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WELDING PROCESS IMPROVEMENTS & AUDITS
INDUSTRY FACT: POOR WELDING EFFICIENCY = INCREASED COSTS AND LOWER QUALITY
Every company looks to increase productivity, improve quality and reduce costs and this can be achieved through improving the efficiency of your welding.
It all starts with knowing what actually needs to be improved in order for a company to see the benefit and this is where we excel with our audit review.
The HIFAB Services Audit Approach
To understand where your inefficiencies are and where improvements can be made we start with our five-step audit.
This is a line in the sand of where you are today in the terms of your welding activities and is often the best way to identify improvements that can be made and your returns on the efficiency gains provided.
HIFAB 5-STEP AUDIT MODEL (hover over to learn more)
STEP
1
The skill level of the welder is an important factor in quality welds.
This is particularly true of manual welding:
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GTAW (Tig)
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GMAW (Mig)
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FCAW (Fluxcore)
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MMAW (Stick)
A large portion of welders in industry today “know how to weld” but are missing key knowledge to help them to weld more efficiently…… In other words they are “missing gaps of information”
WELDING
SKILL
STEP
2
Understanding what the general maintenance of your welding equipment is an often-overlooked part of the entire welding process.
Knowing how to identify and trouble shoot equipment issues can be a critical part in improving welding quality and productivity.
EQUIPMENT KNOWLEDGE
STEP
3
The type of welding process you choose greatly influences the quality productivity of the weld.
Each type of welding offer both advantages and disadvantages in terms of weld quality and productivity.
For instance, welding with the GMAW process can be subject to issues like spatter which generally indicates poor welding quality, but also costs the company money as it has to be cleaned.
TYPE OF WELDING PROCESS
STEP
4
An often-overlooked area for improving the quality/productivity of your welding process is using the most effective welding consumable for the application and task at hand.
To ensure you are getting the best efficiency – minimising material handling and post weld cleaning are fundamentals of improving the cost effectiveness of your welding.
It is also important to be aware of the range of industrial gases that are currently on the market so you select the right gas for the welding consumable and material type and thickness you are welding.
CONSUMABLE
& GAS SELECTION
STEP
5
Preparing material to weld in a consistent way is essential to minimise spending extra hours welding. Poor quality preparation will only add time to the welding process, this in turn is means the welding process is not being cost effective.
If components are prepared in a consistent manner, the productivity and quality of the welds are greatly improved, this allows the welder to weld in same manner repeatedly and not have to adjust for any variations.
Some of the areas to look at are:
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Quality of fit up
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Conditions of surface material and external contaminants
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Edge preparation
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Tack size and location