Inspection Trends

Dear Readers,

Welcome to a new year of Inspection Trends. If you are reading this on paper, you’ve realized Inspection Trends is now published as part of the Welding Journal. Facing the increasing costs of mailing, printing, and paper because of worldwide supply shortages, we’ve decided not to keep printing Inspection Trends as a stand-alone magazine. However, the digital version will remain a stand-alone publication, and all AWS Certified Welding Inspectors (CWIs) and Senior CWIs will continue to receive Inspection Trends in digital format. An upside of this new configuration is that all AWS members will now have access and be exposed to more welding inspection content. Furthermore, we are working on a new online format to deliver all AWS periodicals in a manner that will be easier to access and read. Stay tuned.

On a separate note, I want to congratulate our long-time contributor, Calvin E. Pepper, on receiving his CWI Lifetime Achievement Award at FABTECH 2022 in Atlanta, Ga. (Read more about it in this issue’s News Bulletin section.) Pepper has been a constant contributor to the Welding Journal and Inspection Trends for many years, and this well-deserved award reiterates his high level of expertise and professionalism as well as his commitment to AWS and giving back to the welding community.

Additionally, we have more exciting news to share. After a long delay due to the pandemic, the Inspection Expo & Conference (IEC) will take place in Austin, Tex., on November 8–10. The IEC allows inspection professionals to network with industry experts, attend expert panel presentations and breakout sessions, and make connections that can boost their career and keep their inspection business on the cutting edge while earning up to 22 professional development hours. Learn about quality assurance/quality control roles, corrosion and inspection plan development, remote inspections, documentation, auditing, steel structural bolting, and advanced ultrasonic testing, among other vital topics. Visit aws.org/conferences for more information.

Call for Volunteers

The Certification Department is looking for volunteers to serve in the AWS Qualification & Certification (QC) subcommittees. This is an opportunity for industry leaders and subject-matter experts to play an integral role in the future of welding by providing knowledge and expertise to AWS certification programs and other publications. Anyone with a range of knowledge and experience in the welding industry is encouraged to apply. As a QC subcommittee member, you will be able to review and contribute to new standards and revisions of existing standards, be invited to join the QC committee biannual meetings, and network with leading experts in the industry. For more information and to apply, visit aws.org/certification/page/certification-committees.

CARLOS GUZMAN (cguzman@aws.org) is managing editor, digital and design, and editor of Inspection Trends and Welding Journal en Español.