ASME renewal under section 1X

By 99205

Date 10-12-2010 05:51 Edited 10-13-2010 05:55

see last post

By joe pirie (***)

Date 10-12-2010 14:45

I am a member of steamfitters and a CWI. The union is refusing to accept the stamp of a cwi
simply because the welds were made for a non union contractor. When times are tough like now, my local allows it's members to work non union with no penalities or fines providing they sign an agreement telling the union where they are. Now when a welder returns to the local the secretary who handles welder
continuity refuses to accept a cwi stamped certification showing continuity or a form from company
supervision because it was done non union . I am going to take this issue up with the business manager today and if I can't get it resolved im notifying ASME and the AWS . In order to sign book one a welder must have a current weld cert from the UA the company they are dispatched to can require the welder to take any test they require to fullfill the requirements of the project. all im maintaing is that the union has no rights as to where how and for whom a weld was made to show continuity as long as the proper
continuity forms are filled out. The secretary has no idea what ASME section 1X is the inhouse
CWI is afraid to get involved and will go along with anything the union wants right or wrong.

By Shane Feder (****)

Date 10-12-2010 15:21

Joe,
I am from the Southern Hemisphere so not sure how your union / non union work is done but it seems very clear to me.
The welders qualification has expired.

QW-322.1 Expiration of Qualification. The performance
qualification of a welder or welding operator shall be
affected when one of the following conditions occurs:
(a) When he has not welded with a process during a
period of 6 months or more, his qualification for that process
shall expire; unless, within the 6 month period, prior
to his expiration of qualification
(1) the welder has welded with that process using
manual or semiautomatic welding, under the supervision
and control of the qualifying manufacturer or contractor
or participating organization(s) as identified in QW-300.3;
that will extend his qualification for an additional 6 months

The "qualifying manufacturer or contractor or participating organization" is the union hall.
Were the welds this welder performed while working for a non union contractor (it is totally irrelevant whether it was a union or non union contractor) under the supervision and control of the qualifying manufacturer or contractor or participating organization as noted above ?
No they weren't so the welders qualification has expired.
Regards,
Shane

By 803056

Date 10-12-2010 15:29 Edited 10-12-2010 15:38

First issue to address is the fact that neither the AWS nor ASME has any jurisdiction or interest in the matter you outlined. Neither AWS nor ASME certified you, so how is their interest served by getting involved with what appears to be an internal matter.

The second issue is whether the union accepts the continuity of the welder's certifications simply because a CWI has signed a continuity record. There is nothing, i.e., no governing document, that says the union, or anyone else for that matter, has to accept a signature attesting that you or anyone else has met the conditions required for continuity.

Just to make a point, the CWI stamp or a signature is not sacrosanct. I often reject welder performance qualifications as well as WPSs that have been signed by a CWI if the documentation is incomplete, incorrect, or I have personal knowledge of a tarnished reputation. As one person told me years ago when I was still burning rod for a living, “Your reputation arrived long before you did.” That cautionary advice is especially true for CWIs.

While your union may not officially sanction you for working with a nonunion contractor when times are slow (or good for that matter), I am sure they have long memories of who has worked for the competition. Good, bad, or otherwise, human nature is what it is. Even when times are tough, my advice would be work in a sector that is not associated with your trade, i.e., do not weld pipe. Welcome to the real world.

Shane has made a very good point. The nonunion contractor is not a participant in the union contractor's welder qualification program. When you went to work for an open shop contractor, it is no different than when a welder leaves one employer to work for another, i.e., past performance qualifications are null and void under Section IX. You have to requalify with the new employer, i.e., welder performance qualifications are not transferable from one employer to another. Your union's representative was absolutely correct in his position that your certifications have expired if you were out of the union's program for more than 6 months. As a CWI that works under the auspices of ASME, you should be very aware of that limitation. Stop your belly aching.

Best regards - Al

By dbigkahunna (****)

Date 10-13-2010 01:28

I agree with Shane and Al. Take union out of it and use two contractors. The one you are originally qualified with slows down and lets you go. You go to work for another contractor and work for them eight months then work picks back up at the first contractor. Regardless of who qualified you for the second contractor, continuity was broken with the first. The CWI stamp on your ASME papers are irrelevant as ASME does not recognize or require welder qualification papers be signed by a CWI. Or any other papers for that matter.
As a general rule your ASME qualifications are good for one organization and that is the one who generated the qualifications. A welder can have qualification papers from several contractors at the same time. They just have to be certain they know when they expire. And what is needed to keep them current.
However, requalification could be as simple as a production weld in the process. That would have to come from the QC responsible for welder qualification.