"WELDCOME TO THE WORLD'S GREATEST WELDING FORUM of THE AWS Welder2
!!!It all depends to which code or standard you are referring to... According to the AWS there's much to be clarified when someone talks about certifying their welders and here's what they mean according to this white paper from the AWS:
"Welder Qualification vs. Certification and AWS Certified Welders (CW)
There is much confusion about the difference between qualification and certification and many individuals and institutions think that “certification” of welders is required by welding codes.
Nowhere in any welding code (AWS D1.1, ASME Section IX (and others), API 1104, etc.) is there a requirement for “certification” of welders. All codes require “qualification” of welders by performance and testing of a weldment on a specific material using a specific welding process, test position, etc. following a Weld Procedure Specification (WPS).
The record of the test results, known as the Welder Qualification Test Record (WQTR) is the essential documentation (signed by a qualified or certified inspector) required for a welder to be deemed qualified to weld in production according to a code.
If certification is desired, a wallet card can be issued that attests to qualification of the cardholder in the process, materials, positions, etc. permitted by the code to which they were tested. Thus, the certification of someone is merely the verification, by the issuance of a certificate or card, that the welder is qualified and to what he is qualified. Since most codes also require continuity (welding in the process qualified at least once on the last six months) to maintain qualification, maintaining qualification is dependent on documenting that activity.
Only candidates who go through our Accredited Test Facilities (ATF) get AWS welder certifications. After the candidate takes his/her test at an ATF, the ATF conducts visual inspections and the tests required (typically bend samples or X-ray). The resident or contract CWI inspects the weldment prior to sectioning, inspects all test samples, and then determines if the weldment passes the qualification criteria stipulated in the code. The WPS and WQT Rrecords are then sent to AWS where they are verified and filed, and a wallet card is issued. All AWS certifications are good for six months, at which time a welder is required to renew and prove his continuing welding activity for which he is qualified.
At no time is an independent CWI who is not contracted with an AWS ATF permitted to conduct qualification tests for issuance of an AWS CW (Certified Welder) card and
number. All AWS CW applicants must have undergone qualification test(s)at an AWS ATF by a CWI employed by the ATF or under contract with the ATF.
All legitimate AWS CWs are issued certification cards by AWS directly with an AWS-assigned CW number verifiable at our online Quick Check site at:
http://www.aws.org/certification/cw_search.htmlPeter Howe
Managing Director, Certification Technical Operations
American Welding Society"
I used to explain this using similar words to all my students at the beginning of every course I taught involving "Welder Certification" in order for them to know from the get go that whatever it is that you have been told previously regarding the definition of being a certified welder according to the AWS must be forgotten and you must accept this explanation in order to clarify any confusion that may exist amongst you who have a totally different understanding what being an AWS certified welder entails...
Needless to say that most of the time afterwards the administration would come up to me asking me why I would explain this to them and I would answer: "Because they deserve the right to know the facts regarding this topic and it's my duty to inform them of this!" I was never fired because of this but, it sure did cool my relations with the administrations wherever I was teaching at.
Respectfully,
Henry
