There is a Skills Gap for ability to do effective repairs that will last without re-cracking. This relates to advanced skills such as being able to do single sided open root repairs, but also for general skills and efficiency relating to gouging and preparation and being able to do good capping runs that do not require lots of grinding.  

It also relates to understanding of fatigue cracking and the simple steps a welder can take to improve fatigue life or even prevent re-cracking.

The MWC provides a framework for the theory training, coaching, upskilling and assessment of welders so that they are capable of doing effective crack repairs that last with little or no technical guidance or supervision.

Maintenance welding  - particularly crack repairs - requires specific knowledge and skills beyond what is required for fabrication welding. 

There is no industry relevant nationally accredited VET for welder training and assessment for maintenance welding. This means that there is no industry unified and recognised approach for upskilling and assessing welders who do maintenance work. The result is that training and assessment of welders is highly fragmented and often inadequate. 

The MWC provides an industry best practice non-accredited training package specifically for maintenance welding and crack repairs. We have already achieved one of our long term goals to turn this into an accredited VET package now that MEM05069 Undertake Advanced Weld Repair and Maintenance has been developed and released.

There is no simple standardised safety Verification of Competency (VoC) framework for assessing welders on a technical and safety basis for the multiple welding and allied processes required for maintenance welding.  Just having a Trade Certificate does not guarantee familiarity or competence with all welding and allied processes typically required for maintenance work. This makes it difficult for sites to demonstrate compliance to WHS requirements. Of particular concern is that a Trade Certificate III welder may not have had prior experience with Carbon Arc Gouging and Oxy-Fuel cutting, which have their own unique hazards and required skills to use safely and effectively. 

By completing the MWC, welders receive an assessment report that clearly states their VoC with CAG, MMAW, GMAW/FCAW, and oxy-fuel cutting and heating. 

Welder qualifications are generally not portable between employers. This means that there is a huge cost to industry as well as time spent re-assessing welders whenever they change employment. 

The general lack of recognised portable qualifications means that employers can be reluctant to invest in upskilling and training welders due to concern of welders leaving after investing in training or qualifying them. 

By being an independent authorising body and providing a customised competency assessment framework, the MWC provides portability of competency records between employers using a simple brokerage system to reimburse the prior employer for the residual value of a welders competency record. This removes barriers to investing in welder training and upskilling, saves industry significant time and costs on reassessments, as well as streamlining the hiring process.

Maintenance personnel and Asset Managers on mine sites generally are not welding experts. Also, attempting to apply fabrication based welding standards for the management of crack repairs is just too complex. It is not possible to have a welding expert scope and supervise every repair. Nor is it necessary. This has lead to a "trust based" system where maintainers are simply expected to "fix" a crack - usually with no technical guidance, supervision or QA. 

Attempting to manage a suite of WPS's and welder qualifications - especially for contractors - is just not feasible. Many mines have tried by getting their welders to do a welder qualification (usually to AS2980) in the form of a butt weld in the overhead position. However, the reality is that even if a welder can pass this qualification test, it does not translate into effective repair outcomes. This is because welder qualifications do not take into account the gouging and preparation stage. They are "half qualifications" for maintenance welding. The stark realisation of this fact is what drove us to find a better way. 

The MWC makes it easy for asset managers by packaging specific crack repair based skill sets into Competency Levels. This makes it simple to ensure that the welder has the necessary ability, but also makes it simple to determine the required welder competency level for the nature of the repair. No welding expertise required. 

On a technical basis, the MWC is designed so that there is no need for managing a complex suite of WPS's for routine crack repairs. The welder must demonstrate their ability to dial in the welding parameters via the competency assessment test piece. Best practices for the various repair scenarios are also instilled into the welder via the theory training and competency assessment. The Repair Scenario Selector makes it easy for asset managers to check what Repair Scenarios the welder has or should take into account. Via the Universal Repair Parameter Sheets, welders and supervisors can easily determine what working temperature and consumable type should be used for the 3 most common steel groups.