Mistakes When Hiring Welders and Technicians
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Most mistakes when hiring welders happen before anyone strikes an arc. They come from a brief that says “a welder” and nothing else, from a certificate nobody read and from site paperwork that was left for the last day. This article covers the ones we see most when hiring welders and industrial technicians, and what to do about each.
1. Asking for “a welder”
A welder who is excellent at TIG on stainless pipework may never have run a MIG torch on structural steel. Say what the job is: process, material, thickness, position and the standard the work follows. If you cannot say it, ask whoever specified the work, or describe what is being built and let the contractor ask the right questions.
2. Not reading the certificate
A welder qualification certificate is personal. It names the welder and covers a process, a material, a thickness range and a position. Check that it is in the name of the person who will work on your plant, that it covers your job and that it has not expired. Under EN ISO 9606 it lasts three years, provided the employer confirms every six months that the welder has kept welding within its range.
3. Mixing up company certificates and welder certificates
A quality system certificate or an EN ISO 3834 certificate says how a company manages its welding. It does not show that the person in front of you can weld your joint. You need both when the job requires them. Our welding certification page explains what each one covers.
4. Leaving the site paperwork to the last day
Outside companies on an industrial site usually need an induction, safety documentation and sometimes specific permits. In Spain, there are rules on how companies coordinate when they share a workplace. If the paperwork starts on the day the welders arrive, they stand at the gate. Ask your safety team what is needed, and give it to the contractor early.
5. Not saying who directs the work
When people come to work in your plant, someone has to give the day-to-day instructions, check the work and sign it off. If that is not clear, jobs drift. Decide whether your own supervisor will do it or the contractor’s, and write it down.
6. Ignoring who the employer is
In Spain, the temporary hiring of workers in order to hand them over to another company is restricted to authorised temporary employment agencies. A contractor that takes on a job and directs its own staff is a different arrangement. Neither is wrong, but you should know which one you have, because it decides who is responsible for the workers.
7. Choosing on the rate alone
A low rate for someone who cannot do the job is expensive. Compare what is included: qualifications, supervision, tools, time to replace a person who is not right. Ask for the scope in writing.
8. Not agreeing the testing in advance
Pressure vessels, structural steelwork and process pipework usually call for non-destructive testing of the welds, to a scope set by the applicable standard. Agree who does the testing and who pays for any repair before the job starts, not after.
What to do instead
Write a short brief: trade, process, material, thickness, standard, number of people, dates and site. Ask for certificates in the welders’ names. Agree who directs the work and who is the employer. Settle the site paperwork early.
If you would like us to look at a job, tell us about it. We place welders and technicians on your site or take the work on to order, in Spain and Portugal. You can also read about our welding contractors service.