Facility Weld Engineer Requirements

[benberg]

Do ISO 9001, IATF 16949 or AWS (American Welding Society) specifications (e.g., D14.3) have any specific requirements as to who qualifies as a facility weld engineer?
Specs often list “facility weld engineer or qualified person”, in other words is it up to the organization to decide who is qualified?

Also, do all requirements have to be met by one person or is it common practice that the responsibilities are split?
We currently have a CWI (Certified Welding Inspector) on the shop floor that handles WPS (Welding Procedure Specifications) and PQR (Procedure Qualification Record) qualification, our mechanical engineers make sure that all new parts are covered by WPSs and our quality assurance tracks machine calibration.

Some background why a certified weld engineer would be overkill in our situation:
We are a contract manufacturer that produces thin gauged sheet metal components, so nothing I would consider structural.
We don’t have any design responsibilities & don’t produce any safety related parts.

Thanks
Ben

Added acronym definitions in edit - Miner

 

[Cari Spears]

Do ISO 9001, IATF 16949 or AWS specifications (e.g., D14.3) have any specific requirements as to who qualifies as a facility weld engineer?
Specs often list “facility weld engineer or qualified person”, in other words is it up to the organization to decide who is qualified?

Also, do all requirements have to be met by one person or is it common practice that the responsibilities are split?
We currently have a CWI on the shop floor that handles WPS and PQR qualification, our mechanical engineers make sure that all new parts are covered by WPSs and our quality assurance tracks machine calibration.

Some background why a certified weld engineer would be overkill in our situation:
We are a contract manufacturer that produces thin gauged sheet metal components, so nothing I would consider structural.
We don’t have any design responsibilities & don’t produce any safety related parts.

Thanks
Ben

Hi, Ben - welcome to the cove!

What specs often list "facility weld engineer or qualified person"? You referenced AWS D14.3/D14.3M - that's for mill cranes and other material handling equipment. Is that a specification that your customers call out for your thin gauge sheet metal components?

ISO9001 does not specify requirements for who qualifies as a facility weld engineer.

 

[benberg]

Hi Cari,

By saying "facility weld engineer or qualified person" I was trying to summarize/paraphrase a lot of customer specifications that I reviewed.
I think a better example is: "the facility weld engineer shall have A) an International Welding Engineer certification OR B) a bachelor's degree in welding/manufacturing and advanced knowledge in welding processes and specifications". I have a Master's degree in manufacturing, but if I have "advanced knowledge in welding processes and specifications" is somewhat subjective. I know enough to be dangerous in our day to day operations, but wouldn't want to do a weld special process audit alone.

Between our CWI and our engineering team I think we can cover all requirements. I was just hung up on the question on whether all responsibilities have to be met by one person.

And to answer your other questions: Yes, our customers require us to meet AWS 14.3 which is the "Specification For Welding Earthmoving, Construction, Agricultural, And Ground-Based Material Handling Equipment", but each customer has individual requirements as well. AWS 14.3 and all customer specs have in common that they offer different set of requirements that leave some room for interpretation.

That being said, does anyone have advice on how to brush up on "advanced knowledge in welding processes"? E.g. recommendations for classes, certifications, books, youtube channels etc.

 

[Enghabashy]

Related European requirements ; there's requirements stated in European directives & relevant harmonized ; if there's mandatory requirements ' the notified body should outline the obvious route for approval ; regarding AWS' maybe there's another route of approval
* the below STDs. Specs applied for WPS joints approval , including welders & operators ; maybe there's another similar route in AWS too :

 

[Enghabashy]

You can refer also for iiw /iis regarding certified engineer

 

[PaulJSmith]

That being said, does anyone have advice on how to brush up on "advanced knowledge in welding processes"? E.g. recommendations for classes, certifications, books, youtube channels etc.

Check with your local trade schools, community colleges, and weld supply shops. They will likely be your best resources for advanced welding knowledge.