8.2 CWI Duties and Responsibilities

The Three Phases of Inspection

The CWI's duties span the entire welding lifecycle, and the exam expects you to place each duty in the correct phase — before, during, or after welding. The single biggest conceptual point tested is that the CWI verifies and inspects; the CWI does not perform engineering or production work. The inspector does not write the Welding Procedure Specification (WPS), does not set the production schedule, and does not weld — the inspector confirms that qualified people and documents are in place and that the code is met.

Phase 1 — Before Welding (Pre-Weld Verification)

Pre-weld inspection prevents defects before they happen and is the most cost-effective phase. The CWI verifies:

A classic exam item asks which task is not the CWI's job before welding; the answer is usually "design/develop the WPS," which belongs to the welding engineer or qualified responsible party. The CWI reviews and verifies it.

Phase 2 — During Welding (In-Process Inspection)

In-process inspection catches problems that visual inspection of the finished weld cannot. Key duties:

• Monitor welding parameters — amperage, voltage, and travel speed within WPS ranges (these control heat input)
• Verify interpass temperature — both the minimum (often equal to preheat) and the maximum interpass limit, which protects the heat-affected zone (HAZ) and mechanical properties
• Check interpass cleaning — slag fully removed between passes; no trapped porosity
• Observe technique — electrode angle, stringer vs. weave per the WPS, correct bead sequence
• Confirm consumable usage — correct electrode/wire for root vs. fill/cap; correct shielding gas type and flow
• Watch the environment — wind picking up on gas-shielded processes, preheat being maintained throughout (not just at the start)

Failing to maintain preheat or exceeding maximum interpass temperature are common real-world findings — the CWI must catch them while the weld is still in progress.

Phase 3 — After Welding (Post-Weld Inspection)

Once welding is complete, the CWI performs and coordinates final inspection:

Visual inspection (VT) is the most-used and most cost-effective NDE method, and it is the CWI's primary direct tool.

Ethics and the Documentation Trail

Under AWS QC1 and the AWS Code of Ethics, the CWI must be impartial and objective, basing every accept/reject decision on the code — not on schedule pressure, relationships, or who signs the paycheck. The CWI must never falsify records, must work only within their area of competence, must protect proprietary information, and must report safety hazards and code violations. Falsifying an inspection report is the most serious ethical violation and can void the certification.

Records the CWI typically maintains include inspection reports, NDE reports, the WPS/PQR set, welder qualification records, material test reports (MTRs), and nonconformance/repair documentation.

When a weld is rejected, the CWI documents the discontinuity type, location, and the acceptance criterion it failed, then issues a written repair directive and re-inspects after repair. The inspector's reports become the legal quality record for the project; clear, factual, dated entries protect both the public and the inspector. The CWI's authority comes from the contract and the governing code — the inspector enforces the code but does not change it, and any deviation requires an engineering disposition (use-as-is, repair, rework, or reject) from the responsible engineer, not from the inspector alone.

AWS B5.1 — Three Levels of Welding Inspector

AWS B5.1, "Specification for the Qualification of Welding Inspectors," defines what each level may do:

For the Exam: Sort duties into before/during/after, remember the CWI verifies the WPS rather than writing it, and that only Level II (CWI) and Level III (SCWI) make independent accept/reject decisions. Objectivity per AWS QC1 is non-negotiable.