EN ISO 15614 Part 1 And EN 287:2004 : Documentation
This is a general guide on how the certificates for EN ISO 15614-1 and EN287-1:2004 should be completed.

I can not guarantee universal acceptance of the interpretations contained in this page as the decision to accept any interpretation will always be the prerogative of the contracting parties.

Application standards, particularly those in other European countries may impose additional rules and restrictions on the qualification of welders and welding procedures.

Welding Procedure Approval Test Certificate, Form E1
The numbers on the left hand side below refer to the line numbers that appear down the left hand side of the E1 form. The section and page numbers quoted below all refer to EN ISO 15614 Part 1.

  • 3 to 6  The Welding procedure reference number can be any combination of numbers and letters that are unique to your company. The inspection authority reference number  is a unique number issued by some Inspection Authorities, it is not a mandatory requirement.  The Manufacturer named on this form should be the organisation that is in control of the welding operation (Ref EN ISO 15614 Part 1 Section 8.2).
  • 7  The code/testing standard: EN ISO 15614 Part 1 : 2004
  • 8   Date of Welding: or the date when the weld was produced.
  • 9   Range of approval: this applies from line 10 to line 20 (This line is a heading).
  • 10 Welding process: state  process used, if more than one process specify which performed the root  and which performed the capping welds.
  • 11 Joint type: Section 8.4.3. Use line 21 'Other information' if more space is needed. All joint configurations approve fillet welds on plate or pipe. Single sided full penetration welds without backing or back gouging approve all butt welded configurations with similar root details and branch connections with an angle > 60o. T butt welds only qualify T butt welds and fillet welds.

    • There are two types of double sided welds; with gouging and no gouging, they should be correctly specified as they have different approval ranges.

  • 12 Parent metal groups: Section 8.3. The parent material must be put into the appropriate group, see table 3 for steel and table 4 for nickel alloys. If the material will not fit into any of the 11 steel groups or 8 nickel groups then it is classed as a group on its own and approves no other material. If it can be assigned to more than one group then it goes in the lower group.

    • Impact tests; Refer to table 1 note d. One set from H.A.Z. and one set from weld metal for material less than 50mm thick. The acceptance criterion is that of the application standard, refer to section 7.4.5. 

    Groups 1 to 3 (sub groups are not used for these groups) only approve other materials in that group with the same or lower minimum specified yield stress { Note this the minimum value quoted by the materials specification and not the actual value of the material.  However I don?t believe that is intended for this rule to be applied precisely but rather the general philosophy behind it be adopted.}. This is what suffix a in table 3 means, and it applies to the whole line so that 1a- 1 means 1a- 1a   Therefore for a EN10028 P265GH state: 

    • Group 1 with a yield stress less than or equal to 265 N/mm2.

    Groups 4 to 11 approve either: -

    • Suffix b :- Steels in the same sub-group and any lower sub group in the same group. e.g. A test made from steel in group 6.3, approves 6.2 and 6.1, but not 6.4.

    • Suffix c :- Steels in the same sub group. e.g. A test made from steel in group 7.2 approves all steels that can be classified as 7.2, but not 7.1 or 7.3

    The approval range calculator wi.ll calculate the material approval range for you

    • 13 Parent metal thickness: Section 8.3.2.2

      • A test piece of thickness 't' between 3 to 12mm will approve thicknesses from 3mm to 2 x t. Above 12mm the approval range is 0.5 x t To 2 x t

      Single run welds made from one or both sides for Butt, Branch and T Butt welds  with t < 3mm approve only 0.7 x t to 1.3 x t. with t >3mm:- 0.5 x t (3mm min) to 1.3 x t  .

      Single Run Welds Don't Approve Multi-Run Welds and Vice Versa, this rule applies to all joint types including fillet welds

      Fillet welds have a seperate range of approval covering parent metal thickness and throat thickness, refer to table 6. Therefore a weld qualification will have two parent metal ranges of approval, one for butt joints and one for using fillet welds. The throat thickness approval range only applies to single run welds.

    • 14 Pipe Diameter: Section 8.3.2.3.
       
      • D <= 25mm approves   0.5xD to 2xD
      • D > 25mm approves   0.5 x D to Plates (25MM MIN)

      Note for Branch connection the diameter is the branch pipe.  If the branch is greater than 2/3 of the main pipe diameter the joint geometry will change significantly, therefore a separate test should be considered. Branch connection may consist of a pipe to plate subject to above rule.

    • 15 Filler Metal Type/Designation: Sections 8.4.4, 8.4.5, 8.5.1. Specify the codification of the consumable used and what standard it is coded to. If more than one type of consumable is involved define which part of the weld each is responsible for. e.g. BS 639 E43 22 C  2.5mm  (Root weld), BS 639 E43 23 R  2 to 3.2mm (Cap weld). The consumable type used must be compatible with the material to be welded and have the same nominal composition or be in the same mechanical properties as the type used in the qualifying procedure test. MMA electrode coating types can not be changed and if impact tests are required the brand of the electrode can not be changed without further impact tests.

      • Note there is no longer a restriction on the range of approval for a MMA electrode diameters and filler wires sizes, but there is a limit on heat input see 8.4.8

    • 16 Gas/Flux: Section 8.5. Shielding gas and backing gas composition or submerged arc flux specification. eg. Shielding and backing gas Argon 99.9% pure.
    • 17 Type of Welding Current: Section 8.4.6. State type used in test .e.g. AC or DC+ve or DC-ve or pulsed current. Note one type of welding current does not approve another.
    • 18 Welding Positions: Section 8.4.2. This section states that for an all position qualification the hardness survey must be taken from the area of lowest heat input and the impact tests from the area of highest heat input.

      • This implies that restrictions exist on heat input even when controlled heat input is not required. Other factors may also affect heat input such as a change from a stringer bead to a weave which will increase heat input significantly.

      No hardness or impact requirements. e.g. Austenitic stainless steels  State: All positions.  (Providing the welding process and consumable is capable of being used in all positions).

      Hardness requirement only, apply the following rules :-
       
      Test Position. Approved Positions
      Flat  Flat , Vertical Up; (Horizontal vertical for fillet welds only)
      Vertical Up  Vertical Up only
      Horiz-Vertical  Horizontal-Vertical, Flat and Vertical Up
      Overhead  All Positions except vertical down.
      Pipe Horizontal All Positions (except v.down) providing the location of the  test specimens are in accordance with Figure 7

      Hardness and Impact Requirements Approve only the welding positions covered in the test unless more than one test piece is welded, and providing the location of the test specimens are in accordance with Figure 7. e.g. If a plate is welded in the OH position and another identical plate is welded in the Vertical Up position then all intermediate positions are approved providing:-  The hardness survey is taken form the overhead plate and impacts from the vertical one, each plate weld must be subject to Radiography, Surface Crack Detection, one Tensile and  two Bend tests.

    • 19 Pre heat: Section 8.4.9. If no pre-heat is used state the actual ambient temperature. (Guidance on pre-heat may be obtained from EN 1011-2). If there is any interpass requirements then these should also be stated.
    • 20 Post weld Heat Treatment: Section 8.4.12. Specify temperature range. Note if the application requires post weld heat treatment then the procedure test piece should be heat treated under similar conditions. A procedure with post weld heat treatment should not be used for application that do not require it.
    Welding Procedure Approval Test Certificate,  Form E2
    This form should state what took place on the day of the test, all the values stated should be actual values or machine settings recorded during the test. A simple way to record the data is to fill in an E2 form as the test progresses and type it up later. A continuation sheet may be appended if required.  If more than one process is involved the use of another E2 sheet may be an advantage.

    The material specification must be stated in full.   eg. To state 316 is not acceptable as there are several 316 austenitic stainless steels with tensile strengths ranging from 490 to 580 N/mm2.  It is advantage to append the material certificate to this form.

    Test Results, Form E3
    This form gives summary of all the test results. It is similar to the back of the WP form.  I strongly recommend that you retain your laboratory report for future reference.

    Welder Approval Test Certificate, Form E4.
    For a welder approval test it is only necessary to complete form 'E4'. The section and page numbers quoted below all refer to EN 287 Part 1. Abbreviations described in EN 287 section 4 may be used in lines 14 to 24 providing their meaning is clear. 

    • 2  Designation: Section 12. I think that this is meant as an aid to the fabricator to keep track of  welders qualifications and therefore do not consider it mandatory.
    • 5  Welding Procedure Reference Number: The number of the qualifying procedure or W.P.S.
    • 12 Job knowledge test: Annex C. This is not a test I would recommend unless you have to have it.
    • 16 Joint Type: Section 5.9 and table 8. The approval range need only cover the range that concerns the fabricator.  Single sided full penetration welds without backing or back gouging approve all butt welded configurations and a single sided pipe butt without backing approves a branch connection but not for the procedure test.  Note Butt welds no longer approve fillet welds, a seperate test is now required for each.
    • 17 Parent metal Group: Section 5.5.2 table 2. (Materials are grouped according to CR ISO 15608)

      • A test made on wrought material approves cast material and a mixture of cast and wrought material in the same material group.
       
      As a general rule:-  (refer to the standard for more precise details)
       
    • 19 Gas/Flux: Section 5.6 table 3 (Note the consumable type can't be changed for the root run of a single sided butt joint)
    • 18 Filler Metal: Section 5.6 table 3. State full designation .e.g. BS2901 Part 2 316S92.
    • 20 Auxiliaries: Not referred to in the standard and I have no idea what they are, state N/A.
      21 Material Thickness: Section 5.7
       
      • A test piece of thickness 't' between 3 to 12mm will approve thicknesses from 3mm to 2 x t. Above 12mm the approval range is 5mm and above.

        •  
      • If more than one welding process is used thicknesses 't' can be applied to the thickness of each deposit.

        •  
      • For dissimilar thicknesses two ranges of approval can be given for each thickness, except a branch weld where 't' is the thickness of the pipe containing the weld preparation

        •  
      • Fillet weld leg lengths; EN287-1 does not specify any approval range for fillet weld dimensions, it recommends sizes for the test in Section 7.2. {Fig 4 and 6}.  However the size must be specified in the WPS before the test begins and represent the weld sizes to be used in production, Ref Section 7.3.
      22 Pipe outside diameter: Section 5.7
       
      • A test piece of Diameter D < 25mm approves Diameters in the range D To 2 x D

        •  
      • Pipe Diameter > 25mm approves Diameters in the range 0.5D (25mm Min) and above + Flat Plates

        •  
      • Note:-The testing of small bore pipes require a minimum circumference of 150mm, or additional test pieces must be welded to a maximum of 3.

        •  
      • For branch a connection 'D' is the diameter of the branch for both set on and set through type.
    • 23 Welding position: Section 5.8 and table 7.  The 6G position for pipe, now referred to as HL045, approves all positions except vertical down. A plate inclined at 45° is not a recognised position in EN 287.
    • 24 Gouging and backing: Section 5.4 and table 3. State if backing was used for single sided welds and if gouging was used for double sided welds. Also state if a purge or backing gas was used.
    • 25 Additional W.P.S.: State the W.P.S. number if different from the procedure number in line 5.
    • 33 Validity of Approval: Section 10. The date should be 2 years from the date of issue. Then the certificate must be re-validated by the an examiner test body by providing evidence of volumetric tests carried out on the welders production work. This will involve evidence of radiography, ultrasonics or fracture testing in the form of radiographs or reports. These must be traceable to the welder and taken at roughly six monthly intervals, i.e. the basis for employer updating. Results of visual examination and/or surface NDT will not be sufficient. If the inspection body is satisfied then it signs the welder approval certificate making it valid for a further 2 years. 
Page last updated 4 October 2011