Fri, 12 June, 2020
“Missing weld records? Welds carried out outside of specifications? TWI can help with on-site weld assessment.”
During the fabrication of large components containing many welds, it may not always be practical to record welding parameters and ancillary operations (e.g. preheat, post-weld heat treatment) systematically, or maintain inspection reports diligently. Even if an organisation is confident in the quality of the welds, missing or incomplete paperwork makes it difficult to prove compliance to the appropriate standards or contractual requirements. This can cause costly conflict and delays.
One solution that TWI has successfully implemented for several clients in the Oil and Gas, Shipbuilding, Defence and Rail sectors with similar problems is an on-site weld assessment. This involves mobilisation of skilled personnel to conduct on-site non-destructive assessments of a sample of welds, using a range of techniques such as liquid penetrant testing, phase array ultrasonics, on-site metallographic replication and portable hardness testing. The results of assessments are reviewed by a multi-disciplinary team of welding engineering, non-destructive testing and welding metallurgy experts, against various BS, EN, ASME, API, NDV codes and standards.
Based on these findings, TWI provided an expert opinion on the compliance of these non-conforming welds, helping our clients gain technical visibility for the appropriate decisions for their business.