Welding standards critical for process efficiencies

As a member of industry body the Southern African Institute of Welding (SAIW), South African capital equipment manufacturer Bell Equipment emphasises the importance of welding standards in the manufacturing of its equipment through continuous improvement and process controls.

To ensure continuous improvement, Bell Equipment global quality GM Oliver Sclanders assures that the company engages in best practices, process improvement and continuous staff training to make the manufacturing processes more effective and efficient.

“Adherence to the associated welding standards is of vital importance, as it ensures that your product complies to the intended design specification and meets the desired quality standards.

“Adherence provides confidence that the product being manufactured will meet and exceed customer expectations. It also is a key factor in reducing any form of risk, and ensures output consistency,” adds Bell Equipment quality process engineer Vishal Juggernath.

If standards are not met, premature product failure may be inevitable, consequently resulting in customer dissatisfaction, machine downtime and productivity loss, he warns.

From an organisational perspective, this would also bring the brand into disrepute, resulting in a loss of repeat and new customers.

Hence, to ensure that Bell products meet the required standards, Bell Equipment ensures that a sound quality management system is instituted and adhered to, without compromise.

From a manufacturing perspective, compliance to such a system is ensured by the adoption of the welding standard pertinent to the earthmoving, mining, forestry, agriculture and materials handling sectors.

“At Bell, we have various quality gates through the entire manufacturing process manned by in-house- and SAIW-trained welding inspectors who ensure that all product compliance requirements are consistently met,” says Juggernath.

The company has instituted process controls to ensure that its welders are adequately trained to understand all the necessary requirements, and that it provides the necessary equipment.

Process controls involve checking various points of production to ensure conformance to standards. Thereafter, the company conducts an audit to verify that the product has the dimensional and physical attribute conformance with regard to the size of welds.

“Welding processes require good process controls to ensure that the product meets the standards, especially because a poor weld may manifest undetected. We constantly evaluate the inspection criteria based on the risk profile. The more difficult a mistake is to detect, the higher the risk,” explains Sclanders.

Upcoming Projects

As part of ensuring that quality controls are in place, Bell Equipment has embarked on a project regarding process capability, involving the upskilling of employees, and improvements to the equipment and process controlling documentation used throughout the fabrication phases.

Analysing the use of different materials and accountability for tasks builds user confidence and increases market share.

Meanwhile, Bell Equipment has been developing its road construction grader, with the project currently in the preproduction phase, and product launch expected in 2024.

The company is also embarking on various product identification number (PIN) upgrades for its current product range, with implementation of PIN3.5 on its articulated dump trucks.

Membership Benefits

As a member of the SAIW, Bell Equipment will continue to maintain a relationship with the organisation, owing to its providing the company with a platform of knowledge and expertise of best practices.

Sclanders says being a member of organisations such as the SAIW allows it to gain industry insights and stay up to date with industry news, to maintain best practice.

“SAIW is the leading industry expert in the field of welding engineering and science. We rely on SAIW for updates on new technological and innovation developments and training, as well as the upkeep of the welding codes and specifications,” says Juggernath.

Bell Equipment has 270 operational gas metal arc welding heavy-duty welding machines and employs more than 410 on-site welders.

The company uses about 2 200 t a month of steel, processes and uses 65 t a month of welding wire, in addition to welding and fabricating about 36 000 components a month.

“Bell is at the forefront with respect to the design, development and manufacture of strong and reliable heavy-duty machinery for the industries it serves.We constantly strive for excellence in quality and continuous improvement in our products, processes and staff development, which ensures market leadership,” Juggernath concludes.