Tig training course and Mig codings

[monkey boy]

Hi all,I'm looking to spend some money on myself to improve my employment prospects.
I have been mig and arc welding for the past 15 years or so,I kind of picked it up as I went so no qualifications or formal training.
It would seem to move onwards and upwards from my current employer I need some mig codings and some basic tig knowledge.
Does anyone have any info and experiences on companies that could provide these courses,costs etc in the south of England
All help much appreciated
CHEERS AL

 

[Wedg1e]

The Welding Institute, Cambridge?

 

[backpurge]

The Welding Institute are good but expensive, try your local coleges first, also look to see if there are any private welder training centres nearby.
Getting coded is well and good but obviously you will need to be taking a test that is relevant to the industry you want to work in.
If you have access to equipment and material there is no reason you couldn't knock up a test piece and get a local test house to examine it in accordance with EN287/ASME IX etc and issue a cert, shop around for best prices, you don't want to be paying more than £150 for a MIG fillet test

 

[monkey boy]

Thanks for the help fellas.
Looking to move into structural steel industry.so would I be looking for 287 coding??Not really sure how it all works.
AL

 

[backpurge]

Al
We do a lot of welder approval testing for structural steel companies, most people tend to go for a 3 run fillet on 10mm plate in the PB (horizontal/vertical) position.

 

[Delgado]

Al
We do a lot of welder approval testing for structural steel companies, most people tend to go for a 3 run fillet on 10mm plate in the PB (horizontal/vertical) position.

Really? Not that I'm doubting you, but I would have thought that an overhead fillet (PD) would have been the more popular option as it covers you for all positions except vert down?

 

[backpurge]

You are 100% right, PD does give more coverage, however if people are doing vertical up welding we would always advise them to take a vert up test as an overhead weld bears no relation whatsoever to vertical up welding, in fact I would go as far as to say PD has more in common with PB

In answer to Al's question though, I suggested what I did as he was asking about MIG/MAG welding so I assumed he was looking at working in a structural steel fab shop, most site work is MMA, in fab shops positional welding is rare as the components are turned into either PA or PB position for welding to facilitate easier/faster fabrication

 

[Delgado]

You are 100% right, PD does give more coverage, however if people are doing vertical up welding we would always advise them to take a vert up test as an overhead weld bears no relation whatsoever to vertical up welding, in fact I would go as far as to say PD has more in common with PB

I agree, Vert up is completly different and I agree that it is worth testing seperatly, I was just suprised that PB was the most common test that people/companies want done, I would have thought that you'd get sent alot of experienced guys through that were just looking to test out for "that piece of paper that says they can weld" as it were, with the extra coverage being a bonus if the need ever arised to use it.

In answer to Al's question though, I suggested what I did as he was asking about MIG/MAG welding so I assumed he was looking at working in a structural steel fab shop, most site work is MMA, in fab shops positional welding is rare as the components are turned into either PA or PB position for welding to facilitate easier/faster fabrication

Nothing like having a radio controlled gantry crane to make them lumps of metal dance

Anyway, sorry for hijacking your thread a bit Al

The college of northwest london is pretty close to you, they had a new training facility built and kitted out with new plant a couple of years ago, and do all sorts of different training and codings, perhaps give them a ring?

 

[stuvy]

Nothing to do with me but i found this earlier,

http://www.coventryweldingworkshop.co.uk/

 

[backpurge]

I agree, Vert up is completly different and I agree that it is worth testing seperatly, I was just suprised that PB was the most common test that people/companies want done, I would have thought that you'd get sent alot of experienced guys through that were just looking to test out for "that piece of paper that says they can weld" as it were, with the extra coverage being a bonus if the need ever arised to use it.

Good point and I can see where you're coming from but the idea of the tests are that they are representative of what is actually being done in production.

I try and discourage compaies from having their guys take tests that are far more difficult than what they are doing on a daily basis as it puts undue pressure on the guys who are sometimes wound up enough about it to start with