Hello again cyrus 07, the standards that I was referring to are documents that will provide the basis for the welding procedure that is used in the shop to make a particular weld in a particular welding situation, as different situations arise different procedures could be qualified for them as well. A (W)elding (P)rocedure (Q)ualification (R)ecord will provide proof that a particular welding procedure will meet the requirements for a specific type of weld application. A (W)elding (P)rocedure(S)pecification would detail the type of electrode, process(smaw, fcaw, gmaw, others), diameter of electrode, amps, volts, inches per minute of wire, preheat, interpass, postheat and any other special instructions to describe the welding process. Portions of the standard would describe in detail the acceptance criteria for completed welds, amount of reinforcement or lack of it that is acceptable, amount and depth of undercut that is allowable, and any other particulars that would either qualify the weld as being sound or reject it and require it's repair. These acceptance levels can be different depending upon the applicable code. I am hoping that I didn't screw up on this description, If I have, I apologize and it is very likely that others more knowledgable than me will set me straight and provide you with the correct answer. Best regards, aevald
cyrus, aevald is giving You good advice IMHO. You as a welder don't need to know the codes to the degree many of these guys do, and establishing the procedures will be "above Your pay grade", All You need to be able do is understand the terminology and be able to follow the procedures. If I am wrong about this I am sure they will let Us know....