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EDWartens UK

Free course · Quality management

Welding Inspection and Mechanical QA/QC with NDT Basics

What a mechanical QA/QC inspector checks on a fabrication or piping job: the welding processes, joints and welding symbols, WPS, PQR and welder qualification, weld imperfections and visual inspection with gauges, destructive tests, penetrant, magnetic particle, radiographic and ultrasonic testing, material certificates and traceability, hydrotests, and the ITPs, NCRs and reports that record it all.

See the modules

Free to learn. Verifiable certificate £19 when you pass the final exam (optional, VAT included).

Level
Beginner
Modules
15
Video
21 hours
Price
Free

Outcome

What you will be able to do

Explain what QA and QC inspectors do and read an inspection and test plan; describe how SMAW, GTAW, GMAW, FCAW and SAW work and what to check on each; calculate heat input and carbon equivalent; read welding symbols to ISO 2553 and AWS A2.4; check a WPS against its PQR and a welder's qualification against the joint; name weld imperfections, their causes and their prevention; carry out visual inspection with gauges before, during and after welding; judge destructive test results; explain how PT, MT, RT and UT each find defects and what each misses; review material certificates and keep traceability; calculate a hydrotest pressure and check a test pack; and write inspection reports and NCRs. It prepares you to study for CSWIP 3.1 and AWS CWI; it is neither of those qualifications.

  • Read an inspection and test plan and say who inspects what, and where work stops at a hold point
  • Explain how SMAW, GTAW, GMAW, FCAW and SAW work and calculate heat input from the welding parameters
  • Read welding symbols to ISO 2553 and AWS A2.4, including the arrow side and other side conventions
  • Calculate carbon equivalent and decide when preheat, hydrogen control and PWHT are needed
  • Check a WPS against its PQR and a welder's qualification against the joint to be welded
  • Measure and report weld imperfections with gauges and judge them against given acceptance criteria
  • Explain what PT, MT, RT and UT each find and miss, and choose the method for a joint
  • Review an EN 10204 type 3.1 certificate, calculate a hydrotest pressure, and write the report and NCR

Software

None. A spreadsheet (LibreOffice Calc is free) helps with the weld log and the heat input, carbon equivalent and test pressure calculations.

Hardware

None. A welding gauge, a steel rule and a torch make the visual inspection practice more real if you have them, but every task can be done from the measurements and drawings in the notes.

Syllabus

15 modules

Each module has video lessons, notes and a short quiz. The final exam closes the course.

  1. 1The QA/QC inspector's job: codes, specifications and the ITP3 lessons
  2. 2Welding processes I: the arc, SMAW and GTAW4 lessons
  3. 3Welding processes II: GMAW, FCAW, SAW and consumables4 lessons
  4. 4Joints, weld terms and welding symbols (AWS A2.4 and ISO 2553)2 lessons
  5. 5Welding metallurgy for inspectors: carbon equivalent, preheat, cracking and PWHT5 lessons
  6. 6WPS, PQR and welder qualification4 lessons
  7. 7Weld imperfections: types, causes, prevention and repair3 lessons
  8. 8Visual inspection before, during and after welding, with gauges4 lessons
  9. 9Destructive testing: tensile, bend, impact, hardness and macro1 lesson
  10. 10NDT I: penetrant testing and magnetic particle testing4 lessons
  11. 11NDT II: radiography and ultrasonic testing4 lessons
  12. 12Materials, certificates and traceability5 lessons
  13. 13Pressure testing: hydrostatic and pneumatic tests and test packs2 lessons
  14. 14Reports, NCRs, the final dossier and preparing for CSWIP 3.1 and CWI3 lessons
  15. 15Final Assessment1 lesson

How it works

How this course works

  1. Watch the video lessonsOne module at a time, at your own pace.
  2. Take the module quizA short quiz at the end of each module shows what stuck.
  3. Keep your notesWrite in My notes beside each module and ask the trainer if you are stuck.
  4. Sit the final examPass it once you have been through the modules.
  5. Certificate, if you want oneOptionalPaid, and only after you pass. Anyone can check it online.

Certificate

An optional certificate when you pass

Learning is free. Pass the final exam and you can have a certificate for £19, including VAT, with a number employers can check online. It records that you completed a free online course; it is not a regulated qualification or a CPD certificate.

  • Your name, the course, its study time and your final exam score
  • A unique certificate number and a QR code to its verification page
  • Issued by Wartens Ltd; add it to your LinkedIn profile in one click
  • Pay now or after you pass: it is issued the moment you pass the final

How the certificate works

Sample certificate for Welding Inspection and Mechanical QA/QC with NDT Basics

Credits

Who made the lessons

The video lessons belong to their creators. EDWartens wrote the study plan, notes, quizzes and the final exam.

  • Welding and NDT

    the English CSWIP 3.1 lecture series: codes and standards, welding processes (SMAW, TIG, MIG/MAG and FCAW, SAW), consumables, welding symbols, weldability of steels, preheat, heat treatment, WPS and welder qualification, weld imperfections, repairs, the inspector's duties, gauges, destructive testing, ultrasonic testing, materials inspection and the exam pattern

  • HardHat Engineer

    the inspection and test plan, the order of precedence of technical documents, inward material inspection, EN 10204 certificate types, reviewing material test certificates and material traceability

  • Magnaflux

    the webinars on liquid penetrant fundamentals and the magnetic particle yoke, and the short demonstrations of visible dye penetrant and magnetic particle inspection

  • Anmol Birring

    angle beam ultrasonic testing of welds, radiographic sensitivity and IQIs, and single wall and double wall radiographic techniques

  • Weld.com

    reading welding symbols, and porosity, arc strikes and undercut

  • TimWelds

    MIG, TIG, stick and flux core welding compared

  • Hardhat Learning

    writing a WPS and PQR to ASME Section IX

  • GAL Gage

    the Hi-Lo welding gauge for internal misalignment

  • I4I Academy

    hydrostatic and pneumatic test pressure calculation for ASME B31.3 process piping

  • QualityEngineers Guide

    writing a nonconformance report and closing it

  • Welding inspection & NDT

    reviewing a welder qualification to ASME Section IX

  • Welding /NDT Inspection

    the basic hydrotest requirements for pipelines, piping and equipment

Questions

About this course

Who is this welding inspection course for?
Mechanical engineering graduates and diploma holders, welders and fitters moving into inspection, and QA/QC engineers new to welding, on fabrication, piping, pressure equipment, structural steel and oil and gas projects anywhere. No inspection experience is needed; school physics and arithmetic are enough.
Is the course free to learn?
Yes. Every module, the notes, the worked problems, the project and the final assessment are free, and the only software you might use is a free spreadsheet. The certificate is optional.
Does it prepare me for CSWIP 3.1 or AWS CWI?
It covers the knowledge both exams test, and module 14 sets out their formats as published at the time of writing, so you can study for either with a plan. It is not CSWIP 3.1 or AWS CWI and does not award either: CSWIP is awarded by TWI Certification and the CWI by the American Welding Society, each after its own exams, eyesight test and documented experience. Check cswip.com and aws.org for the current rules before you book.
Will it make me a qualified NDT technician?
No. It teaches how penetrant, magnetic particle, radiographic and ultrasonic testing work, what each finds and misses, and how to read their reports. Carrying out NDT and signing results needs practical training, an examination and certification under ISO 9712 or an employer's scheme to ASNT SNT-TC-1A, and radiography also needs radiation safety authorisation under local law.
Which codes and standards does it use?
It names them by family and teaches their structure in its own words: ISO 15614 and ISO 9606 with ASME Section IX for procedure and welder qualification, ISO 5817 and ISO 6520 for imperfections, ISO 2553 with AWS A2.4 for symbols, EN 10204 for material certificates, ISO 9712 with ASNT SNT-TC-1A for NDT personnel, and ASME B31.3, AWS D1.1 and API 1104 as the piping, structural and pipeline codes. Acceptance values in the problems are given as project data. On real work the code and edition in your contract govern, and a competent person decides.
Does it help with QC inspector jobs in the Gulf?
Gulf oil and gas and fabrication adverts usually ask for CSWIP 3.1 or AWS CWI, NDT Level II and, on Saudi Aramco work, the client's own approval. This course covers the knowledge behind those and the documents you will handle there: the ITP, weld log, NCR and hydrotest pack. Client approval is granted only by the client after its own review and test.
How long does the course take?
About 20 hours of video, notes and practice at your own pace, of which about 15 hours is video. The optional project takes about 10 hours more.
What certificate do I get?
An EDWartens certificate of completion, issued when you finish the modules and pass the 15-question final at 60 percent, with a number anyone can verify on our site. It is not a CSWIP, AWS CWI, ASNT, PCN or ISO 9712 certificate or a client approval, and EDWartens is not affiliated with TWI, the American Welding Society or ASNT.
What is the project?
You act as the fabricator's QC inspector on carbon steel process pipe spools built to ASME B31.3 in a shop near Rotterdam: the ITP, the WPS and welder review, a material certificate check, a visual inspection report, the weld log with its radiography sample, an NCR from statement to closure, and the hydrotest calculation and release. A fully worked pack for one line shows you the standard expected.

The Professional Module is five live days of Siemens PLC, HMI and SCADA with an instructor, then a resume session and a CPD certificate.

See the Professional Module