Page 214 - Welding of Aluminium and its Alloys

Welding procedure and welder approval 197

Approval testing for a butt (groove) weld is by bend testing although this
may be replaced by radiography – it is permitted to use the first production
weld made by the welder for this approval. Qualification for a fillet weld is
by macro-examination and fracture testing.
The approval is valid for a period of six months. Provided that the welder
welds with the relevant process within this six month period the approval
can be extended indefinitely unless there is any reason to question the
welder’s competence.

10.3.3 BS EN 1418 welding personnel – approval testing
BS EN 287 Part 2 covers the approval of manual welders – BS EN 1418
has been produced to specify how operators of mechanised or automated
equipment should be approved.The full title of the specification is ‘Welding
Personnel – Approval testing of welding operators for fusion welding
and resistance weld setters for fully mechanized and automatic welding of
metallic materials’. The specification makes it clear that only those opera-
tors responsible for setting up and adjusting operating parameters during
welding need to be approved. Programmers of equipment who do
not actually operate the equipment in production are not required to be
approved, nor are resistance welding operators.
Definitions are given in clause 3 where:
• Automatic welding is defined as welding operations where all parame-
ters are pre-set and cannot be adjusted during welding.
• Mechanised welding is where all of the activities are performed auto-
matically but the welding variables can be changed during welding.
• Robotic welding is defined as automatic welding using a pre-
programmed manipulator.

The welding operators or resistance weld setters may be approved by one
of four methods:
• By performing the welding procedure test specified in EN 288 Part 3
or 4.
• By performing a pre-production or production welding test. This test
may be carried out on non-standard test pieces, on test pieces simulat-
ing production or on actual production items that have been identified
as test pieces prior to welding. Testing is to the requirements of EN 288
Part 8.
• By taking actual production items for testing. As in the point above
testing is to the requirements of EN 288 Part 8.
• By performing a function test. In this the operator/resistance weld setter
is required to know the relationship between parameter deviations and