Hello! Im filling my "AWS (CAWI/CWI/SCWI) Application for International Agent exams form" but I have a doubt in the numeral 7 Current Job. The Organization where I work build Structures like Bulidings, Bridges, Pressure Vessels and Heavy Mechanical Components, for many clients all by Welding. So in type of business says "check only one" What I have to check????
Thanks
Hello! I wonder if is obligatory to do a CWI seminar in order to take the CWI examination test? There is a policy aobut it? For example, If I take the seminar on Sept 2012 and I didn´t take the test, Have I do the seminar again if I´ll take the test on Nov 2013 ?
Thanks
Interesting discussion, i.e., what characteristics, experience, and education makes a good CWI.
I believe a few important characteristics that influence an inspector's probability of success are a sense of honesty, ethics, and a desire to learn. A lapse in honesty or ethic conduct can cut short the inspector's career. There is good reason why QC1 contains a Code of Ethics.
Being a good welder is no assurance the inspector will recognize potential problems involving different design assumptions. Each project involved different approaches in the design. The design will influence how the welded connection will respond to different load conditions and the sensitivity of a weld to specific discontinuities. AWS D1.1, ASME B31.3, NAVSEA welding standards, etc. have different acceptance criteria that are dictated by the nature of the loads and the criticality of the welds involved.
Being a good welder is no assurance the individual understands problems related to metallurgy. Welding metallurgy, founded on traditional metallurgy, has certain quirks that must be taken into account when inspecting welds. The inspector that has a good understanding of the fundamentals of welding metallurgy can better fathom the problems that are inherent to certain alloy systems. They will better appreciate the fact that different alloy systems respond differently to heating and cooling. They recognize what holds true with one alloy system isn't necessarily true for another. For instance, carbon and high strength low alloy steels need to be preheated to reduce the cooling rate to mitigate the development of unfavorable microstructures and increased sensitivity to delayed cold cracking. The same is not true with heat treatable aluminum alloys or copper-based alloys.
Welding inspection is a multi-discipline occupation. The ideal CWI would be an individual with unshakable honesty, staunch sense of ethics, someone with a good foundation in engineering principles, i.e., statics, mechanics, strength of materials, math, physics, and chemistry, a good understanding of metallurgy, experience as a welder, and plenty of diversified experience to temper those subjects learned in the classroom. Last, but not least, as suggested by my good friend Brent (with an "R"), the inspector cannot be afraid to go where the work is. The work may be across town, across the country, or on the other side of the world. The work may involve looking at welds under laboratory conditions or within the bowels of a grease encrusted ancient mechanical monster.
Few individual possess all the traits, the education, or the experience upon entering the field of welding inspection, but each can strive to learn more about the industry. It is my belief that it is imperative for the welding inspector to be a curious person that is willing to learn, to expand his or her horizons, to become more proficient in those subjects he or she is unfamiliar with. That philosophy is why I supported the concept of PDHs and continuing education as a means of meeting the requirements for CWI renewal. I would rather see an individual demonstrate a desire to expand his or her capabilities in subjects related to the CWI functions rather than simply demonstrate the ability to correctly use a fillet weld gage or dial caliper.
