27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
Joining techniques in Shipbuilding
Assignment 2
Topic: prepare a literature survey report on
1. Quality Assurance and audit
[Link] of European, Japanese &
Indian Welding Process
By Darshan Suresh
Semester 7
Roll no: 90317014
27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
1. QUALITY ASSURANCE AND AUDITING
INTRODUCTION
Once the satisfactory design of a product or construction has evolved, and been detailed and
checked, there is a need to specify quality characteristics against which to produce. The
quality of manufactured products is frequently dependent upon the effectiveness of the
manufacturer’s control of fabrication, inspection and testing operations. In consequence,
manufacturers are responsible for instituting such controls over operation, processes and
checking, as are necessary to ensure that their products conform to the specified
requirements. Today, manufacturers are also often obliged to provide objective, verifiable
evidence that they have carried out all necessary activities. This means that a supplier is
expected to supply not only products and services but, in addition, proof that the product has
been properly made and tested. A measure of assurance can be gained by (the customer)
ensuring that everything necessary has been done to achieve the required integrity of each
characteristic of the finished product.
Thus, ‘quality assurance’!
QUALITY ASSURANCE: DEFINITIONS
The generally accepted definitions of quality assurance (QA) and related terms are based on
those promulgated by the International Standards Organisation, who issued ISO 8402 in
1986:
➢ Quality. The totality of features and characteristics of a product or service that bear on
its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs.
➢ Quality assurance. All those planned and systematic actions necessary to provide
adequate confidence that a product or service will satisfy given requirements for
quality.
➢ Quality control. The operational techniques and activities that are used to fulfil
requirements for quality.
➢ Inspection. Activities such as measuring, examining, testing and gauging one or more
characteristics of a product or service and comparing these with specified
requirements to determine conformity.
➢ Quality surveillance. The continuing monitoring and verification of the status of
procedures, methods, conditions, processes, products and services, and analysis of
records in relation to stated references to ensure that specified requirements for
quality are being met.
A quality engineer may need to be qualified in some or all of the following aspects:
• Development and operation of quality assurance and control systems.
• Development and analysis of testing, inspection and sampling procedure.
• An understanding of the relationship of human factors and motivation with quality.
• Facility with quality cost concepts and techniques.
• The knowledge and ability to develop and administer management information,
including the auditing of quality programmes to permit identification and correction
of deficiencies.
27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
• The ability to arrange appropriate analyses to determine those operations requiring
corrective action.
• Application of metrology and statistical methods to the analysis of quality parameters
for both control and improvement purposes.
THE BACKGROUND TO QUALITY ASSURANCE
Quality assurance concepts grew out of quality control which, in the stage of industrial
development after the Second World War, became a necessity in many industries. In the USA
the use of statistical techniques, particularly in the continuous production industries,
telecommunications, etc., was a prime tool in measuring the performance of processes, men
and machines. It was possible to predict the likely level of defects in a given situation and
therefore attempt to prevent or reduce them. Quality control, as a management or production
discipline, became standard practice in the USA and, later, in Japan, although application to
‘one off’ structures, power stations, oil refineries and the like was much slower. In many
countries the development of quality control practices progressed through defence equipment
to electronics generally, nuclear plants and conventional power stations and to many critical
structures.
The incentive for manufacturers to reduce defects, and therefore costs, led to extensive
development of quality control, except perhaps in those industries where the purchaser has
traditionally taken some responsibility for quality control. In ‘one off’ and heavy engineering
industries, often involving welded construction, customer inspection, or rather witnessing
inspection, has been the convention and it is claimed by many that this led to minimum
quality control efforts by respective manufacturers. This appears to be true when compared
with industries supplying retail or consumer outlets, where market pressures forced a tighter
control of quality aspects of the product. ‘Quality control’, as a tool for suppliers, therefore
preceded ‘Quality assurance’ for customers. (Quality control has been used since the 1940s as
a term to include all methods used to control quality, including inspection and non-
destructive testing (NDT).)
‘Quality assurance’, on the other hand, is a term which has grown in the Western world
mainly since the 1960s. The term connotes much broader concepts of quality and reliability
achievement and involves action by, and responsibilities on, the purchaser/user. (The Allied
Quality Assurance Publications (AQAPs) used by NATO are customer-produced
requirements that formed the basis for many similar customer-related requirements.)
In welded construction, many aspects of controlling quality have been developed inherently
or instinctively, e.g. the selection and use of correct and proven welding parameters. Indeed,
resistance spot and similar automatic methods have always lent themselves to quality
control—to the exclusion of individual weld inspection. The extensive use of welding as the
most important constructional method and the rapid developments in welding technology
itself are two factors that have inevitably contributed to engineering quality problems. Other
factors are the more onerous service required of many welded structures or components, the
progressive reduction of safety margins and the use of more economic or conservative design
criteria, as well as developments in materials to be welded.
QUALITY ASSURANCE: A GROWING REQUIREMENT
Some of the reasons why quality assurance is required by purchasers and plant users are:
27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
(1) The recognition that inspection and tests alone do not prevent defects—they may not even
prevent them
getting into service.
(2) No one can inspect quality into a product—it has to be designed or built in.
(3) It costs more to make defective welds than good ones, and someone has to pay for those
defective goods
Control of quality must be planned and organised, just like any other business parameter. It is
clear that, because of the nature of welding operations, inspection (including examination)
and monitoring surveillance will be necessary.
However, it is fundamental to quality assurance that ‘quality is best controlled by those
responsible for the product and by those closest to the point of manufacture’. This must mean
the supplier himself and not the purchaser.
Whose Responsibility is Quality Assurance?
Basically, a quality assurance approach by an industry, a user or a supplier requires at least:
(1) A top management policy decision, followed through to line management.
(2) A quality assurance specification or programme identifying the ‘management’ criteria.
(3) An obligation to evaluate and audit control processes, procedures and instructions as a
preliminary to quality control surveillance.
There is no single factor in the avoidance of failures in welded construction; many different
factors may be involved, not only within a particular company, but outside, with suppliers,
sub-contractors, customers, inspection authorities, etc. What can be achieved is a more
disciplined approach to all quality related activities from ‘cradle to grave’ of a product or
component. This includes the salesman who should not give promises to the client, the
metallurgist who is too often confined to the laboratory, and the client
who seeks technological impossibilities. It should also be recognised at the outset that such
assurance has to be paid for, either from reduced scrap, by fewer repairs or by less routine
inspection.
This can be achieved if all parts of an enterprise, from chairman or managing director to the
packer and despatcher, understand the importance of meeting quality objectives. These in
turn must be spelled out in sufficient detail at contract stage, in the specification, or on the
drawing. These elementary principles of quality assurance are explained in detail in
specifications which most developed countries now have, or are developing.
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The Purchaser’s Responsibility
Most progress in obtaining and operating safe and reliable welded plant made to sound
quality assurance principles has been in those industries where the purchaser has been wise
enough to recognise the real benefits that accrue from a quality assurance policy. The
obligations upon such purchasers are similar to those listed earlier, i.e. top-level commitment,
a QA requirement or specification and the allocation of appropriate resources. Equally
important, however, is the need for the purchaser to recognise that improvements in
performance are worth paying for and that proper costing of quality aspects of the product (or
project) are required. Thus, he should encourage suppliers to develop better quality practices,
for example, by employing vendor rating, by favouring good performance and by using life
cycle costing at the contract placing stage.
Management’s Responsibility
It is now generally accepted that the majority of errors and faults in engineering may not be
the result of human error, but of poor management.
The list below indicates some root causes identified by 20 quality assurance managers, both
purchasers and suppliers, following a survey conducted by the author:
➢ Pressure of production over quality
➢ Lack of authority of quality personnel
➢ Lack of clear QC systems
➢ Inadequate in-process/final inspection
➢ Poor manufacturing equipment
➢ Inadequate briefing on specification/lack of understanding
➢ Inadequate direction, poor management, poor control
➢ Disinterested workforce
➢ Poor control of sub-contractors
➢ Lack of day to day QA implementation
➢ Middle management apathy
➢ Poor customer specifications and contractual requirements
➢ Poor QA staff
➢ Belief that quality costs money
The Designer’s Responsibility
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Detailed examination of failures, including weld failures, suggests that some 80% originate at
the design stage, or at least the failure could have been avoided by action at the design stage.
Design, in this context, includes material selection, and design detail as well as conceptual
design and adequacy of specifications. Of particular importance in design assurance is
inspectability, i.e. can the weld be inspected both during construction and during later
maintenance checks? One of the techniques of QA utilised at the design stage is design
review. Design reviews are systematic critical studies of the design or its elements at
various stages by specialists not necessarily directly engaged in the design, to provide
assurance that the final design will satisfy the specifications. The factors considered at such a
review might include:
➢ comprehensiveness of design inputs;
➢ adequacy of assumptions used;
➢ appropriateness of design methods;
➢ correct incorporation of design inputs;
➢ adequacy of the output;
➢ the necessary design input and verification requirements for interfacing organisations,
as specified in the design documents, or in supporting procedures or instructions.
The economic motive is strong, and it is not difficult to see why some purchasers call up
quality assurance as a major platform in its defence against:
(1) costly outages and unplanned shutdown due to premature failure;
(2) serious manufacturing and construction delays;
(3) government safety or environmental legislation;
(4) high cost of replacement or repair;
(5) inefficient suppliers.
Suppliers take up quality assurance to:
(1) Reduce scrap, repair, rectification and wasted time.
(2) Ensure customer satisfaction.
(3) Meet statutory or contract requirements.
(4) Keep one step ahead of the competition.
(5) Improve efficiency and cost effectiveness.
(6) Reduce customer inspection visits and customer interference.
It must be understood that effective quality assurance is a ‘two-way’ function between
supplier and purchaser, and that shallow QA systems entered into with inadequate discussion
between the contracting parties are often wasted effort costing a great deal of money.
CLASSIFICATION OF WELDED JOINTS: A KEY QUALITY ASSURANCE STEP
The International Standards Organisation Technical Committee—Welding, has proposed that
the factors to be considered by the designer in fixing the service requirements for each
welded joint in a construction are:
(a) the degree of certainty which must be obtained that the joint will perform satisfactorily for
its design life;
(b) the consequences of failure;
(c) the factors influencing the performance of the joint.
27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
The joints can be categorised into the highest service requirements: Type 1 where joints are
under ‘most severe conditions and/or the failure of which would have any catastrophic
consequences’, down progressively to Type 4 for ‘joint under non-critical conditions, the
failure of which would not affect the efficient performances of the construction as a whole’.
This subject has been a topic for countless committees, both national and international. The
International Institute of Welding, Commissions V, XI and XV, has debated the subject and
its journal Welding in the World contains many papers and surveys on the subject. This is
because, as is shown elsewhere, the costs of inspection, including NDT, can outweigh the
costs of welding and, since the amount of inspection is directly related to the classification of
welds, the amount of inspection, the stages of inspection and the methods of inspection
should be determined as a result of a detailed study of factors, generally termed ‘influencing
factors’. Often, as in the past, we resort to a ‘code’— it is to be hoped that code writers have
studied the work and papers on the subject.
The best approach to quality assurance comes from a sound understanding of technical
factors, and nowhere is this more important than in welding. It could be argued therefore that
quality assurance procedures should be based on such knowledge and considerable guidance
given in ISO document 3088 (1975), Factors to be Considered in Specifying Requirements
for Fusion Welded Joints in Steel. The quality control procedures, including process controls,
design checks, inspection, etc., should take account of such factors as:
Materials (Parent and Filler)
➢ Chemical composition, homogeneity, surface condition, thickness, etc.
➢ Property and size of the heat affected zone.
➢ Compatibility of weld metal.
➢ Properties of the weld metal.
Welding Processes and Procedures
➢ Must be compatible with the materials.
➢ Differences between shop and site welding.
➢ Profile and finish may be affected.
➢ Heat inputs from different processes may be critical
Stresses
➢ Facts of fatigue must be understood.
➢ Stress concentration factors depend on type of joint geometry, defect direction and
orientation.
➢ Residual stresses.
➢ Fillet weld configuration.
Geometric Effects
➢ Distribution of stresses should be disturbed as little as possible by joint geometry.
➢ Avoid severe changes in section.
➢ Junction of thick to thin sections require special consideration.
Environment
➢ Joints subject to corrosive or erosive environments, geometry, protective coatings,
etc., require consideration.
HUMAN FACTORS IN QUALITY ASSURANCE
Perhaps the most important factor in quality assurance is the human one, partly because its
effects permeate design, manufacture, inspection and operational stages. Those characteristics
that must be recognised, particularly by quality assurance managers onto whom much of the
27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
responsibility for an organisation’s quality system falls, are: cutting corners, boredom,
fatigue, ignorance, lack of training, ambiguous instructions, poor communications, weak
supervision, failure to obey rules, concealment of mistakes, personal unsuitability for given
task, carelessness and a measure of arrogance. It will be clear that, whilst some of the factors
listed above are difficult if not impossible to control, others can form part of the training
programme for individuals whose work will be seriously affected by particular deficiencies,
or for individuals who have displayed weaknesses. However, much can be overcome by
better instructions and procedures, by management and supervisor motivation, and by audits
to determine adequacy of procedures and adherence to instructions.
QUALITY AUDITS AND SURVEILLANCE
Quality Assurance wouldn’t be complete without some reference to auditing, since this aspect
remains a key element of a quality assurance system in the field of welded construction.
A suitable definition of quality audit is ‘a systematic and independent examination of the
effectiveness of the quality system or of its parts’.
An audit is a prime method of obtaining factual information from an unbiased assessment of
objective evidence rather than subjective opinion. It can relate to products, processes (e.g.
welding) or organisations. It generally includes an evaluation of the suitability of the
requirements as well as compliance with them.
The effectiveness of audits depends on the co-operation of all parties concerned, and its
objectives should not be confused with routine inspections and surveillance activities.
Quality Surveillance is the supervision of a contractor’s quality assurance organisation
and methods, generally as set out on his quality system, his programme or his quality manual.
Some of the factors to be considered by a purchaser when developing a surveillance strategy
with a particular contractor are given below. An assessment (or audit) against these features
will identify weaknesses which must be the subject of special action during surveillance.
27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
2. COMPARISON BETWEEN EUROPEAN, JAPANESE AND INDIAN WELDING PROCESS
❖ EUROPEAN WELDING PROCESS
MECHANICAL TESTING
EN ISO 15614-1 adopts the same mechanical test as EN288-3, except that bend test
minimum former angle has been increased from 120 to 180 degrees and fillet welds require a
minimum of 4 macros.
MATERIAL GROUPING
Main groups are subdivided into sub groups:-
❖ Based on yield strength for carbon steel in groups 1,2 &3. However, these
subgroups are not considered for material grouping, the grouping is based on same
specified yield strength or less in the main group.
❖ Based on alloy content for materials in all the other groups. It may approve the
steels in the same subgroup or all the lower subgroups in the main group,
depending on the suffix.
E.g. Group 8: - subgroup 8.1 chrome <= 19%
subgroup 8.2 chrome >19.1%
subgroup 8.3 austenite with 4<Mn<=12
Note: Impact requirements do not affect the subgrouping approval range as they do in the
same ASME Code
• Covers the equal or lower specified yield strength steels of the same group.
• Covers steels in the same subgroup and any lower subgroup within the same group.
• Covers steels in the same subgroup.
Governing Thickness for Approval Range
The controlling thickness that determine the approval range in EN288-3is dependent on
the joint type. Both Thickness in the joint are given independent approval ranges if they
differ.
The thickness range also applies to the deposit thickness of multiple process weld. It is
reasonable to consider a single run deposit thickness of multiple process welds.
WELDING POSITION
If impact tests are required, the weld procedure approves other positions requiring the
same or less heat input. If a hardness survey is required, the weld procedure approves
other positions requiring the same or higher hear input.
If a test includes both a high and low heat input position, then all intermediate heat input
position are approved, EN ISO 15614-1
Note:
• When impacts are required the heat input is limited to +25% of test value.
• When hardness is required the heat input is limited to 25% of test value.
JOINT TYPE
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• Butt welds approve fillet welds.
• Single sided welds approve backed, double sided and back gouged welds
• Butt welds approve of T-butt welds
• Butt welds in pipe approve branch connections with angles between 60-90o
TESTING REQUIREMENT
➢ Visual
➢ Penetrant
➢ Radiography to EN1435
➢ Macro 2 off full width and length of test piece(Along A and b)
➢ Hardness survey for materials in group 2,3,4,5,6,7
➢ Push out test optional
Note: The proposed revision to ISO 9606
Diameters: The approval range for pipe diameters according
Pipe diameter < 25 mm D to 2D
Pipe diameter > 25 mm 0.5D (25 mm Min) and above + plates.
ELECTRODE COATING
For single sided root run with no backing, no change of flux type is promoted.
➢ Basic approves basic(B), rutile(R), acid(A) and combinations
➢ Cellulose (C) /Cellulosic (C) approves cellulose only
➢ Rutile approves R, RR, RA, RB, RC.
VALIDITY OF APPROVAL
Valid for 2 years, providing that the welders’ supervisors confirm that at every six-month
period, the welder has been working within his range of qualification.
Copper and Copper alloys
W31: Pure copper
W32: Copper Zinc alloys
W33: Copper tin alloys
W34: Copper nickel Alloys
W35: Copper aluminium alloys
W36: Copper Zinc Nickel alloys
FUSION AND RESISTANCE WELDING
Mechanised welding: adjustment during welding Possible
Automatic welding: Adjustment during welding not required.
QUALITY REQUIREMENTS
This standard cab ne used either as a part of an ISO 9000 quality system or to define quality
requirement where formal quality system is not required. Despite the versatility of this
standard it has so far failed to generate any serious interest with the European Fabrication
industry.
27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
❖ JAPANESE WELDING PROCESS
The japan welding engineering society standards (WES Standard) covers the testing and
inspection, base material, welding materials, welding and cutting machines , design and
fabrication, Certification , safety and health about welding and joining.
The JWES initiated the welding technology Information centre in 2006 to offer information
about welding technologies accumulated in japan since World War 2 in order to help welding
engineers and to transfer the technologies to the future generations.
Gas pressure welding: Developed in Japan and the US around the same time in the 1940s.
Japan has taken a different route. Rail gas pressure welding equipment was developed in
1953, and since then both the equipment and the method have been updated and improved on
numerous occasions.
However, there are some issues with this welding method. Welders need considerate
expertise when grinding end surfaces and when using the heating burner. A shortage of
welders with such expertise is predicted, so in future companies may find it difficult to ensure
equality joints. Another problem, is that today’s gas pressure systems uses acetylene as the
combustion reaction involving oxygen produces carbon gases, lending to concern over the
environmental consequences of this process.
The method is based on using a mixed gas solution of hydrogen and ethylene as an alternative
to acetylene, which promises to significantly reduces the environmental impact of the
process.
During the magnetic particle test, a 3mm long linear indication was detected art the edge of
the rail base. This test established the following optimal welding conditions:
• Mixed gas of 40% hydrogen and 60% ethylene at a flow rate of 135 litre/min
• Oxygen: 130 litre/min
• Upset force: 170 kN
• Upset length: 24 mm
With gas pressure welding generally applied in first or second stage welding using
predominately new rails which cut very precisely by the manufacturer and are generally
sufficiently flat not to require grinding
Researchers subsequently examined the possibility of standardization of the heat burning
swing pattern and developing an automatic heating burner swing device.
Standardised
• Amplitude: 20 mm
• Speed: 250mm/sec
It is possible to perform gas pressure welding after the removal of any rust on the metal. Test
were conducted using the same parameter as the gas test and should that the specimen had the
same fatigue. Strength of 320N/mm2 as the welded joint using the conventional methods.
Hardness test and micro structure test also revealed no abnormalities, indicating that the new
welding process could offer the same performance as the conventional process overcoming
the potential skill shortage.
With the ratio of heat dispersion to the periphery increasing. When the swing start time is
advanced it is understood that the quality of the weld drops due to a decrease in the heat input
at the welded part.
There was a correlation between the rupture load of the test. pieces in head down breaking
mode, in which the metal was tensioned and the swing start time in the test.
27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
❖ INDIAN WELDING PROCESS
• INDUSTRY LEVEL WELDING INDUSTRY
• FIRST LEVEL CONSUMABLES AND WELDING EQUIPMENT
• SECOND LEVEL SMAW ELECTRODES
TIG WELDING WIRES
GMAW /FCAW WIRES
MIG/MAG (FLUX CORED WIRES)
MIG/MAG (SOLID WIRES)
▪ SHIELDED METAL ARC WELDING(SMAW)
▪ GAS SHIELDED METAL ARC WELDING / FLUX CORED ARC WELDING
(GMAW/FCAW)
▪ GAS SHIELDED TUNGSTEN ARC WELDING(GTAW)
▪ SUBMERGED ARC WELDING (SAW)
▪ OXYFUEL AND PLASMA CUTTING
The Indian welding industry was dominated by low technology and very rare technological
innovation. The demand of automatic and semiautomatic welding production system are
rising. The increased imports has negatively impacted the market share of local participant in
various industries such as shipbuilding, automotive and transportation and white appliances.
Another challenges faced by the welding electrode plant is the unorganised sector that
presently occupies nearly 50-55% of the market.
SOME OF THE RESEARCH UNDERTAKING
Development of high-performance robotic welding for the tube to fin welding using time
twin technique process.
▪ Technology established for robotic welding of HRSE MODULE
▪ Robotic welding technology established for high capacity transformer tanks
▪ Establishment of automated welding system for manufacturing of bifurcate
components.
▪ Automated GMAW process established for welded of hand holded pipe to dished
end(header)
▪ GMAW/FCAW technology for welding of piping joints for boiler and turbine at site
▪ Establishment of activated TIG welding for highwall thickness tubes.
▪ Phased array ultrasonic testing procedure for MIAG welding tubes.
1. Alloy present better mechanical properties, like nickel with resistance to oxidation,
chromium with carbide stabilisation, aluminium for weight reduction, copper for
corrosion resistance, and so on.
2. With improved focus on manufacturing and infrastructure allied segments like heavy
engineering, power, transportation, Automotive will be the demand drivers in India.
27 November 2020 90317014, Darshan Suresh, NA&SB
3. With increase in raw material cost, there is a direct impact on the manufacturing
hence, for the larger unorganised community the competitiveness in market place
reduce thereby affecting the overall revenues.
4. Shipbuilding- one of the major contributor to economy of the country. With over 40%
of India’s fleet of ships in the 20+ age group, which holds tremendous opportunity for
India’s shipbuilding and ship repair industry.
5. Fragmented industry with 50% being controlled by unorganised players.
6. Organised market is mainly controlled by established players like ESAB India Ltd,
Ador welding Ltd, D&H welding Electrode India Ltd, EWAC Alloys Ltd etc
7. Robust outlook of the infrastructure sector, welding consumables market is expected
to grow at a CAGR 10-11% over next 5 years.
8. Continuous electrodes would witness higher growth compared to manual electrodes.