Bird & Sons Training, Examination, Consulting
P.O. Box 19495, Colorado City, Co 81019
Phone: 719-250-6990
e-mail:
Welders build inspectors sell!
Re: The strained symbiotic relationship between welder and weld inspectors.
Or in layman’s terms, that worthless welder; that ignorant inspector.
By nature of the job, the relationship between welders and inspectors is conflicting.
“that guy is gonna check MY weld!”
However as one dictionary defines “symbiotic”, it is or should be “a relationship of mutual benefit or
dependence”. Much like a football team will have a team made up of offensive, defensive and special teams,
to make a complete team, all groups have to work together.
To illustrate:
Can a tower, a pressure vessel, a pipeline be built without an inspector?
Absolutely! We do not need inspectors to build anything! We need welders!
Just look, wherever you are, unless you are out standing in a field. (no puns here), you cannot be far from
a welded product.
Yes, in this country we daily encounter countless items that have been welded.
Patriots will spout numbers like of 1776, 1812, etc.. I say to you, 5P, 6011, and 7018
So Mr. Inspector get off your high horse! Few things are as hard to stomach as some "prima donna"
inspector. If the welding does not get done you have nothing to inspect and of course it follows that with
nothing to inspect there is no paycheck.
Does that mean, for your livelihood you need or must have welders? YES!
Now, you rod burners and wire churners, before you thumb your nose or get that "see there" attitude, chew
on this, without inspectors the product(s) you are building, whether it is a 100' diameter product tank or 50
miles of pipeline or a wind tower, you cannot sell the product. Federal agencies and insurance underwriters
demand an inspection by certified inspectors before the product you weld up is sold to the public. So weld
all you want, fab all you want, but no inspection means no sale of product. No sale of product, no paycheck!
Mr. Welder, does that mean you need, that you must have inspectors? YES!
This working together could be analogous to a football team with offense, defense and special teams. So is
the welder offensive, defensive, or special teams. Well, some welders might say that inspectors are
offensive, with some inspectors contending that welders are offensive. But that is not really the proper
context. It could be stated that welders are the offense of the team, moving forward, building repairing etc.
While conversely inspectors could be likened to the defense of a team. Making sure that the finished product
meets safety and code requirements. Regardless both must work together to promote a quality product.
Special team could be the engineers. But don’t tell them that. That’s a whole other subject!
Please let us help with your inspection needs
P.O. Box 19495, Colorado City, Co 81019
Phone: 719-250-6990
e-mail:
Welders build inspectors sell!
Re: The strained symbiotic relationship between welder and weld inspectors.
Or in layman’s terms, that worthless welder; that ignorant inspector.
By nature of the job, the relationship between welders and inspectors is conflicting.
“that guy is gonna check MY weld!”
However as one dictionary defines “symbiotic”, it is or should be “a relationship of mutual benefit or
dependence”. Much like a football team will have a team made up of offensive, defensive and special teams,
to make a complete team, all groups have to work together.
To illustrate:
Can a tower, a pressure vessel, a pipeline be built without an inspector?
Absolutely! We do not need inspectors to build anything! We need welders!
Just look, wherever you are, unless you are out standing in a field. (no puns here), you cannot be far from
a welded product.
Yes, in this country we daily encounter countless items that have been welded.
Patriots will spout numbers like of 1776, 1812, etc.. I say to you, 5P, 6011, and 7018
So Mr. Inspector get off your high horse! Few things are as hard to stomach as some "prima donna"
inspector. If the welding does not get done you have nothing to inspect and of course it follows that with
nothing to inspect there is no paycheck.
Does that mean, for your livelihood you need or must have welders? YES!
Now, you rod burners and wire churners, before you thumb your nose or get that "see there" attitude, chew
on this, without inspectors the product(s) you are building, whether it is a 100' diameter product tank or 50
miles of pipeline or a wind tower, you cannot sell the product. Federal agencies and insurance underwriters
demand an inspection by certified inspectors before the product you weld up is sold to the public. So weld
all you want, fab all you want, but no inspection means no sale of product. No sale of product, no paycheck!
Mr. Welder, does that mean you need, that you must have inspectors? YES!
This working together could be analogous to a football team with offense, defense and special teams. So is
the welder offensive, defensive, or special teams. Well, some welders might say that inspectors are
offensive, with some inspectors contending that welders are offensive. But that is not really the proper
context. It could be stated that welders are the offense of the team, moving forward, building repairing etc.
While conversely inspectors could be likened to the defense of a team. Making sure that the finished product
meets safety and code requirements. Regardless both must work together to promote a quality product.
Special team could be the engineers. But don’t tell them that. That’s a whole other subject!
Please let us help with your inspection needs
