Welding Training School

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Workshop Modules — What You Master in 1 Month

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Week 1 Workshop Programme

• OHS Act & Welding Safety: Occupational Health & Safety legislation for welding environments — welding fume hazards, UV arc eye protection, hot-work permit systems, fire watch duties, compressed gas cylinder safety, and mandatory PPE including auto-darkening helmets, leather gloves, aprons and safety boots
• Introduction to welding processes: Overview of all welding processes covered in the course (MMA, MIG/MAG, TIG, oxy-acetylene), their industrial applications, comparative strengths, and how each process is selected for different materials, thicknesses and positions
• Arc welding machine setup: Power source types (AC/DC), polarity selection (DCEP/DCEN), amperage settings for different electrode sizes and plate thicknesses, earth clamp placement and cable management
• Electrode classification and selection: AWS/ISO electrode naming system — E6013, E7016, E7018 and specialist electrodes — understanding the meaning of each digit, and matching electrode type to base metal, position and service requirement
• Striking and maintaining an arc: Scratch-start and lift-arc techniques, maintaining correct arc length, travel speed and electrode angle for consistent bead profiles — running straight and weave beads on mild steel plate in the flat (downhand) position
• Joint types and fit-up: Butt joints (square, single-V, double-V), T-joints (fillet welds), lap joints, corner joints, and edge joints — fit-up, root gap setting, and tacking sequences for distortion control before full welding
• Flat position welding — MMA: Fillet welds and butt welds in the flat (1F/1G) position — multiple-pass welds, inter-run cleaning with chipping hammer, and wire brushing between passes. Weld visual inspection and sizing using weld gauges

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Week 2 Workshop Programme

• MIG/MAG welding machine setup: Wire feeder setup, drive roll selection for solid and flux-cored wire, shielding gas selection (CO₂, Ar/CO₂ mixed, pure Ar), regulator and flow-rate setting, and torch liner condition assessment
• Wire and gas selection: ER70S-6 solid wire for structural MIG welding, E71T-1 flux-cored wire for site welding, shielding gas mixtures and their effect on arc characteristics, bead profile and spatter levels — selecting the correct combination for the application
• MIG welding in the flat position: Running flat fillet welds and butt welds in short-circuit and spray transfer modes — torch angle, travel angle, travel speed, contact-tip-to-work distance (CTWD), and avoiding common defects such as porosity and cold laps
• Horizontal (2F/2G) welding: MMA and MIG welding in the horizontal position — adjusting electrode angle and travel speed to prevent weld metal sagging, maintaining consistent leg length on horizontal fillet welds and managing weld pool behaviour in this position
• Vertical-up (3G/3F) welding: Vertical-up MMA welding using a weave technique — triangle and crescent weave patterns, pausing at the toes to prevent undercut, controlling the weld pool against gravity, and achieving full fusion at the root in vertical butt welds
• Vertical-up MIG welding: Adjusting MIG parameters for vertical-up welding — lower wire feed speed, reduced voltage, and the push technique on vertical MIG fillet welds. Comparing vertical MIG to vertical MMA in terms of penetration, appearance and productivity
• Distortion control and weld sequence: Understanding thermal distortion in welded fabrications — back-step welding, balanced welding sequences, pre-setting and clamping methods, and measuring distortion after welding to verify dimensional compliance

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Week 3 Workshop Programme

• TIG welding fundamentals: TIG machine setup — HF start, scratch start, AC/DC selection, tungsten electrode types (EWTh-2, EWP, EWCe-2), tungsten preparation (grinding angle), shielding gas (pure Ar), torch assembly, and collet and back-cap selection
• TIG welding mild steel: Two-handed TIG technique — torch in one hand, filler rod in the other — maintaining torch angle, arc length, filler rod dip angle and travel speed. Running flat butt welds on 3 mm mild steel plate without porosity or tungsten contamination
• TIG welding stainless steel basics: Differences in TIG welding austenitic stainless steel (304 and 316) — interpass temperature limits, back-purge gas for stainless root passes, heat input control, and preventing sensitisation and heat tint in the HAZ
• Oxy-acetylene welding — flame types and technique: Setting up the oxy-acetylene plant, regulator pressures for different tip sizes, identifying neutral, carburising and oxidising flames, and their correct application — leftward and rightward welding techniques on thin mild steel plate
• Oxy-acetylene cutting for joint preparation: Cutting mild steel using the oxy-acetylene cutting attachment — straight-line cutting, bevel cutting for weld joint preparation, profile cutting using a template, and assessing cut quality (squareness, drag lines, dross)
• Pipe welding — joint preparation and fit-up: Preparing pipe joints for welding — pipe end squaring, bevelling using a grinder, root gap setting, back-purge for stainless, tacking in position (5G pipe — fixed horizontal), and tack weld quality before root pass
• Pipe root and fill passes — MMA: Welding the root pass of a fixed horizontal (5G) mild steel pipe joint using MMA — open root technique, bridge tacking sequence, keyhole technique, electrode manipulation and visual inspection of root fusion before progressing to fill and cap passes

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Week 4 — Final Assessment Programme

• Overhead (4F/4G) welding — MMA: Welding in the overhead position — arguably the most demanding welding position. Adjusting machine settings, electrode angle, arc length control, travel speed and body positioning to produce acceptable overhead fillet and butt welds without burn-through or excessive spatter
• Structural welding task — applied: Candidates independently weld a complete structural steel assembly from a drawing — marking off, tacking, welding fillet and butt joints in multiple positions, inspecting against dimensional and quality criteria
• Weld quality inspection — practical: Candidates inspect their own and peer welds against visual inspection criteria — measuring weld size, checking for undercut, porosity, overlap and cracking using weld gauges, and completing an inspection record in the format required by industry
• Distortion and repair: Identifying distorted or non-conforming weldments — rectifying by grinding out defects, re-welding, flame straightening where appropriate, and re-inspecting to confirm compliance before final submission
• Practical trade assessment — SAQA 24214: Full practical welding assessment aligned to SAQA US 24214 outcomes — assessed across MMA, MIG and relevant position welding by a qualified MERSETA assessor as Competent or Not Yet Competent
• Certificate of Competence issued: Successful candidates receive their Certificate of Competence aligned to SAQA US 24214, issued by Real Skills Technical FET and quality-assured by MERSETA — qualifying them as full semi-skilled welders, recognised by employers across South Africa and the region