Sparking your career – the role of vocational education in welding

Whether you’re just starting your welding journey or are looking for career growth and a way to upskill – vocational training and qualifications can open doors to awesome opportunities in the hands-on and rewarding field of welding in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Welding is an exciting profession that involves many disciplines such as welding process technology, materials (metallurgy), strength and design, and inspection. It is also a technical field, as there are many factors which affect the quality of welds (skill, materials, welding position and parameters, joint design, welding process etc) and it isn’t possible to verify the quality of the weld 100% once it’s completed. For these reasons, welding is considered a “special” process, making it crucial to have qualified and capable personnel involved in welding and fabrication.

Breaking down welding qualifications

Qualifications can be categorised into three main areas:

application (welders and fitters/fabricators);
operation (supervisors and engineers); and
inspection (welding inspectors and non-destructive testing inspectors).

There are different type of trainings and certifications in these fields, and it is possible to have qualifications in all areas, or to choose one and focus your career progression on that part. Generally, if you were making a comparison to a university-based career, welding application is probably the under-graduate program and the operation and inspection qualifications are more akin to the post-graduate qualifications. In any case, there is clearly a career path for advancement within welding.

Having qualifications and experience in welding can lead to many opportunities in different industries worldwide and can be very exciting being in a continuous learning journey (especially when you think about all the new technologies being developed every day in welding and non-destructive testing fields). Skilled welders are also in high demand as many countries, including Aotearoa, experience a skills shortage in this field. 

Reflecting on my own journey

I started my welding journey with a two year higher education in welding technology at a university in Ankara, Turkey. The program was well developed and intense and geared towards producing highly skilled engineering technicians to the welding sector. In those days there was high demand for well trained welders, making it easy to get a job.

My first role was as a welding supervisor at a structural steel fabrication company where I had interned during my studies.

After that I moved to my first construction job, working as a welding inspector. It was a coal fired power plant construction project on the south coast of Turkey. It was mind blowing to see the variety of materials and welding processes and to witness the progress of a mega–project. It was also my first experience of living in a construction site camp away from home and was an adventure that showed me the importance of training and education.

I went back to university after that project for another three years, earning a degree in Metallurgy and Materials Engineering and an International Welding Engineer Diploma shortly after that. During this time, I also had the chance to work on two other power plant construction projects gaining valuable experience.

This foundation led to a career in international mega–projects across the world, from oil and gas, to nuclear power and coal fired (or gas fired) power plants in a variety of leadership roles in welding. I worked in places like the Sahara Desert, Sakhalin Island in Russian, Iraq, and Albania, each time adapting to vast environments, regulations and multinational teams.

Each project was like a school both for my profession and vision of life, helping me to gain the skill to quickly adapt, and continuous training during this time (especially in the inspection space) kept me at the forefront of the field eventually leading to a role as an operations manager and trainer for an international training organisation. Here, I was responsible of operations in the region and teaching allowing me to meet new people in almost 20 different countries across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, North Africa and South America.

Now, my journey has brought me to HERA in Aotearoa New Zealand. Looking back over my 25 year career, I never imagined my work would take me across the world and away from my home country Turkiye. I feel very lucky to have all these experiences in my career and life.

Where can welding take you?

Industries which involve the need for welding skills and qualifications include building and construction, oil & gas, power generation (including renewable energies such as wind and geothermal), manufacturing, pressure equipment, and ship building – just to name a few!

There is unmet demand for welders, welding engineers, welding (and NDT) inspectors and welding supervisors all over the world – including right here in Aotearoa! In fact, many of our own members at HERA are crying out for skilled welders of which there is short supply – making it a promising career to explore.

The good thing is, that although different industries may have different rules, regulations and standards, most qualifications are recognised by different industries and countries or can be converted into the new one easily. This is because at its core, the knowledge gained in various qualifications and training are based on engineering facts.

Your welding steps for success!

The first step is choosing the area to start with – application, operation or inspection.

Welder training schools are ideal to learn how to weld and gain the required level of skills. For operations or inspection areas there are training organisations, vocational schools or universities where many different types of trainings and certifications can be found.

At HERA, we provide in-person advanced training (equivalent to post-graduate training). For example, we offer welding supervisor and welding inspector training where extensive knowledge is covered around welding processes, materials, weldability, and welding design. Attendees are also taught how to generate essential welding documentation such as ‘how to conduct weld procedure and welder qualification testing’ and review these documents as well. There are also practical exercises about welding inspection and non-destructive testing covered. We also provide online material to increase efficiency ahead of examinations.

Our training programs are aligned with the latest industry standards, including the upcoming AS 2214 standard ensuring that candidates are well prepared to meet developing industry requirements.

Our Welding Supervisor training is targeted to support those already actively working in the welding/fabrication industry and are wanting to gain the necessary expertise in structural steel welding to step up their skills. This might be fabricators, leading hands, fabrication supervisors, NDT technicians, welding Inspector trainees, welders moving to a supervisory role, QA managers and technical representatives with three years of experience or more. 

Our Welding Inspector training is perfect for fabricators who perform in–house visual examinations or are seeking the CBIP Certified Welding Inspector. It is especially relevant to those in steel construction, infrastructure fabrication and maintenance, bridge building, transport industry, machinery, shipbuilding, and maintenance.

Find out more about our courses here:

Welding Supervisor course – https://www.hera.org.nz/welding-supervisor-course/

Welding Inspector level 1 course – https://www.hera.org.nz/welding-inspector-lvl1/