Aws??

[beavertrapper24]

Hi guys I was wondering if I should get my AWS Certification. I just started working at John Deere as a mechanic and a year ago and i am the shop welder. I took a welding certification class in college the class is to prepare you to take your AWS certification test for stick welding my teacher said i would pass the test easily; and i was wondering if it is worth getting certified or would there be any benefits in getting certified. I weld anything from sheet steel to tooth bar several inches thick and everything in between.

[Jolly Roger]

I couldn't say as around here it's either ASME or API and nobody will accept AWS.

[Kangi]

Ask your boss, if a cert is required they probably will pay for it. I've held many certs and I've never had to pay for it myself.

[Hammack_Welding]

Are you working for a dealer or the actual John Deere company? If you are working for a dealer then I doubt if you will see any benefit from a certification considering the work you are doing. If it's the parent company then ask your boss what JD actually requires.

[David R]

If you want one, get it on your own then you will own it.

Make sense?

You are covered by your employer. If they want to take the liability some where else, they will hire out the welding. Not because you can't ,but to dump the responsibility on some one else.

David

[Supe]

I wouldn't bother. Any place that needs to hire you is going to test you on site, regardless of whether you have the card or not. Money better spent elsewhere.

[qaqc]

For the same price you would get charged to take the certification test, you could invest in your own knowledge and skill. Go to a used technical bookstore and buy a copy of AWS D1.1 (1996-2006) they are cheap. Read chapter 4 part B. This will explain everything that is required for becoming certified to AWS. Your foreman can perform the testing (bend test only). This is all that is required. No need to go anywhere or test in front of someone special. The only other issue you might see is the requirement for a WPS. Chapters 3 and 4 covet this.

[gordfraser]

It's not as good as having a WI witness your test and do the report.
but it is better than nothing
I just did my D1.1 structural plate unlimited and the cost of me doing it at home was about 2/3rds of the cost of me doing it at there place witha WI as a witness (talking about the fees for the tests here, not including the travel). So i went up and did the propper one. If i keep up with the 6 monthly mantenance forms then i can keep for years. Adverage yearly cost = worth it.

If i had done the home test (with my buddy as a witness and no real need to have it absolutely verticle.......). Then i got a decent structural job I'd probably have to do the real test then anyway.
G

[qaqc]

Nowhere in the code does it require that a welding inspector needs to witness the test. It would achieve the same certification as you got. There is no "proper one" in regards to witnessing.



If i had done the home test (with my buddy as a witness and no real need to have it absolutely verticle.......). Then i got a decent structural job I'd probably have to do the real test then anyway.

If you had done the above than you would be dishonest and your cert would be no good. But yes, typically anyone who hires you will have you take a test for them.

[Engloid]

As mentioned, AWS doesn't require a CWI, but it doesn't say you can just do it yourself or have a buddy witness it without any training on what they're doing.

It seems that a JD maker or dealer would want to cover their butt by having you certified. If somebody gets hurt as a result of your weld failing, they would be asked to show what they did to ensure that you were able to do the job. If their methods of determining your abilities don't satisfy a court, they could be in big financial trouble....much bigger than the cost of a test that is "endorsed" by the AWS. It's cheap insurance.

I guess you figured so far that I wouldn't reccomend your doing it unless your employer pays for it. However, if it will help you get a better job, go for it. Some companies think that if you're certified, you're worth a lot more. If you decide to do a cert test and your company doesn't pay for it, I'd be tempted to not even tell them about it or provide them the documentation. If they don't pay, don't let them play.

Getting it "on your own," as opposed to letting a company pay for it doesn't make any difference except for one costs you money. An AWS certification is YOURS, and doesn't belong to the company. As long as you keep up the maintenance and records, you can carry it with you from job to job.

[gordfraser]

if a company paid you to test then i think that they would have a claim on it.
a lot would depend if you got given the cert or if they kept it.

I'm in a strange situation where i do smallstructural jobs, some more involved than others, from time to time and i think if i didnt get the cert myself (i work for myself) then if an engineer or whoever had a job for me and i didnt have the cert then they would just get someone already certified in to do it (from further away).

I am in a remote location.

the code doesnt say that it has to be witnessed by a WI, but it is kept in your notes from your test, who witnessed it and what their qualification was. Along with anything unusall that occured. ie. excessive grinding for example.
Thats what my WI said to me anyway.

Shurly theres a WI out there that can varify.

I know i would have rathered weld mine at my own shop with familiar tools....
IF the result was going to be identicle

G

[Engloid]

Originally Posted by gordfraser

if a company paid you to test then i think that they would have a claim on it.

If they pay for it, the inspector should provide them a copy of the papers.

Originally Posted by gordfraser

a lot would depend if you got given the cert or if they kept it.

It's not like a drivers license, you can copy it so that you and the company both have one.

Originally Posted by gordfraser

I'm in a strange situation where i do smallstructural jobs, some more involved than others, from time to time and i think if i didnt get the cert myself (i work for myself) then if an engineer or whoever had a job for me and i didnt have the cert then they would just get someone already certified in to do it (from further away).

That's very possible. They may like the added assurance that you know what you're doing. Of course it is like a drivers license, in that it only proves that you did something right one time...not that you will every time. That's what RT, UT, MT, VT, and UT are for.

Originally Posted by gordfraser

the code doesnt say that it has to be witnessed by a WI, but it is kept in your notes from your test, who witnessed it and what their qualification was. Along with anything unusall that occured. ie. excessive grinding for example.
Thats what my WI said to me anyway.

Somebody correct me if my memory is failing, but...
The code doesn't say that the inspector has to be a CWI, but it does say that the inspector has to witness the test. You can't just weld up a coupon and mail it off for bending (or whatever tests have to be done). In other words, a person can be deemed an inspector without being certified by the AWS.

Originally Posted by gordfraser

Shurly theres a WI out there that can varify.

I'm a CWI, as are several others here. However, I'm a bit unsure of exactly what your question is or if we've answered it. If we haven't, please clarify it a bit.

Originally Posted by gordfraser

I know i would have rathered weld mine at my own shop with familiar tools....
IF the result was going to be identicle

The results don't have to be identical, only acceptable. You could likely find a CWI that will come to your facility and witness the test, for some amount of money.

[gordfraser]

Puzzeled?
So who should witness it?
If it isn't a WI then it might as well be your beer buddy as how are you going to show their qualifcations?
Or am I missing somthing?

To the OP
Sounds like you want a cert.
If I were you and my boss wouldn't put me through it then I'd go for it myself and not tell him.not right away anyhow.
Gives a little boost.

G

[Engloid]

Originally Posted by gordfraser

To the OP
Sounds like you want a cert.
If I were you and my boss wouldn't put me through it then I'd go for it myself and not tell him.not right away anyhow.
Gives a little boost.

G

If the company doesn't foot the bill for it, you may want to tell them you did it, but I'd refuse to provide them a copy of the documentation unless they paid for it and/or gave me a raise.

[gordfraser]

Nicely put engloid