CSA W48 Electrode and Filler Metals Certification

This standard outlines the requirements for the certification of welding electrodes and consumables by themselves or in conjunction with gas mixtures or fluxes as applicable.

CSA W48 provides requirements for the classification and certification of welding consumables by itself or in conjunction with gas mixtures or fluxes as applicable. The standard provides all requirements on chemical and mechanical properties of the electrodes and acceptable manufacturing tolerances. In addition, CSA Standard W48 requires the manufacturer to implement a quality management system that provides instruction on how to manufacture, inspect, pack, store, label and ship these welding consumables.

Certification requires these steps:

A review of the quality system at the manufacturing site. This can take up to eight hours.

Testing to the requirements of the applicable standard such as CSA standard W48. The welding and testing must be witnessed by the CWB Group. This normally takes about six-to-eight hours for one or two approvals. It will take longer for three or more approvals.

If the welding facilities at your supplier are limited, samples can be selected on our visit, to be shipped to Canada for testing. This will reduce the length of our stay at your plant, but you would incur costs in Canada. You would be directly responsible for payment to the organization performing the welding and testing, and the CWB Group would invoice for our witnessing time and costs in Canada.

Please note that the standard, and the CWB Group policy, demands that a representative of the CWB Group verify the quality system in place at the point-of-manufacture, and witness all welding and testing. The CWB Group does not, at this time have any reciprocal arrangements with alternate inspection agencies.