Where welding goes wrong - flaws, reasons and consequences

This is a Teesside Branch event organised and run by the Teesside Branch Committee on behalf of Branch members. Other members are very welcome to register for this talk. Non-Members are also welcome to join us.

(Please note, this is a new date due to the unforeseen bank holiday for the Queen's funeral on the original date, 19th September.)

Overview: Welding is a critical fabrication process and, if not correctly applied and controlled, can lead to unacceptable flaws in the finished and operating structure that can render it unfit for purpose as design intended. These situations can be very costly to rectify and may also lead to expensive legal proceedings in order to determine liability. Unfortunately, the liability in these cases isn’t always straightforward. Whilst the product might have failed or be rejected around or in the weld area, there are many potential causes of this. The failure of the owner or purchaser to correctly specify the level of quality of welding required for service, the designer in neglecting to take account of critical environmental factors such as fatigue loading or corrosion, the supply of poor quality base material and/or the welding fabricator not carrying out the proper controls of welding or inspections to produce a fabrication that is fit for purpose, can all be potential causes.

This talk will cover some experience of the types of disputes related to welding that have occurred in recent years and that TWI has been involved with. Specifically in terms of how the failures in the welding process or otherwise were caused, how the liability was established and what were the consequences.

Speaker: David Howse

Speaker Biographies: David has over 30 years’ experience in arc welding. Prior to joining TWI in 1994, he worked in the Oil and Gas fabrication industry and, after completing a degree in Metallurgy at the University of Leeds, worked at British Steel as a Welding Engineer. He is currently employed at TWI carrying out welding engineering support and project management for Industrial Members of TWI across a broad range of industrial sectors including the Oil and Gas, Power, Construction and Transport industries. David has authored over twenty publications in on the subject of welding with arcs, lasers and hybrid laser arc processes.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD): Attending this event supports your professional development.  You can claim 2 CPD points per hour for this event.  As a member of the Welding Institute you can record your CPD activity online from your membership portal.

Additional Information:

• Registration for this event will close 24 hours before the event starts.
• Live event only
• Registration details will be shared with our Branch volunteers in order to facilitate the running of the event.