Overview

Quality requirements in respect of welded structures are set out in directives, regulations, standards or customer specifications. The company performing the work needs to analyse these requirements at the tendering stage, to decide whether or not they can be fulfilled. This is assisted by a systematic method of working. Companies with ISO 9001/9002 certification have documented procedures for this. ISO 9001/9002 are system standards concerned with quality systems. They define welding as a special process that must be properly controlled in order to ensure that the necessary quality requirements are fulfilled.

Figure 16.1 shows standards that are of interest in this context. The following are further described below:

• EN 729, Quality requirements for welding

• EN 719, Welding coordination: tasks and responsibilities

• EN 287, Approval testing of welders

• EN 288, Specification and approval of welding procedures

Figure 16.1: Standards that regulate quality requirements for welded structures.

16.1 Quality Requirements for Welding (EN 729)

EN 729 is a process standard for welding, and describes how quality assurance of welding work can be ensured. It consists of four different parts. EN 729-1, which is a guideline part, sets out the following application areas:

1. as guidance for specification and establishment of that part of ISO 9001/9002 concerned with the management of special processes.

2. as guidance for determination of welding quality requirements in those cases where the quality system standards are not applicable.

3. in connection with auditing/assessment of welding quality in accordance with a) and b) above.

The standard has three different quality requirement...