INTRODUCTION
The welding inspector is a person with the necessary education, experience, qualifications and certifications to determine if the welds and weldment meets the requirements of the contract documents. The welding inspector may represent or work for federal, state, and city governments, owner of the weldment, owner’s representative, insurers, purchasers, manufacturers, fabricators, contractors, erectors, engineering firms etc.
FUNCTION
The basic responsibility of the welding inspector is to ensure that welds and weldments conform to established requirements in codes, standards, specifications, drawings, procedures, instructions and other contract documents. The welding inspector ensures conformance through strategic planning, surveillance, verification, interpretation, inspection, testing, measuring, auditing, witnessing, reviewing, approving, rejecting, evaluating, checking, sampling, documenting and reporting.
EDUCATION
Welding inspectors come from a variety of previous industrial backgrounds and educational levels. However, to become welding inspectors, as a minimum they must take courses in basic mathematics, metric conversions, report writing and ethics. Welding inspectors also take introductory courses in:
- Welding inspection and quality
- Codes, standards and specifications
- Welding metallurgy
- Welding and cutting processes
- Destructive and nondestructive testing
- Welding symbols
- Welding discontinuities and defects
- Welding safety
- Engineering drawing reading and interpretation
- Welding terminology and definition
- Welding joint geometry