also exhibit a flatter rise but at a constant maxi-
mum force.
Force [kN]

As in the case of resistance spot welding, the webs are

subjected to stresses first of all at the beginning of the
stressing. Subsequently, the structure is levelled to an in-
creasing extent and the structural depth decreases. The Resistance spot welding
consequence is the flatter rise in the curves. In addition, BB
WB
WW
Fig. 4 • Tensile shear tests: force/displacement diagram
(web joint); a) remote laser beam welding, b) resistance spot Displacement [mm]
welding according to [1].

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 45

SPECIALIST ARTICLES

Fig. 5 • Tensile peel tests: force/displacement diagram

Laser beam welding (honeycomb joint); a) remote laser beam welding, b) resistance
BB (HB) spot welding according to [1].
HB
BB (HH)
HH the levelling of the structure is expressed in a greater
change in the specimen length and thus in a longer dis-
Force [kN]

placement. This results in the shorter displacements (in

comparison with HH and WW) of the HB and WB combi-
nations which have just one structured joining member.
The comparison of the force/displacement diagrams
illustrates that the honeycomb joints of the RLBW speci-
mens can withstand a higher maximum tensile shear force
than the honeycomb joints of the RSW specimens. In con-
Displacement [mm] trast with this, the web joints of the RSW specimens with-
stand higher tensile shear forces. The minimum tensile
Resistance spot welding shear force of 2 kN is only exceeded by the RLBW honey-
BB comb joints (with the exceptions of BB (HB)). In principle,
HB the maximum tensile shear forces of the RSW joints are
HH located above the minimum tensile shear force.

6 Tensile peel tests

Force [kN]

As already mentioned, the tensile peel test specimens

were prepared according to DIN EN ISO 14270. After the
welding process, these were bent by 90° (in analogy to the
RSW specimens) in order to produce the typical geometry
of tensile peel test specimens. Here as well, the specimens
were tested on the servohydraulic testing machine. In this
respect, the clamping also led to the levelling of the sheets
Displacement [mm]
in the region of the clamping jaws.
Fig. 5 and Fig. 6 show representative tensile peel curves
of the individual structural combinations with laser beam
Laser beam welding
BB joints (a) and resistance spot welds (b). As far as the joints
WB with two structured joining members are concerned, a
WW
distinct rise in the force can be registered at the start, not
only with the RLBW specimens but also with the RSW
Force [kN]

specimens. Because of the structure, these specimens ini-

tially have a higher resistance to peeling. When a critical
force is reached, the structure collapses. This leads to a
slight drop in the force. Behaviour similar to that of the
other structural combinations arises thereafter. In the case
of the structural combinations with at least one flat joining
member, the flat sheet is rolled off until the welded joint
is executed with the subsequent detachment of this joint.
Displacement [mm] The structured RLBW joints (HB, HH, WB and WW)
achieve higher peel strengths than their reference speci-
Resistance spot welding mens while the WW and HH combinations of the RSW
BB joints exhibit nearly the same peel strengths as the RSW
WB
WW reference specimen. On the other hand, the WB and HB
combinations of the RSW joints exhibit peel strengths
which are as much as 30% lower.
Force [kN]

The comparison of the force/displacement diagrams

shows that substantially higher peel strengths are achieved
by the RLBW specimens. In the case of the RSW speci-
mens, it is conspicuous that the resistance to peeling of
the WW and HH joints up to a deformation of 3  mm is

Fig. 6 • Tensile peel tests: force/displacement diagram

(web joint); a) remote laser beam welding, b) resistance spot
Displacement [mm]
welding according to [1].

46 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1


around twice as high as that of the other structural com-
binations. The RLBW specimens with the WW combina-
tion exhibit analogous behaviour up to deformations of
approx. 8 mm. The HH combination also has a higher re-
sistance to peeling.
7 Energy absorption
Fig. 7 provides information about the energy absorp-
tion capacities of the respective structural combinations.
As has already been illustrated by the evaluation of the
tensile shear tests as well, the structural combinations
with two structured joining members (in comparison
with the other structural combinations of the same joint
type) are capable of absorbing higher energies when
subjected to shear stresses. In the case of resistance spot
welding, it may thus be concluded that the energy capa-
city when subjected to shear stresses is higher with
structured welded specimens than with flat welded spe-
cimens.
The RLBW specimens exhibit analogous behaviour
when subjected to peel stresses. There is a different situ-
ation with the RSW specimens where the energy absorp-
tion of the structural combinations with just one structu-
red joining member is minimally higher than with two
structured joining members. In general, the capacity to
absorb energy when subjected to peel stresses is higher
with the RLBW specimens than with the RSW specimens.
The highest energy absorption occurs with the HH joint
of the RLBW specimen subjected to shear stresses.
8 Applications of the remote-laser-beam-
welded joints
Remote laser beam welding permits the joining of
structured sheet metals not only with each other but also
with flat sheets. The full-penetration welding from one
side makes it possible to advantageously join structured
sheet metals, e.g. in bodymaking, with flat sheet compo-
nents as a stiffening panel and thus to achieve a weight
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
saving. Moreover, the joining of structured sheet metals
with each other as a “sandwich“ panel is used for appli-
cations in lightweight construction.
9 Summary
The shear strengths of the RLBW honeycomb joints
with structured joining members surpass the shear
strengths of the RSW honeycomb joints. In contrast, the
shear strengths of the RLBW web joints with structured
joining members achieve values which are as much as
22% lower than the shear strengths of the RSW web joints.
Because of the structure, both RLBW and RSW joints
with structured joining members exhibit an increased re-
sistance to peeling. In this respect, the RLBW joints gene-
rally achieve higher maximum peel strengths.
As the results show, the joining of structured sheet
metals using a laser beam may constitute an alternative
to resistance spot welding. What process is applied is de-
pendent on the type of component, on the ambient va-
riables and on economic aspects and should be decided
on an individual basis.
Fig. 7 • Energy
absorption;
a) shear stresses, Literature
b) peel stresses. [1] Schleuß, L., et al.: Widerstandspunktschweißen strukturier-
ter Bleche - Schweißbereiche, Prüfung, Anwendung. 12.
Kolloquium Widerstandsschweißen und alternative Ver-
fahren 13 October 2010, Halle (Saale).
[2] Olbrich, S., et al.: Prozesssichere Herstellung von FQZ Wa-
benstrukturen durch Hydroforming, in: bbr – Bänder, Ble-
che, Rohre 7 (2012), pp. 66/67.
[3] Fritzsche, S., et al.: Experimental Characterisation of
Structured Sheet Metal. Key Engineering Materials 473
(2011), pp. 404/11.
[4] Malikov, V., et al.: Analytical and numerical calculation of
the force and power requirements for air bending of
structured sheet metals. Key Engineering Materials 473
(2011), pp. 602/09.
[5] Mirtsch, F., et al.: Wölbstrukturierte Materialien - Potenziale
und Anwendungen, 15. IMT-Leitseminar “Management
und Technologie”, Berlin, 2003.
[6] Sterzing, A.: Bewertung von Leichtbaupotenzial und Ein-
satzfähigkeit wölbstrukturierter Feinbleche, Diss: Techni-
sche Universität Chemnitz 2005.
[7] Viehweger, B., et al.: Strukturierte Feinbleche – Umformver-
halten bei Zieh- und Hydroformverfahren, Konstruktion 5
(2005), pp. W7/W9.
[8] Kornienko, E., et al.: Investigation of Corrosion Behaviour
of Structured Sheet Metals by Salt Spray Test, INTECH 2011
– International Conference on Innovative Technologies
(01./02.09.2011), Bratislava/Slovakia, pp. 308/11.
[9] Malikov, V., et al.: Flat hamming of structured sheet metals,
INTECH 2011 - International Conference on Innovative
Technologies (01./02.09. 2011), Bratislava/Slovakia.
[10] Graf, K., et al.: Auswirkungen von strukturierten Fügepart-
nern auf geklebte Verbindungen. In: DVS-Berichte Vol. 275
(2011), pp. 472/77.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The presented work was supported by the Ministry of Science,
Research and Culture of the Federal State of Brandenburg within
the framework of the International Graduate School at the Bran-
denburg University of Technology in Cottbus.
47
SPECIALIST ARTICLES
Avoidance of hot cracks and seam quality improvement
of Cr-Ni steels
In a lot of different industrial fields such as the electronics industry, the
automobile and aerospace industries, energy generation as well as tool-
making, the most stringent requirements are set on the materials and
workpieces to be processed. In many cases, the design necessitates com-
ponents in energy conversion installations (e.g. conventional steam power
stations or gas turbines) which are made of materials exhibiting a sufficient
elevated-temperature strength and corrosion resistance. Very often, such
components must withstand the thermal, mechanical and chemical loads
at the high working temperatures. The Cr-Ni steels are very popular here.
They combine good mechanical properties with good corrosion resistance
in moderately aggressive media.
1 Introduction
Research results from laser beam technology show
that it is possible to master the problems arising during
welding (e.g. hardening or cracking) by using a heat input
which can be modulated. On the one hand, this exploits
the circumstance that a minimised energy input leads to
a quicker cooling operation. On the other hand, this causes
homogeneous nucleation which exerts positive effects on
the mechanical and technological properties of the joint.
Physically, these effects may be described by three mutu-
ally influencing effective factors: the energy input into the
molten pool, the flow and mixing conditions as well as
the heat transport from the molten pool into the base ma-
terial.
It appears that the results obtained from laser tech-
nology cannot be directly transferred to arc welding since
the energy input mechanisms are different. In order to
counteract any hot cracks or brittle phases, new process-
specific approaches can be derived from low-heat arc
processes with new types of control algorithms and from
the selectively stimulated flow and mixing dynamics of
the molten material.
Fig. 1 • Correla- 2 Description of problems
tion of modula- During processing appropriate for corrosion-resistant
tion parameters
steels, there is little risk of any hot cracking. Nevertheless,
with the interme-
welding may lead to hot cracks caused by low-melting
diate current
48
THE AUTHORS
Dr.-Ing. Niyameddin Süleymanov has gathered
many years of experience in the Faculty for Joining
and Coating Technology at the Berlin University of
Technology in Berlin/Germany while assuming re-
sponsibility for various industrial projects and re-
search work and has intensified his knowledge
about the entire spectrum of these technologies.
In 2011, he successfully concluded his doctor’s de-
gree on the subject of the laser welding of mixed
joints. As a Scientific Employee, he intensively
deals not only with the joining technology meth-
ods (e.g. mixed joints manufactured using laser
beam and arc processes) but also with coating
technology (e.g. plasma powder arc welding and
arc surfacing).
Dr.-Ing. Driss Bartout, born in 1965, studied Me-
chanical Engineering – Machine Tools at the Berlin
University of Technology in Berlin/Germany. After
his studies, he worked on engineering technology
problems in the Ceramic Materials Division at
HTM Reetz GmbH. From 2003 to 2008, he was a
Scientific Employee with teaching tasks at the Fac-
ulty for Joining and Coating Technology at the In-
stitute for Machine Tools and Factory Operations
at the Berlin University of Technology. As a third-
party-funded employee, he subsequently processed
various research projects which were either publicly
funded or financed by industry. When he obtained
the Dr.-Ing. degree, he was appointed to the position
of the Senior Engineer at the above faculty.
nickel phases at the grain boundaries and by the formation
of coarse grains in the welding zone as well as to cold
cracks in the heat-affected zone. Nickel forms with sulphur
a eutectic which only solidifies at 630°C. Because of the
low thermal conductivity, the heat dissipates into the base
material of butt-welded joints very slowly. The arising
heat accumulation reduces the solidification of the molten
material. At the fusion line, there is a greater inclination
to segregation and a growing risk of hot cracking. This re-
sults in the demand to carry out the welding with the low-
est possible energy per unit length (heat input) [1].
The precipitation of chromium carbides is by far the
greatest problem during the processing of austenitic
chromium-nickel steels by means of welding technology.
In this respect, chromium carbides tend to be deposited
at the grain boundaries. As a consequence of this, the
chromium is depleted in the structural regions close to
the grain boundaries and the material there drops below
the limit of the chemical resistance [2]. In the presence of
corrosive media, the intergranular carbides like strings of
pearls lead to grain disintegration and to intercrystalline
corrosion.
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
 Silicon as well as carbon, phosphorus and sulphur are
regarded as hot-cracking-promoting elements since they
contribute to the formation of low-melting phases at the
grain boundaries. In the case of austenitic chromium-
nickel steels, it is observed that the tendency to hot crack-
ing rises along with the nickel contents as a result of the
formation of a low-melting nickel carbide eutectic. On
the one hand, titanium exerts a ferrite-stabilising effect.
On the other hand, it forms low-melting hot-cracking-
promoting nitridic phases with nitrogen [2].
3 Objective
With regard to materials engineering and metallurgical
aspects, the aim pursued during this research project was
to provide an application-relevant solution to the prob-
lems which relate to the hot cracks and the formation of
coarse grains during the arc welding of chromium-nickel
steels and are associated with fusion welding processes
today. For this purpose, the scope of variation of modern
power source controllers should be exploited to the full
in relation to the dynamics of the arc in order to control
the cooling and solidification conditions and to adjust
them to the metallurgical requirements. In this respect,
the interactions between the power source, the arc, the
energy input, the convection and the solidification had
to be analysed in detail and portrayed in the form of a
model. The research results served to open up new areas
of applications for arc welding technology which are today
either occupied by complicated laser beam processes or
in which no solution approaches with fusion welding
processes have been in view until today. The aim of the
paper is to clarify the following points:
• generation of a welding process for the defect-free
joining of the chromium-nickel steels at risk from
hot cracking by using arc technology with pulse con-
trol and
• a systematic analysis of the weld geometry and the
structure with the aim of obtaining fundamental find-
ings about the influences exerted by the welding pa-
rameters and the pulse shapes.
4 Test setup
In the research project, welded joints were analysed
systematically with the aid of arc processes with pulse
control. This project focused on determining the quanti-
tative influence of selected parameters and the pulse
shape on the molten pool dynamics and the structural
formation. The base materials were the X6CrNiTi18-10
(1.4541) and X6CrNiMoTi17-12-2 (1.4571) chromium-
nickel steels. In each case, filler materials which had chem-
ical compositions similar to those of the base materials
were utilised for the execution of dummy welds (also for
single-spot welds). The SG X5CrNiNb19-9 (1.4551) and
SG X5CrNiMoNb19-12 (1.4576) fillers were used here.
The prevention of hot cracks and the control of molten
pool movements during pulsed arc welding constitute a
key technology which leads to a great utilisation potential
for arc processes. It is not easy to transfer the findings and
procedure of single-pulse welds to longer welds (particu-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
larly with regard to the mixed joints). In most cases, the Fig. 2 •
joints which are currently welded with the GMA processes Superimposed
exhibit hot cracks. The utilised heat input is too great and multiple pulse in
the molten pools forming in this respect are therefore rela- the background
current phase
tively large. The activities in the present research project
(red curve:
included the adjustment of an available welding power
welding current
source for a power feed into the arc with free time pro-
in A, blue curve:
gramming as well as fundamental investigations into the voltage in V).
influences of the materials and the parameters on the weld-
ing results. For this purpose, an existing welding power
source was adapted for the free programming of the process
phases. Due to the selective alteration of the parameters
(and thus, for example, of the pulse power), it is possible to
exert an influence on the solidification conditions and thus
to improve the mechanical and technological properties.
5 Results
Building upon the simulation results, welds were ex-
ecuted on austenitic corrosion-resistant chromium-nickel
steels (1.4541 and 1.4571, sheet thickness: 5 mm). Solid
wire which was made of X5CrNiNb19-9 and had a diam-
eter of 1.2 mm was utilised as the welding filler. The in-
fluence of the pulse modulation on the resulting structure
was investigated in the welding tests. Different pulse
shapes were utilised during the investigations, Fig. 1. In
this respect, the influence of the energy input in the dif-
ferent process phases was investigated on single-pulse
and dummy welds.
The investigations on dummy welds show the possi-
bility of exerting influences on the forming structural com-
position via the selective modulation of the arc power.
For this purpose, extensive tests were performed in order
to investigate the qualitative influence of the welding pa-
rameters. The pulse shapes differed in the times and am-
perages of the background currents. Starting from a basic
structure of the time-related current course, it is possible
to set individual current plateaus (up to 500 A), upslope
and downslope times (max. 125 A/0.1 ms) as well as fre-
quencies (up to approx. 3.3 kHz). In contrast with normal
pulsed welding, a multiple pulse is also superimposed in
the background current phase, Fig. 2. This multiple pulse
is characterised by a certain amperage and time as well
as by the number of successive pulses. The point in time
49
SPECIALIST ARTICLES

Fig. 3 • Weld formation, current/voltage

courses and arc photographs for two pulse-
modulated pulse shapes (shielding gas: argon,
12 l/min); a) medium pulses, b) high pulses.

Parameter Fig. 3a Fig. 3b

IS1 = 500 A 500 A
US1 = 34 V 34 V
tS1 = 1.4 ms 1.4 ms
IG1 = 110 A 110 A
UG1 = 26 V 27 V
tG1 = 4 ms 4 ms
IG2 = 60 A 60 ms
UG2 = 31 V 32 V
tG2 = 4 ms 2 ms
IPG2 = 100 A 150 A
tPG2 = 250 μs 250 μs
VD = 4.3 m/min 4.3 m/min
VS = 50 cm/min 50 cm/min

Fig. 4 • Pulse shape with the energy

inputs for the different process phases.

of the complete melting of the filler material and thus the

droplet size are determined by the different energy inputs
in the background current phases. In addition, this is as-
sociated with variations in the penetration and the weld
geometry.
In this respect, the parameters were primarily varied
in the second background current phase of the pulse and
in the middle background current phase too. As an ex- basic shape of the welding pulse and with the energy in-
ample, the tests performed on two specimens with the puts investigated in each case are compared on Fig. 3.
Both welds were executed with the same program with
Fig. 5 • regard to the energy of the welding pulse and the first
Cracking in the background current phase. In this case, an energy of 20.5
case of the J occurs for the first process phase (WS1) and an energy
chromium- of 5.6 J for the first background current phase (WG1), Fig.
nickel steels 4. Differences can be found in the second background
welded without
current phase (WG2). Here, the welding was carried out
any pulse mod-
at pulse powers of 10.4 J (Fig. 3a, eight short medium puls-
ulation.
es) and 7.4 J (Fig. 3b, four short high pulses) in the second
background current phase. The energy per unit length in
the process amounted to 5.0 ± 0.5 kJ/cm on average.
During the cooling after the welding of austenitic
chromium-nickel steels, cracks arise with the develop-
ment of local mechanical tensile stresses. The conditions
for the occurrence of hot cracks are not only a two-phase
composite with solid constituents which are partly or com-
pletely covered with molten material but also local me-
chanical deformation stresses on this composite. The se-
lective time-related modulation of the parameters (e.g. of
the pulse power) opens up new possibilities of exerting
selective influences on the structural formation during
the welding and thus on the solidification morphology of
the materials. The problems associated with the hot crack-
ing result, for example, from the alloy composition and
the solidification processes.
The occurrence of material separations in higher tem-
perature ranges during or shortly after the welding is
caused by the occurrence of low-melting eutectics ahead
of the solidification front. In contrast with the already solid

50 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1

 Fig. 7 •
Structural
compositions
(material:
X5CrNiTi18-
10, filler ma-
terial:
X5CrNiNb19-
9; a) medium
pulses, b)
high pulses.

Fig. 6 • Crack
avoidance with
the pulse mod-
ulation (medi-
um pulses).

grains, these cannot absorb the arising shrinkage stresses
at the end of the solidification. In the case of the welding
without any pulse modulation, the crack location is the
wetted grain boundary or the residual molten material be-
tween the dendrites. Therefore, hot cracks always exhibit
an intercrystalline course, i.e. between the grain boundaries,
Fig. 5a. Unevenly stress conditions lead to further cracks in
the heat-affected zone, Fig. 5b. Cracks in the welding and
heat-affected zones were reduced with the corresponding
welding parameters and pulse shapes, Fig. 6.
A partly distinct differentiation in the formed structure
is visible on Fig. 7. In contrast with Fig. 7a, a substantially
more coarsely directional structure is recognisable on Fig.
7b. This suggests that the heat dissipation from the molten
material into the base material is hindered here and thus
leads to the formation of a coarser structure. On the other
hand, the structure on Fig. 7a has resulted from the quicker
cooling of the material and thus from uniform non-direc-
tional solidification with a more fine-grained structure.
6 Concluding remarks
The influences of the arcs with pulse control on the
molten pool dynamics and on the solidification were in-
vestigated within the framework of this research project.
The investigations have proven that the control of the arc
power by means of pulse modulation leads to an improve-
ment in the weld properties. The conducted investigations
into the influence on the solidification illustrate that the
time-adjusted modulation of the arc power makes it pos-
sible, in principle, to exert influences on the solidification
conditions during the execution of dummy and single-
pulse welds on austenitic chromium-nickel steels. Here,
it was possible to establish that the selective modulation
of the arc power has a great influence on the forming
structural composition.
On the basis of the obtained fundamental findings
about the inclination to hot cracking, the structural re-
finement and also the physical effective mechanisms be-
tween the time-related control of the welding current and
the flow conditions in the molten pool, the enormous po-
tential of the highly dynamic pulse modulation can be
made accessible to companies for the exertion of selective
influences on the weld quality and can be implemented
in an economically viable way.
Literature
[1] Schuster, J.: Heißrisse in Schweißverbindungen. DVS
Media, Düsseldorf 2004.
[2] Dilthey, U.: Schweißtechnische Fertigungsverfahren 1 –
Schweiß- und Schneidtechnologien. 3rd edition. Springer-
Verlag, Berlin 2006.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The investigations were promoted from budgetary funds of the
German Ministry of Economic Affairs and Technology (BMWi) via
the Federation of Industrial Research Associations Otto von Guer-
icke (AiF) and were supported by the Research Association for
Steel Application (FOSTA). We would like to express our sincere
gratitude for the support.

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 51

SPECIALIST ARTICLES
Laser/GMA hybrid welding with the aid of low-energy arcs
Today laser/GMA hybrid welding is a process which is established in in-
dustry and is used frequently. The advantages of the process are a gap-
bridging capacity improved in comparison with laser welding and the
possibility of exerting metallurgical influences on the molten material.
However, the additional utilisation of the arc raises the energy input sub-
stantially compared with a laser process. The energy input during
laser/GMA hybrid welding can be reduced by coupling the laser beam
with a low-energy short arc.
1 Introduction
Laser welding is a quick, non-contact joining process.
It is characterised by a high energy density which permits
a high process speed with a low energy input into the join-
ing zone. The welds produced in this way are very narrow
and have only a small heat-affected zone. However, laser
welding does not allow any metallurgical influences to be
exerted on the molten material or any gaps to be bridged
without weld sinkage or root concavity. In order to
nevertheless achieve this, there is the possibility of sup-
plying cold wire but comparatively expensive laser beam
power must be used for the complete melting of the wire
in this respect. Another starting point is laser/GMA hybrid
welding with a spray or pulsed arc but the energy per unit
length is increased substantially in this case. Therefore,
problems are caused by distortion in the component as
well as possibly by hot cracks in the weld.
Because of these problems associated with laser/GMA
hybrid welding, industry expressed the wish for a fabri-
cation process which combines the positive properties of
laser/GMA hybrid welding with a lower energy input. The
process variant consisting of laser/GMA hybrid welding
with the aid of low-energy arc welding processes could
be such a process. On the one hand, the results of this
project may be useful to firms which are already success-
fully utilising laser/GMA hybrid welding today and would
like to minimise the distortion even further. On the other
hand, this process-oriented, consistent refinement of
laser/GMA hybrid welding may serve to create subassem-
blies and components which could not be joined until
now due to technical restrictions. It is possible to achieve
advantages precisely in relation to the distortion and the
process stability. Advantages during the welding of alu-
minium alloys sensitive to hot cracking can also be gen-
erated by the low heat input.
2 State of the art
Laser/GMA hybrid welding is the coupling of the laser
and GMA welding processes in one common molten pool.
This coupling serves to create synergetic effects such as
an improved gap-bridging capacity and the exertion of
targeted influences on the metallurgical composition of
the molten material. Laser/GMA hybrid welding was first
applied industrially in shipbuilding in 2000. At that time,
it was merely possible to join sheets with thicknesses of 5
to 9 mm [1]. This was followed by numerous other inves-
tigations which made it possible to apply laser/GMA hy-
52
THE AUTHORS
Prof. Dr.-Ing. Uwe Reisgen studied Mechanical
Engineering at the RWTH Aachen University and
concluded this as a Dipl.-Ing in 1990. He subse-
quently worked as a Scientific Employee at the In-
stitute of Welding Technology at the RWTH Aachen
University where he obtained his Dr.-Ing. degree in
1995. From 1995 to 2000, he was employed as a
Senior Engineer at the Institute of Welding Tech-
nology at the RWTH Aachen University. Since
2000, he has been the Head of the Joining and
Testing Technology Department at the Jülich Re-
search Centre. In 2007, he was appointed as a
University Professor at the Institute of Welding
Technology and Joining Technology at the RWTH
Aachen University and as the Director of the insti-
tute bearing the same name.
Dr.-Ing. Simon Olschok studied Mechanical Engi-
neering with Fabrication Technology as the spe-
cialist field at the RWTH Aachen University from
1996 to 2002. From 2002 to 2007, he was em-
ployed as a Scientific Employee at the Institute of
Welding Technology and Joining Technology (ISF)
in the field of laser welding. Since then, he has
worked as a Senior Engineer at ISF for the field of
beam processes. In 2008, he obtained his doctor-
ate with the subject of the “Laser/GMA hybrid
welding of steel in the thick plate range“.
Dipl.-Ing. Michael Mavany studied Mechanical
Engineering with Production Technology as the ad-
vanced subject at the RWTH Aachen University un-
til 2008. Since 2009, he has worked as a Scientific
Employee and a Research Engineer at the RWTH
Aachen University, Institute of Welding Technology
and Joining Technology (ISF). In 2009, he complet-
ed the additional training to become an Interna-
tional Welding Engineer. He is responsible for pub-
licly promoted research projects and industrial
projects in the fields of laser welding and
laser/GMA hybrid welding.
brid welding to sheet thicknesses of 2 to 25 mm. In the
steel pipe industry, laser/GMA hybrid welding is certified
for longitudinal welds in the sheet thickness range of 2.4
to 14.4 mm. Furthermore, it is utilised in automobile con-
struction and in a large number of other sectors [2, 3]. In
most applications, hybrid welding is carried out with a
spray or pulsed arc.
In industrial utilisation, three different concepts are
pursued for the control and energy minimisation in the
short arc. The first approach reduces the current during
the short circuit phase. A second approach also pursues
the reduction in the current in the short circuit phase but
the wire feed is influenced as an additional parameter.
Thus, the short circuit is ceased mechanically by with-
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
 drawing the wire. The third approach seeks to minimise Fig. 1 • Compari-
the energy using alternating current proportions [4, 5]. son of the tem-
peratures during
laser/GMA hybrid
3 Utilised device technology
welding with a
A “TruFlow 6000“ CO2 laser from Trumpf was used with-
standard short arc
in the framework of this work. In all the tests, the focusing
and a “CMT“ arc.
length of the utilised, reflective optics was 200 mm and the
minimum focus diameter 0.6 mm. A “TruDisk 2002“ 2 kW
disc laser from Trumpf with a focus diameter of 0.2 mm
was utilised for the welding of aluminium alloys.
Various power sources were used in order to take ac-
count of the three different approaches for minimising the
energy during GMA welding. The first power source is the
“alphaQ550“ type from EWM AG. With this source, it is pos-
sible to carry out welding with the “coldArc“, an electric cur-
rent reduction in the short circuit. A “CMT 4000 advanced“
power source from Fronius International GmbH was used brid process, tests were carried out on the 1.0330 (DC01)
in addition. In the case of the so-called CMT (cold metal material. The task was to weld a 2 mm thick sheet with
transfer) process, the current reduction in the short cirucit beaten edges. The produced welds had to meet the criteria
is coupled with the mechanical ceasing of the short circuit of Assessment Group B according to DIN EN ISO 12932.
by withdrawing the wire. The third power source was a “GLC In this respect, the GMA parameters and the laser beam
353 Quinto Cold Process“ from Carl Cloos Schweißtechnik power were adjusted in such a way that the total energy
GmbH. This power source detects the restriking of the arc input into the component was minimised. When the pa-
and then changes the polarity of the welding current. rameters were found, it was shown that not only the laser
beam power but also the GMA parameters had to be var-
4 Comparison of the energies per unit length ied so that the produced welds fulfil the conditions.
In order to investigate the influence of the individual In order to establish the energy per unit length, the
control strategies on the energy per unit length in the hy- emitted laser beam power was added to the arc power.

For permanent
joining
F
BERKENHOF
®

bercoweld
High-tech wire solutions made of
copper for brazing and welding.



 

 
good gap bridging

 
 
  

www.bercoweld.com
SPECIALIST ARTICLES

Fig. 2 • • At 1,242.8 W, the power value of the “CP“ arc is ap-

Laser/GMA hybrid prox. 33% below those of the other arc types.
weld with a stan- In order to calculate the energy per unit length, the laser
dard short arc;
beam power must be considered in addition. This results in
top: current and
the following energies per unit length for a speed of 2 m/min:
voltage courses,
E = (PL + PGGMA) = EHybrid
centre: upper
weld bead, Estandard2.0 = (3,000 + 1,946.0) / vs = 148 J/mm
bottom: images EcoldArc2.0 = (3,000 + 1,859.4) / vs = 146 J/mm
on high-speed ECMT2.0 = (1,500 + 1,981.0) / v = 104 J/mm
photographs ECP2.0 = (2,500 + 1,242.8) / vs = 112 J/mm
(restriking opera- In spite of the lowest arc power which is implemented
tion afflicted with during the “CP“ process, the lowest energy per unit length
spatter). (104 J/mm) can be observed during the welding with the
“CMT“ process. This may be attributed to the lowest re-
quired laser beam power of 1,500 W. At 112.3 J/mm, the
“CP“ process exhibits a somewhat higher energy per unit
length. When a “coldArc“ is used, the energy per unit
length is substantially higher at 145.8 J/mm. This is only
slightly lower than the energy per unit length of the stan-
dard short arc at 148.4 J/mm.

5 Temperature comparison
Since the determination of the energy per unit length
has indicated distinct differences between the processes,
tests for the determination of the t8/5 times were carried
out in order to prove the different energy inputs. For the
Fig. 3 • comparison of the temperature development, two Ni-
Laser/GMA hybrid CrNi thermocouples of the K type were introduced into
weld with a
the weld in each case through a transverse borehole in
“coldArc“; top:
the centre of the specimen sheets. Subsequently, these
current and volt-
were overwelded and the forming thermovoltage was
age courses, cen-
tre: upper weld recorded and evaluated at a frequency of 13 Hz using
bead, bottom: im- LabView. The welding process was started at the point in
ages on high- time t = 0 s and the thermocouple overwelded at the point
speed photo- in time t = 1.1 s. The welding process ended at t = 3 s.
graphs (restriking The measured maximum temperature plays only a
operation free subordinate role with regard to the assessment of the
from spatter) processes. The so-called t8/5 time has become estab-
lished in welding technology. This designates the time
which passes during the cooling from 800°C to 500°C.
The t8/5 time is considerably shorter during the cooling
of the specimen welded with the “CMT“ process than
during the analogous short arc test. Moreover, the time
from the beginning of the temperature rise until the
800°C is reached during the cooling operation turns out
to be considerably shorter with the “CMT“ process.
Thus, the weld executed with the “CMT“ process has
already cooled down to 800°C after 0.7 s. In the case of
the welding with the standard short arc, it takes 1.1 s
until the weld has cooled down to 800°C after the weld-
ing, Fig. 1. This illustrates that the heat input in the
“CMT“ process is substantially lower than that in the
The arc power results from the current and voltage values standard process.
in the arc process which were measured at a scanning
rate of 5,000 Hz. At a welding speed of 2 m/min, the fol- 6 Comparison of the process stability
lowing results were shown for the individual arc types: The welding process using the coupling of a low-en-
• The arc powers are on roughly the same level with ergy arc with the laser beam takes place very much more
the standard short arc (1,946 W), the “coldArc“ stably than in the case of a comparative weld with a short
(1,859.4 W) and the “CMT“ arc (1,981 W). arc. This initially purely subjective impression was con-

54 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1

firmed using current and voltage measurements as well
as high-speed photographs.
A laser/GMA hybrid weld with a conventional short
arc shows extreme fluctuations in the amperage on the cur-
rent/voltage measuring record, Fig. 2 top, even if no irreg-
ularities in the process are optically discernible. Thus, the
intervals between the individual short circuits have different
lengths. Because of the different quantities of material trans-
ferred to the upper bead of the weld per short circuit, this
leads to irregular weld ripples, Fig. 2 centre.
Moreover, the current rise in the short circuit is not
uniform and there are very extreme fluctuations in the
maximum levels of the current peaks, as is customary with
the uncontrolled short arc. The maximum amperage in
the short circuit is as much as 400 A. The short circuit
phase is also very long. At the high amperage, the restrik-
ing of the arc is like an eruption. Therefore, it is associated
with extreme spattering, Fig. 2 bottom.
The current and voltage courses during a laser/GMA
hybrid welding process with the “coldArc“ have just a few
things in common with those in the standard short arc Fig. 4 • Laser/GMA hybrid weld with a “CMT“ arc; top: current
welding process. In the same period of 0.14 s under con- and voltage courses, bottom: upper weld bead.
sideration, 15 short circuits (9 short circuits during the stan-
Fig. 5 •
dard process) can be measured and the length of the short Arrangement
circuit phases is very short. Furthermore, the current peaks of the sheets
are approx. 100 A lower than during the standard process. in order to
For this reason, they result in only a slight reduction in the determine the
energy input, Fig. 3 top. However, hardly any weld ripples distortion
are recognisable on the upper bead, Fig. 3 centre.
Fig. 6 • Results
The current and voltage values also illustrate that the
of the distortion
short circuit is reliably recognised by the controller of the
tests depending
power source and the amperage lowered to a certain nom- on the material
inal level. Therefore, the controller of the source functions and the energy
reliably although the shielding gas atmosphere is ionised per unit length.
by the laser beam. At 300 A, the maximum amperage is
also substantially lower than is the case during the welding
with the short arc. Due to the controller, the material trans-
fer is nearly spatter-free, Fig. 3 bottom.
The nearly currentless restriking of the arc can also
be observed with the “CMT“ arc. Furthermore, the long
short circuit phases guarantee the low energy per unit
length, Fig. 4 top. In this respect, the process takes place
without any spatter whatsoever. In addition, the arc always
has the same length during the restriking because the
short circuit is ceased mechanically. This increases the
stability of the arc even further. It is possible to produce a mm × 300 mm format in a lap joint. The weld, a fillet
very exact weld with fine ripples, Fig. 4 bottom. weld in a lap joint, is located in the centre of the lower
sheet. Subsequently, the path of the lower sheet bending
7 Distortion minimisation upwards was determined with a dial gauge, Fig. 5. This
Compared with the laser welding using cold wire, dis- permits a rough but simple assessment of the resulting
tortion is one problem resulting from the increased energy different distortions. A ferritic DC01 steel, a ferritic corro-
input. Distortions inevitably arise at an increased energy sion-resistant 1.4003 steel and an austenitic 1.4301 steel
per unit length precisely when large-volume sections were used as the base materials. The sheet thickness was
made of thin sheets are welded, as is the case in rail vehicle 2 mm in each case. A 1.4370 (Thermanit X) with a wire
construction for example. diameter of 1 mm was used as the filler material.
In order to determine the distortion, the deformation As was to be expected, the tests show that the distortion
was determined on test specimens after the welding. For can be minimised by utilising low-energy arcs during
this purpose, one sheet with the 30 mm × 300 mm di- laser/GMA hybrid welding. For example, it was possible to
mensions was welded on to another sheet with the 300 substantially reduce the distortion of the ferritic DC01 steel

Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1 55

SPECIALIST ARTICLES

Fig. 7 • from over 6 mm at an energy per unit length of 233.6 J/mm

Laser/GMA hybrid to approx. 2.3 mm at an energy per unit length of 139.3
weld with a stan- J/mm. A similar pattern emerges during the welding of the
dard short arc on austentic 1.4301 material. The reduction in the energy per
AlMg1SiCu; top
unit length from 208.1 J/mm to 130.1 J/mm served to lower
left: lower bead,
the distortion from 12.5 mm to 8.6 mm. The distortion min-
top right: upper
imisation is even more distinct during the welding of the
bead, bottom:
hardness traverse 1.4003 material. With this ferritic corrosion-resistant steel
transverse to the which is frequently used in rail vehicle construction, the
weld. distortion was reduced from 3.9 mm to 0.2 mm by reducing
the energy per unit length by 38.6 J/mm, Fig. 6.

8 Investigations on aluminium alloys

Welding tests were carried out on the AA6061
(AlMg1SiCu) alloy with SG-AlSi5 as the filler material. The
weld manufactured by means of laser/GMA hybrid weld-
Fig. 8 • ing with the “coldArc“ hardly differs from the weld man-
Laser/GMA hybrid ufactured with the standard short arc. For example, the
weld with a upper beads of both welds are 5 mm wide. Moreover, both
“coldArc“ on
upper beads are only slightly reinforced with 0.1 mm. The
AlMg1SiCu; top
weld ripples have a somewhat finer character when the
left: lower bead,
top right: upper
short arc is used. The weld roots exhibit more distinct dif-
bead, bottom: ferences from each other. Although both have the same
hardness traverse width (3.5 mm), the root-side drop-through of the weld
transverse to the executed with the standard short arc (1 mm) is twice as
weld. much as that of the joint welded with the “coldArc“, Figs.
7 and 8. The parameters used for the welding were iden-
tical. A laser beam power of 1.5 kW and a wire feed rate of
2.5 m/min were used in both cases. The welding speed
was 1 m/min. In this respect, it was shown that nearly the
same energy is input with the comparative welds between
the standard short arc and the “coldArc“. For example,
Fig. 9 • an additional arc power of 498 W was input at a constant
Stress/strain laser beam power of 1.5 kW with the short arc and 478 W
diagram of a
when the “coldArc“ process was utilised. Corresponding
laser/GMA hybrid
to the slight differences in the energy input, the softening
weld with a stan-
dard short arc
of both welds with the short arc is also only slightly greater
(material: at 17 HV0.1 compared with 13 HV0.1.
AlMg1SiCu). The specimens welded with the standard short arc
exhibit low elongations at fracture at 4% on average. The
tensile strengths of the specimens welded with the stan-
dard short arc are approx. 200 MPa, Fig. 9. The specimens
welded using the laser/GMA hybrid process with the
“coldArc“ exhibit a higher tensile strength at 240 MPa and
the elongation is also raised substantially at 11 %, Fig. 10.
Fig. 10 • Moreover, the specimens have different fracture locations.
Stress/strain While all the specimens failed in the weld with the stan-
diagram of a dard short arc, three of the “coldArc“-welded specimens
laser/GMA hybrid fractured in the base material and two also in the weld.
weld with a Therefore, the weld exhibits nearly the same strength as
“coldArc“ (materi- that of the base material.
al: AlMg1SiCu).
9 Initial application
Because of the positive results during the welding of
aluminium alloys, it was possible to generate an initial ap-
plication of the results. At Forschungszentrum Jülich
GmbH, in the Central Institute for Joining and Testing Tech-
nology (ZEA1), the objective was to fabricate a double tube
structure for a neutron source at the Munich Research Re-

56 Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1


actor (FRM2). Laser/GMA hybrid welding with the
“coldArc“ was particularly suitable for this component. Due
to the inclination to hot cracking, it is imperative to supply
welding filler material in the case of the utilised alloy. Be-
cause the maximum available laser beam power was re-
stricted to 2 kW, it was not possible to carry out welding
with cold wire supply. In addition, the distortion had to be
limited to a minimum because of the structure. The base
material was once again AlMg1SiCu and SG-AlSi5 with a
wire diameter of 1.2 mm was used as the filler material.
The welding speed was 1.8 m/min at a laser beam power
of 2 kW and a wire feed speed of 4.8 m/min. These measures
served to ensure the successful welding of the joint and the
utilisation of the process in the initial application, Fig. 11.
10 Concluding remarks
The utilisation of low-energy short arcs during
laser/GMA hybrid welding yields numerous advantages.
By detecting the short circuit and simultaneously lowering
Welding and Cutting – editorial preview
Issue 2 (March/April)
• Thermal spraying: materials and applications
• Examples of applications in welding and cutting technology
Closing date for advertisements and editiorial contributions:
24 February 2014
The editorial preview is subject to modifications.
For information about advertising, please contact:
Iris Jansen, DVS Media GmbH, Düsseldorf/Germany, e-mail iris.jansen@dvs-hg.de
For information about submitting editorial contributions, please contact:
Anja Labussek, DVS Media GmbH, Düsseldorf/Germany, e-mail anja.labussek@dvs-hg.de
Penny Edmundson, TWI, Cambridge/UK, e-mail penny.edmundson@twi.co.uk
Welding and Cutting 13 (2014) No. 1
Fig. 11 • the short circuit current, the process stability can be raised
Transverse section considerably compared with a laser/GMA hybrid process
(top) and hard- with a conventional arc. Moreover, it is possible to almost
ness traverse
completely suppress the inclination of the short arc to
transverse to the
spatter. The energy input into the components to be joined
weld on a double
can be lowered substantially by utilising these modern
tube structure
(laser/GMA hybrid arc types. This provides advantages precisely in the case
weld with a of large-volume components made of thin sheet since it
“coldArc“; materi- has been proven that the distortion can be lowered. Fur-
al: AlMg1SiCu). thermore, it is possible, with hardenable aluminium alloys,
to reduce the otherwise customary softening of the heat-
affected zone and the weld to a minimum.
Literature
[1] Reisgen, U., et al.: Erweiterung des Laser-MSG-Hybrid-
schweißens durch das HyDRA-Schweißverfahren. Proceed-
ings 8. Int. Konf. Strahltechnik. Self-publiction SLV Halle,
Halle 2010.
[2] Olschok, S.: Laserstrahl-Lichtbogen-Hybridschweißen von
Stahl im Dickblechbereich. Diss., TH Aachen 2008. Shaker-
Verlag, Aachen 2008, ISBN 978-3-8322-7289-0.
[3] Fuhrmann, C.: Laser-Lichtbogen-Hybridschweißen bis zu
Blechdicken von 25 mm. Diss., TH , Aachen 2007. Shaker-
Verlag, Aachen 2007, ISBN 978-3-8322-6236-5.
[4] Cramer, H., and M. Dudziak: Overview of modern arc
processes and their material transfer in the case of gas-
shielded metal-arc welding. Welding and Cutting 11 (2012),
No. 5, pp. 319/25.
[5] Steiners, M.: Lichtbogenfügen von beschichteten Stahl-
blechen an Aluminiumlegierungen. Diss., TH Aachen 2011.
Shaker-Verlag, Aachen 2011, ISBN 978-3-8440-0021-4.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The IGF Project 16.671 B / DVS Number 06.072 of the research as-
sociation “Forschungsvereinigung Schweißen und verwandte Ver-
fahren des DVS, Aachener Straße 172, 40223 Düsseldorf“ was, on
the basis of a resolution of the Lower House of the German Parlia-
ment, promoted by the German Ministry of Economic Affairs and
Energy via AiF within the framework of the programme for the
promotion of joint industrial research and development (IGF).
Issue 3 (May/June)
• Automation using robots and sensors for joining and cutting
• Adhesive bonding technology
• Special joining processes
Closing date for advertisements and editorial contributions:
7 April 2014
57
 PUBLICATIONS

Technical journal for welding and allied processes

Books
The art of welding
By William Galvery and Ryan Friedling-
haus. 256 pages with numerous figures and
tables. Industrial Press, South Norwalk, Con-
necticut/USA 2013. Price US-Dollar 24.95
(approx. Euro 18.50)
Joining metals together through welding
plays a large part in the manufacturing of
thousands of products. It is also a tool used
by do-it-yourselfers and hobbyists to create
projects and make repairs around the home.
This original book is geard towards anyone
who wants to learn the basics of welding for
their own uses. It provides complete, in-
depth coverage of the equipment and tech-
niques used in the most popular welding
processes: oxyacetylene, stick, MIG and TIG
welding. The authors also provide a chapter
on soldering and brazing and another on
plasma cutting. A final chapter offers weld-
ing tips and techniques for dealing with
common problems found around the home
welding shop. The book is particularly suit-
able for anyone who wants to learn welding
to make repairs or as part of a hobby, in-
cluding experienced welders who will find
a number of tips and procedures to improve
their welding technique.
Pipeline rules of thumb handbook
By E. McAllister. 8th edition. 806 pages
with numerous figures and tables. Gulf Pro-
fessional Publishing, Oxford/UK 2013. Price
approx. Euro 100.–
Presented in easy-to-use, step-by-step
order, the book is a quick reference for day-
to-day pipeline operations. Along with over
30% new or updated material regarding
codes, construction processes and equip-
ment, the new edition continues to offer
hundreds of “how-to“ methods and handy
formulas for pipeline construction, design
and engineering and features a multitude of
calculations to assist in problem solving, di-
rectly applying the rules and equations for
specific design and operating conditions to
illustrate correct application, all in one con-
venient reference.
Publisher:
DVS – German Welding Society, Düsseldorf/Germany, in
collaboration with The Welding Institute, Cambridge/UK
and the Institut de Soudure, Paris/France
Publishing House:
DVS Media GmbH,
PO Box 10 19 65, D-40010 Düsseldorf,
Aachener Straße 172, D-40233 Düsseldorf,
Telephone +49 (0) 211 1591-0,
Telefax +49 (0) 211 1591-150,
E-Mail media@dvs-hg.de,
Internet www.dvs-media.info,
Management: Dirk Sieben
Editorial Board: Dipl.-Ing. Dietmar Rippegather
(managing editor/responsible),
E-mail dietmar.rippegather@dvs-hg.de,
Anja Labussek, Rosemarie Karner,
Telefax +49 (0) 211 1591-350
Penny Edmundson (WJS News),
E-mail penny.edmundson@twi.co.uk
Frédérique Champigny (IS News),
E-mail f.champigny@institutdesoudure.com
UK Editorial Advisory Panel: Norman Cooper, Alan
Denney, Chris Eady (Chairman), David Millar, Dietmar
Rippegather, Dr. Paul Woollin
Advisory Board: Dipl.-Ing. K. P. Behrendt, Dr.-Ing. C.
Bruns, Prof. Dr.-Ing. H. Cramer, Prof. Dr.-Ing. K. Dilger, Prof.
Dr.-Ing. L. Dorn, Prof. Dr.-Ing. habil. U. Füssel, Dr.-Ing. P. Grö-
ger, Prof. Dr.-Ing. E. Haberstroh, Prof. Dr.-Ing. A. Hobbacher,
Dr.-Ing. T. Kannengießer, Dipl.-Ing. W. Kleinkröger, Dr.-Ing. H.
Krappitz, Prof. Dr.-Ing. B. Leuschen, Dr. C. Mayer, Dipl.-Ing. K.
Möhwald, Dr.-Ing. K. Nassenstein, Prof. Dr.-Ing. D. Paulinus,
Dipl.-Ing. C. Prinz, Prof. Dr.-Ing. C. Radscheit, Prof. Dr.-Ing. U.
Reisgen, Dipl.-Ing. E. Schofer, Dr.-Ing. F. Schreiber, Dr. sc.
techn. K.-R. Schulze, D. Sieben (CEO of the DVS Publishing
House), Dipl.-Ing. V. E. Spiegel-Ciobanu, Dr.-Ing. S. Trube,
Dr.-Ing. G. Wilhelm, Prof. Dr.-Ing. H. Wohlfahrt

Advertising: Iris Jansen (responsible),

Telephone + 49 (0) 211 1591-151
E-mail iris.jansen@dvs-hg.de,
Boris Hanisch, Telephone +49 (0) 211 1591-152,
E-mail boris.hanisch@dvs-hg.de.

For currently valid prices please see Price List

List of companies in the advertisement section No. 13, effective 1st January 2014

Berkenhoff GmbH Heuchelheim/Germany 53 Circulation: Carolin Heße,

Telephone +49 (0) 211 1591-159,
Alexander Binzel Schweißtechnik Busek/Germany Insert E-mail carolin.hesse@dvs-hg.de

DVS Media GmbH Düsseldorf/Germany IFC,IBC,28,33 Printing: D+L Printpartner GmbH, Bocholt/Germany

DVS-TV GmbH Düsseldorf/Germany BC Terms of Delivery: WELDING and CUTTING is published six
times a year. Members of the DVS (German Welding Society)
Mechafin AG Geroldswil, Switzerland 13 receive a discount on the regular subscription price. Subscrip-
tion is possible either directly through the DVS Media GmbH
or through your local bookstore. Single issues are available at
Orbitalum Tools GmbH Singen/Germany 9 a price of 20.50€ (plus shipment costs), the price for a one-
year subscription for print is 122.-€, online + print 160.-€
Polysoude S.A.S. Nantes, France FC plus shipment costs (22.-€ within Germany, 29.-€ abroad);
online 85.-€. Delivery by airmail is possible upon request.
Bernd Siegmund GmbH Grossaitingen/Germany 29
Membership of The Welding Institute includes the subscrip-
voestalpine Böhler Welding GmbH Wien/Austria 11 tion to WELDING and CUTTING.

Weldas Europe B.V. Bergen op Zoom/The Netherlands 20 The subscribers and/or the advertisers cannot assert any
compensation claims for a reduction in services due to
force majeure or to other circumstances for which the pu-
blishing house is not a fault (e.g. strike).

WELDING and CUTTING as well as all the contributions, fi-

gures and tables included in this journal are protected by
copyright. With the exception of the statutorily authorised
cases, any utilisation without the consent of the DVS
Media GmbH is punishable.

When the work is accepted for publication, the author

transfers to the publishing house the exclusive publishing
rights for the period until the copyright expires. This trans-
fer of rights relates, in particular, to the rights of the publi-
shing house to reproduce the work for commercial
purposes as a copy (microfilm, photocopy, CD-ROM or
other processes) and/or to include it in electronic or other
databases.

We do not accept any liability for manuscripts submitted

without solicitation.

ISSN 1612-3433
58 Schweißen und Schneiden 1/2012
Bundled DVS Technical Codes in the area of
Electron Beam Welding | Adhesive Bonding Technology | Rail Vehicle Construction
English Edition Volume 8
DVS Technical Codes
on Electron Beam Welding
1st Edition, September 2013
52 Pages
Order No.: 180009
Price: 18.90 EUR
Selected Translations Elaborated by Working
Group V 9.1 “Electron Beam Welding” of the
Technical Committee of the German Welding
Society – DVS
The documents cover the topics of “welda-
bility of metallic materials”, “case hardening”,
“x-ray protection”, “recommendations for the
cleaning of the joining zone”, “test procedures
for the quality assurance” and “wedge speci-
men for the joining zone”, “test procedures for
the quality assurance” and “”wedge specimen
for the verification of electron beam welds” as
well as fundamental principle for the “designing
of components” and “utilization of non-vacuum
electron beam welding”.
The publication should help to work more effec-
tively by using EB technology and improving the
quality of your products and to strengthen the
competitiveness of your company.
Including DVS 3201, DVS 3204, DVS 3205,
DVS 3210, DVS 3212, DVS 3213, DVS 3220,
DVS 3221
DVS Media GmbH • Aachener Straße 172 • 40223 Düsseldorf
T +49. (0)2 11. 15 91-161 • F +49. (0)2 11. 15 91-250 • media@dvs-hg.de • www.dvs-media.info
English Edition Volume 5
DVS Technical Codes
on Adhesive Bonding Technology
1st Edition, September 2013
32 Pages
Order No.: 180006
Price: 12.90 EUR
Selected Translations Elaborated by Working
Group V 8 “Adhesive Bonding Technology”
of the Technical Committee of the German
Welding Society – DVS
Three of the most important sets of rules relating
to adhesive bonding technology are presented
in this brochure and, for the urgent needs of in-
dustry, have been created in the working bodies
dealing with adhesive bonding technology on
the Technical Committee of DVS.
Including DVS 3310, DVS 3311, DVS 3320-1
English Edition Volume 6
DVS Technical Codes
on Rail Vehicle Construction
1st Edition, September 2013
80 Pages
Order No.: 180007
Price: 25.90 EUR
Selected Translations Elaborated by Working
Group A 7 “Welding in Rail Vehicle Construc-
tion” of the Technical Committee of the German
Welding Society – DVS
The technical codes included in this publication
were elaborated with the objectives of contri-
buting to harmonization in relation to the dimen-
sioning of rail vehicles and of proposing a rele-
vant, integrated set of rules.
DVS 1608 “Design and strength assessment
of welded structures from aluminium alloys in
railway applications” and DVS 1612 “Design
and endurance strength assessment of weld-
ed joints with steels in rail vehicle construction”
include notes for the configuration and stipula-
tions for the designing of welded structures as
well as a compilation of welded structure details
which are essential for rail vehicle construction.
The technical codes specify in more concrete
terms the requirements included in the DIN EN
15085 series of European standards “Railway
applications – Welding of railway vehicles and
components” in order to define weld perfor-
mance classes taking account of strength and
safety requirements.
Including DVS 1608, DVS 1612
 DVS-TV goes international

www.dvs-tv.de/international
English-language news programme and more from
the world of welding, cutting and coating technology.

w w w. d v s - t v. d e

DVS TV
Web TV for welding, cutting and coating technology

DVS-TV GmbH | Aachener Str. 172 | 40223 Düsseldorf | Telefon: +49 (0)211 1591-220 | Fax: +49 (0)211 1591-150 | E-Mail: info@dvs-tv.de