The Southern African Institute of Welding (SAIW) has certified 82 companies and sites to date and has more than 30 additional companies that are interested in obtaining ISO 3834 certification before the end of the year to ensure all aspects of welding and fabrication are properly managed and controlled, SAIW qualification and certification manager Herman Potgieter tells Engineering News.

The SAIW is approved by the International Institute of Welding (IIW) as an authorised national body for the certification of companies in recognition of their compliance with the ISO 3834 requirement for welding quality management systems.

Companies and sites that are successfully certified by the SAIW will receive a certificate stating their level of qualification, says Potgieter.

Companies and sites can either be certified as compliant with ISO 3834 standard Part 2 for comprehensive quality requirements, ISO 3834 Part 3 for standard quality requirements or ISO 3834 Part 4 for elementary quality requirements.

The certification is based on the extent and significance of safety-critical products, the complexity of manufacture, the range of products manufactured and the different materials used, the extent to which metallurgical problems may occur and the extent to which manufacturing imperfections may affect a product’s performance.

Potgieter highlights that the certification of companies is valid for three years, with surveillance assessments undertaken yearly between the certification periods.

Companies are certified in the context of the IIW’s manufacturer certification system (MCS). The MCS uses the ISO 3834 standard as its basis for assessment.

The assessment process starts with a contract review to ensure that a company properly considered all aspects of orders and applies these throughout the full manufacturing and delivery cycle.

The certification assessment is a two-stage process. A readiness survey is carried out as a preliminary review of a company’s quality system, after which an assessment survey is conducted, which should lead to certification.

Potgieter explains that the readiness survey is especially useful, as a report on the results of the survey is issued by the certification body and, provided the company takes heed of problems identified, there is no reason why it should not achieve certification.

It is especially important for companies to be certified in accordance with the ISO 3834 standard, as it is often a requirement when bidding for international steel construction contracts. Being ISO 3834-certified is also a mandatory requirement for some of the pressurised equipment covered by the Pressure Equipment Regulations under the occupational Health and Safety Act, which is also increasingly becoming a requirement of major end-users, notes Potgieter.

Meanwhile, individuals that are certified by the SAIW will receive a certificate or diploma (for IIW courses) once they successfully complete course examinations.

Competent persons, which include the competent persons (CPs) for in-service inspection of pressure equipment and inspectors of pressurised equipment (IPEs) during manufacturing will be certified only once they have successfully completed a theoretical training course and a period of practical training.

The practical training varies between one and five years, depending on the applicant’s level of education.

CPs and IPEs will be certified for nine years, with renewal of the certification required every three years.

Meanwhile, the South African Qualification and Certification Committee nondestructive testing (NDT) certification is performed in accordance with the ISO 9712 standard for qualification and certification of NDT personnel. It requires the candidate to successfully pass qualification examinations consisting of general, specific and practical papers.

Candidates will also have to provide valid vision acuity records from a licensed optometrist and obtain suitable practical experience relating to the method and techniques for which certification is required.

Potgieter explains that the experience required is linked to the method and the level of qualification and varies between one month for any Level 1 qualification and up to nine months for a Level 2 qualification. The experience requirements for Level 3 certification are related to the tertiary qualification of the individual and this certification represents the highest qualification within the ISO 9712 system. 

NDT personnel certification is valid for ten years, but must be renewed after the fifth year.