All about the profession of a welder

The construction industry has never stood still. This means that workers associated with this area have always been, are and will be in demand on the labor market. Almost every production requires a person who quickly and efficiently performs welding work. All this and much more indicates the relevance of the welding profession today and in the near future.

A welder is a person who works with various metals, namely, with their connection to each other using special equipment (electric arc welding, gas torch). The professional skill of a specialist in this area can be determined by the quality of the work performed.

The profession of a welder is, first of all, a working specialty that does not forgive even the smallest mistakes, because they can lead to catastrophic consequences.... That is why it is very important to be able to observe all possible safety measures and not to forget to use protection (mask with specially darkened glass). The latter is necessary so that the employee can protect his face and eyes from various injuries that are most likely to occur as a result of close contact with sparks and flames.

In the modern world, the profession has several main divisions of specialization:

• electric welder;
• gas welder;
• argon electric welder;
• operator of an automatic welding machine.

Consider the main distinctive qualities of the profession.

Advantages:

• the profession is in great demand, work can be found anywhere;
• it is easy for a young welder without any experience to find a vacant position with a good salary;
• at the moment in the Russian Federation there is an acute shortage of high-class specialists;
• the average salary of a welder is up to 50 thousand rubles a month;
• rights to special conditions of retirement benefits.

Disadvantages:

• the work itself is very dangerous;
• working conditions are often difficult due to various external factors;
• high load on vision, provoking the development of diseases over the years;
• there is a high probability of dust getting into the respiratory tract, which can also cause diseases.

A special document was developed for welders, which is now called a professional standard. It is spelled out in detail what a specialist must be able to do and perform with his position and qualifications. Unlike the same ETKS, the professional standard has much more detailed information and all the necessary descriptions that will help the future welder learn all his rights and obligations to the employer.

The latter uses this document for competent personnel management, the formation of a personnel policy and a payment system, the creation of a staffing table and job descriptions, as well as for concluding labor agreements and conducting training or certification of employees.

At this point, a lot depends on the field in which the specialist works and the level of his qualifications. To summarize all this, then the welder:

• freely reads drawings and diagrams of welded metal structures;
• knows how to correctly use both manual arc and argon-arc or plasma welding of medium complexity;
• performs welding of complex elements in different spatial positions of welded seams, with the exception of the ceiling;
• makes manual oxygen cutting of complex parts made of special steel and non-ferrous metals, including cast iron products;
• performs fusion of hot pipes and cylinders, eliminates defects in mechanisms and structures;
• is responsible for fusing complex and worn parts.

The welder must have knowledge, the list of which will be presented below. In order to become a leader among other specialists, you need to pump your skills, increasing your own professionalism every time there is such an opportunity.... To do this, you need to take special courses that guarantee a significant improvement in qualifications, and later, a category. The higher the rank, the more the payment for the work of a specialist is estimated.

Those same categories.

• 1st rank - a beginner, a simple trainee who does not have any qualifications at all, but can easily perform work on cutting and welding the most primitive structures.
• 2nd rank - still the same trainee, but already able to weld in the lower and vertical position.
• 3rd rank - is assigned after the end of special education, is no longer a student and can proceed to full-fledged, the easiest work (hand and arc apparatus).
• 4th rank - qualification allows you to work with structures of no higher than average complexity and carry out welding in any position, except for the ceiling. At this stage, the welder already knows how to create sealed seams and weld two pipes that work under pressure.
• 5 rank - it is allowed to engage in more complex work, which is associated with multi-position equipment and the production of welding of vacuum tight joints.
• 6 rank - the most final and highest class in this area. It allows you to work with equipment and parts of any complexity, even on gas or oil pipelines, which are considered the most profitable.

The welder must:

• know and understand electrical engineering and the methods of melting the metals with which he works;
• understand the gases involved in antioxidation;
• be able to distinguish between the methods and bases of the operation of the machines used;
• adhere to safety precautions;
• have theoretical knowledge in the field of physics and chemistry.

It is worth reminding once again that the work is very difficult and requires highly pumped physical qualities in advance. The welder must be strong and resilient, and most importantly - completely healthy... Over the years, work greatly affects the well-being, so coming immediately with some deviations is definitely not the most suitable option.

Also, a specialist must be dexterous and fast.to take on more responsibilities, improve your skills and earn many times more colleagues. To the latter, stress resistance and competitiveness must be added, but this is not so important, since the specialty is in any case in great demand, and there is no competition as such.

In order to start working already, you need to get at least 3 digits. They are given exclusively at the end of special courses at the same vocational school or college.... There are even universities, higher education gives impressive guarantees to become a personnel manager in the future or to get the opportunity to organize your own company.

If you apply immediately after the end of the 9th grade, then the training will last three years, and after the 11th grade - only two. After the 9th, you only need to pass the OGE and have a certificate with a minimum score. Only some institutions require additional subjects to be taken. All this needs to be clarified on an individual basis. After the 11th, the algorithm is essentially the same. This is another priority of this profession. There are no compulsory exams for admission to an educational institution. But it is worth remembering that further you will need to make a lot of effort, studying such subjects as physics, mathematics and chemistry, because it is with them that the whole theory will be connected, which will need to be passed later.

Yet there are training centers for the development of technical specialties... They were created more for more mature individuals who decided too late who they want to be in this life. Training here is a little accelerated, following the division into academic hours of theory and practical training. The price of the question depends entirely on what kind of qualification the applicant has chosen.

Certification takes place immediately after the completion of the theoretical and practical part of the training. According to the rules for passing exams, the time is limited, and all the given theory is combined in one single ticket. It includes:

• welding process technology;
• first aid;
• safety precautions at an industrial facility and during the use of welding.

Practice is all the same technical exercise that prepares students for the job ahead. After successfully passing all exams, students can start working with welding and move up their own career ladder. Further training takes place during work additionally.

If it turned out that the student did not succeed in passing the exam the first time, then he still has a chance after a month. Repeated failure forces you to listen to the course again or abandon the idea of ​​going in this direction altogether.

Virtually every industry is a gold mine for the welder.

The most common sectors for profitable work:

• construction sites;
• auto repair shops;
• factory workshops and factory production;
• companies involved in the installation and repair of system communications;
• agricultural sector;
• the area of ​​oil refining and shipbuilding.

Even if the welder does not have much experience, he can always find a job in one of the housing and communal services institutions. The owners of private companies and the service sector are also always glad to such specialists.... It is from this stage that it is best to start your career, in order to then move on to something more serious. Particularly pleasing are the vacancies of the type "welder-assembler", because experience in such jobs is gained faster, the salary is fatter, etc. Most often, experienced workers find themselves in the industry at various construction sites.... Welding of metal structures is the main job of a welder, and the main technologies used in his work are electric arc welding and a gas torch.

On a semiautomatic device, beginners of the 2-3 category work. This wonderful machine replaces the need to call an experienced welder every time a certain amount of work needs to be done. To understand exactly how this machine works, you just need to study the parameters. Another miracle for beginners is working on resistance welding machines. Access to it is open from the 2nd to the 5th grade. The 3rd category also includes a welder of optical fiber, reinforcing mesh and cages. There are also such vacancies as a welder-assembler. You should not forget about such part-time jobs, because, although they are complex, they are really profitable. If a specialist has reached the 5th grade, he can try himself in the role of a locksmith. In the same category, you can start welding a pipeline and get a good profit for it.

Numerous analyzes carried out by independent experts have proved more than once that the job of a welder is one of the highest paid.

Here are the statistics:

• maximum salary - up to 150 thousand rubles;
• average salary - 50-60 thousand rubles;
• minimum wage - 20-30 thousand rubles.

You can make the picture even more clear if you look at salaries by category:

• second - 35 thousand;
• third - 40 thousand;
• fourth - 55 thousand;
• fifth - up to 70 thousand;
• sixth - up to 90 thousand.

It is clear that at the very beginning of a career it is difficult to get a decent income. But customers are willing to pay the maximum salary to those workers who will be universal. They don't care what your official rank is. For them, the most important thing is quality work. A skilled worker will always earn many times more, and rightfully so.