Hello Steve;

It is not surprising that the engineers designing the electronics are not familiar with the welding requirements. Their focus is on the electronics. They are less concerned with the nuts and bolts that hold everything together. Their minds are awash with thoughts of diodes, resistors, random access memory, microchips, and relays. Welding electrodes, welding processes, or groove details are not even part of their though process, that is, not until the nightmares begin.

"Owners" buying the equipment usually specify the welding requirements in the purchase order. The owner will specify the welding standards, painting requirements, and the materials of construction, etc. for the specific project being built under that contract. The client, i.e., the designer/manufacturer, has to revamp their systems to comply with the owner's requirements. The bottom line is that even if the client has developed welding procedures for similar jobs in the past, they may not be applicable for the current project.

AWS may have a standard that covers the type of welding involved, but the owner still has the prerogative of selecting the standard that they feel meet their needs. As an example; by selecting AWS D1.1 the WPSs developed may be prequalified, thus no actual testing is required before initiating production. As an owner, it may be decided that prequalification is not acceptable or the materials used may not be prequalified. Thus the owner may elect to specify a different welding standard. Again, it is the prerogative of the owner to do so.

Personally, I like it that way. Their approach keeps me gainfully employed. Usually I get the call after the customer/owner has blown a gasket because the designers are clueless about welding. The client's pain is severe. They seek immediate relief from the nightmares and because the pain is so severe the price of relieving the pain is not high on their list of importance. As one of my clients said to me, “Al, that machine produces more than a million dollars a day of revenue. Your job is to keep it running for the next five years. What you charge and what it cost for the airline ticket that got you here is not important. We simply don’t care what it costs to keep you here if you can keep that machine running for the next five years.”

I want more customers with that attitude. I’ll let the customers that need a rock bottom quote seek their best price from the others in our line of work. The one thing that I learned in my MBA program is that doing business does not mean you have to be the provider with the lowest price. Why work 2000 hours a year for $25/hour if you can work 1000 hours a year at $150/hour? Individuals that sell their services for the lowest price are typically viewed as being less qualified than the individual that charges a higher price. The customer that insists on the lowest cost is usually the customer that demands the most time. In other words, they provide the lowest return on the investment. They are the clients you don’t need because they will dump you like a load of burning coal as soon as someone with a lower price shows up. They do not value the services you provide.

The bottom line ends with a couple of questions. The first question is "Do you have the knowledge and back ground needed to provide the pain relief your prospective client needed?"

The second question, "Did the prospective client tell you you’re pricing was too high or they didn't have confidence you could relieve their pain?"

And the last question, "Who suggested they seek help from a local consultant that may not be as qualified as you are to provide the pain relief they seek?"

Best regards - Al