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Up Topic Welding Industry / Inspection & Qualification / Federal Inspection requirements - pipeline
- - By jarsanb (***) Date 03-11-2015 15:04
Get ready all you pipeline inspectors. With these new requirements, the thin pool of qualified inspectors just got smaller. This should be a good door for the API 1169 inspection cert.

http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-03-11/pdf/2015-04440.pdf
Parent - By cwipg25 (*) Date 03-23-2015 02:59
Great find jarsanb. I was just looking at the 1169 requirements here recently.

What stood out to me in this new federal requirement is: "An operator must not use operator personnel to perform a required inspection if the operator personnel performed the construction task requiring inspection." The not being able to inspect one's own work requirement seems fair to me. I've been on several jobs where company welders inspect there own work prior to NDE by a third party. My boss let me know that company welders are off limits to me as a third party inspector. I believe PHMSA became aware of this pipeline norm during an investigation of some Northern Cali inspectors a few years back, and it's just now getting through legislation.

http://www.cpuc.ca.gov/NR/rdonlyres/94418A8E-29BB-4BF9-A1F6-C639C911C3B8/0/WeldingReport090512.pdf

Those company welders are a bit slow compared to the 798 hands.
- - By cwipg25 (*) Date 07-23-2015 00:15
Well I took that API 1169 test last week. I felt like I did pretty good, but I won't know for 6-8 weeks. It wasn't at all what I expected. I swear I think they must have multiple tests and that they assign a certain test depending on the experience that is listed on the application, because I don't recall getting a single question about welding. Reading the body of knowledge could have almost been skipped in my opinion. It seems like the only way to pass that test is to work on a pipeline as a utility inspector for a while.
Parent - - By CWI555 (*****) Date 07-23-2015 12:01
They are going to keep it up until they get as bad as the nuke industry.
Having said that, those who got in early on PDI and other nuke specific certs made piles of cash. Unfortunately it also eliminated a pile of folks who didn't have their doc packages in order. I can see that happening again for pipeline a mile away.
Parent - - By js55 (*****) Date 07-23-2015 14:03
Nothing can clusterfk an industry to bankruptcy faster and more efficiently than government.
Parent - By CWI555 (*****) Date 07-23-2015 17:57
It will definitely cost the industry. The new requirements won't come free.
Parent - - By CWI555 (*****) Date 07-23-2015 12:10
http://www.api.org/certification-programs/individual-certification-programs-icp/icp-certifications/api-577-exam-information
Don't forget that one. I can see it being required in the future. CWI covers it 'for now'.
Parent - - By In Tension (**) Date 07-24-2015 00:40
Wassup, ya'll.  New to the forum but I'll dive right in...
I took the API 577 exam last year in order to evaluate its difficulty level and see how it stacked up against the requirements of QC1.  The questions I was looking to answer were: can we consider it equivalent when assessing an inspector's qualifications?  Could it be effective as an in-house qualification test?  What does it MEAN to hold the 577 cert... is this going to be a thing now, or in the future?
I found the exam ridiculous. 
It was difficult but for all the wrong reasons.  It encourages a rote memorization of the 577 Recommended Practice instead of the critical thinking and language comprehension skills required to pass the CWI exam.  All of the answers were straight out of the RP and many were taken out of context.  There were a few questions that were asking for specific "look-up" style answers that just happened to be in RP 577, tables used as an example.  Should we memorize ASME Section II or just know how to look up and analyze that information?  Gimme a break.
I don't hold it in the same regard as the CWI and I don't think our employers or customers will either, not any time soon at least.  I understand that it's meant for a specific industry but even API doesn't recognize it as equivalent in many of their specs.  In fact, they state its non-equivalency right off the bat, in the scope of the document.  It was introduced as a supplement to the core API certs and they should have kept it that way... it's pretty worthless as a stand-alone.  So what's the point?  I'm not one to jump on the cash-cow conspiracy bandwagon (gotta regulate our qualifications somehow) but API is definitely a clear offender.  It shouldn't cost more to take a 70-question quiz with no clear value than it does to sit for the ASNT Level III (for example). 
If they want to go toe-to-toe with the CWI as an industry standard they will have to come up with a fully different scheme.  And we all know how long that takes.
Best Regards,
Noel
Parent - By welderbrent (*****) Date 07-24-2015 00:57
Noel,

WELCOME TO THE AWS WELDING FORUM!!

Great first post and description from your point of view.  Thanks for the input. 

I agree with a good many of your points.  There are many things that work well together in the area of certifications and others are an obvious misfit byproduct of the drive for more money to exchange hands. 

It's hard to BEAT the AWS/CWI certification in any field.  Having said that, there is always room for more training, education, knowledge, and skills after achieving that level.  But, some people are really proud of their standards and exams.  Evidenced by the price to take their tests. 

He Is In Control, Have a Great Day,  Brent
Up Topic Welding Industry / Inspection & Qualification / Federal Inspection requirements - pipeline

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