The 5 W’s of a Certified Welding Inspector (CWI)
By Joel Armstrong

Who Can Be a CWI?
Anyone can
sit for the exam, as long as you meet the following educational and welding
based work experience criteria:
Education |
Welding
based work experience |
Bachelor
or higher degree in welding engineering or welding technology - (4) years
maximum substitution |
Minimum
of 1 years |
Associate
or higher degree in welding or non-welding related engineering technology,
engineering, or a physical science - (3) years maximum substitution |
Minimum
of 2 years |
Engineering/Technical
courses that can be applied to Bachelor or higher degree in Welding - (2)
years maximum substitution |
Minimum
of 3 years |
Trade/Vocational
courses - (1) year maximum substitution for successfully completed courses |
Minimum
of 4 years |
High
school diploma or approved high school equivalency diploma |
Minimum
of 5 years |
8th
grade level of schooling |
Minimum
of 9 years |
Less
than 8th grade |
Minimum
of 12 years |
As you can
see, you don’t have to have to be a rocket scientist or a degreed welding
engineer.
What Is a CWI, What Qualities Do They Have, and What Do They NOT Do
The American
Welding Society defines a CWI as someone who will:
·
Supervise
& train Associate Inspectors (CAWI)
·
Visually
inspect procedures and processes
·
Conduct
welding audits
·
Visually
inspect finished welded products
·
Create
and maintain welding records and documents
·
Communicate
information and findings
To
effectively perform these activities, CWI’s need to have the following level of
knowledge, understanding, and traits:
·
Professional
attitude
·
Ethical
·
Good
Physical Condition
·
Understand
and apply weld requirements
·
Inspection
Experience
·
Basic
Knowledge of Welding, Destructive & Non Destructive Testing (NDT)
·
Trainable
·
Safe
Work Habits
·
Ability
to complete and maintain accurate records
None of these items are less important than the others. An effective CWI will need to be all of these at all times.
People’s lives can be in the hands of a CWI for decisions they make. For that reason, it is just as important to
know what cannot be done as much as what can be done. Being a CWI does have some limitations that
need to be strictly followed. CWIs
cannot do the following:
·
Make
design calculations or weld size calculations. Only a Registered Professional Engineer can make these
·
Interpret
various NDT methods. CWIs can only make
visual inspections
·
Issue
public statements. Don’t volunteer
information to the public. If a public statement is required, get legal
advice. Fully expect this question on
the CWI exam!
Where Can a CWI Work
CWIs can
work in a variety of places such as an inspection, fabrication, construction,
engineering company, government agencies, education, or even for themselves as
a consultant. As long as there is
welding and fabrication in the world, there will always be a need for CWIs.
Why Become a CWI
There are
many reasons one would want to become a CWI, but one of the main reasons are
the employment opportunities available.
Becoming a CWI will open up many door within and outside of your current
organization. A teacher once told me,
“If you’re not trying to improve yourself, you’re only going to become
expendable.” Acquiring your CWI shows
people you have passed a difficult certification process and you now have some
basic understanding of welding and the associated codes.
When Can I Become a CWI
This has
changed in recent years. In the past,
you had to go to one of many testing sites located across the US on a specific
date during the year. While this
traditional method still exists, AWS now offers people the ability to take the
tests at selected testing centers any day they have openings. AWS is now partnering with the educational
testing service Prometric
to deliver computer based testing in more than 160 countries. To learn more about this process visit ww.aws.org/certification/page/computer-based-testing
If you’re
interested in the traditional method, you can go here
to see the current schedule for testing dates and locations.
Now that you know the who, what, where, why, and when your next question is going to be “How”. We’ll cover that Part 2 coming soon!
Posted on 06-17-2019

Joel Armstrong
Sales Engineer at Red Ball Oxygen Co. Inc.
Joel Armstrong is a Senior Certified Welding Inspector and has been in the welding industry since 1998. He can be contacted on LinkedIn.