Welder
Fabrication and welding operative or technician · Technical · Engineering, manufacturing, process and control
The official framework — 46 requirements.
Every Knowledge, Skill and Behaviour below is the verbatim regulatory text of the Welder apprenticeship standard (v1.4). On EngTree, each one becomes a node — verified knowledge entries, training modules and End-Point Assessment evidence all map back to it.
Knowledge (22)
What the apprentice must understand
- K1
Awareness of health and safety regulations, standards and guidance and impact on role. Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (CoSHH). Fire safety. Health and Safety at Work Act. Safety equipment: guards, signage, fire extinguishers. Safety signage. Slips, trips, and falls. Working in confined spaces. Working at height. Manual handling.
- K2
Safe systems of work, hazards and risks, isolation and emergency stop procedures, situational awareness.
- K3
Material properties for welded materials: carbon steels, austenitic stainless steels, duplex stainless steels, nickel and nickel alloys, aluminium and aluminium alloys, titanium and titanium alloys, copper and copper alloys and associated heat treatments.
- K4
Welding power sources: invertor, rectifier, transformer, alternating and direct currents and positive and negative polarities.
- K5
Ancillary equipment: cabling and their assembly, interconnecting communications cables, torches and tongs.
- K6
Welding gases and equipment: cylinder colours, regulators, storage.
- K7
Manual and mechanised welding processes and techniques.
- K8
Welding positions and progressions.
- K9
Welded joints: types, preparation, permanent and temporary backing.
- K10
Technical documentation requirements. Job specifications, drawings, manufacturer's instructions and manuals, quality documents.
- K11
Material preparation and removal methods using both powered and non-powered tools.
- K12
Control of weld settings.
- K13
Weld visual inspection, dimensional tolerances and alignment of the welded component.
- K14
Causes and prevention of welding defects and distortion.
- K15
Common faults and issues within the welding environment. Problem solving techniques.
- K16
Verbal communication techniques.
- K17
Equity, diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
- K18
Impact of the activity on the environment. Efficient use of resources. Recycling, re-use and efficient disposal of waste.
- K19
Principles of good team working.
- K20
Non-destructive testing (NDT).
- K21
Personal protective equipment (PPE).
- K22
Principles and practices of restoring the work area on completion of welding.
Skills (20)
What the apprentice must be able to do
- S1
Apply health and safety procedures including the use of personal protective equipment (PPE).
- S2
Collect and use information - text and data. For example, manufacturer's instructions, manuals, job instructions, drawings and quality control documentation.
- S3
Prepare welding materials and work area: sourcing, checking and protecting.
- S4
Prepare welding machines or equipment and safety protection measures, for example, check calibration and maintenance dates, inspection for cable damage.
- S5
Check and use or operate tools and equipment.
- S6
Set, modify and monitor welding controls, for example, current, arc voltage, wire feed speed, gas flow rates, polarity, mechanised tractor units.
- S7
Identify issues and actions required. Escalate issues or concerns.
- S8
Use manual processes and equipment to remove material before and after welding.
- S9
Weld using processes, for example, tungsten inert gas (TIG), plasma arc welding (PAW), manual metal arc (MMA), metal inert or metal active gas (MIG or MAG), flux cored arc welding (FCAW), submerged arc welding (SAW), tractor-mounted metal inert or metal active gas (MIG or MAG), tractor-mounted flux cored arc welding (FCAW), tractor-mounted or orbital tungsten inert gas (TIG), tractor-mounted or orbital plasma arc welding (PAW).
- S10
Adapt welding technique to weld different material groups, for example, carbon steel, low alloy steel (3-7% alloy content), high alloy ferritic or martensitic steel (>7% alloy content), austenitic stainless steel, duplex stainless steels, nickel and nickel alloys, aluminium and aluminium alloys, titanium and titanium alloys, copper and copper alloys.
- S11
Weld materials in different joint configurations, for example, butt, T-butt, fillet, cladding or buttering.
- S12
Adapt welding techniques to weld materials in different positions, for example, down-hand, horizontal-vertical, horizontal, vertical-up, vertical-down, overhead, inclined.
- S13
Identify surface defects.
- S14
Apply visual inspection, dimensional and alignment checks.
- S15
Restore the work area on completion of the welding activity, for example, clean equipment and machinery, tidy the work area, return excess resources and consumables.
- S16
Communicate verbally with others, for example, internal and external customers, colleagues, supervisors and managers.
- S17
Follow procedures in line with environmental and sustainability regulations, standards and guidance. Segregate resources for re-use, recycling and disposal.
- S18
Follow equity, diversity and inclusion procedures.
- S19
Follow work instructions - verbal or written.
- S20
Apply team working principles.
Behaviours (4)
How the apprentice must conduct themselves
- B1
Puts health and safety first.
- B2
Considers the impact on the environment when using resources and carrying out work.
- B3
Takes ownership of given work.
- B4
Adapts to changing requests.
This framework is where Pathways
meets verified knowledge.
Scenarios practise these requirements. Verified entries teach them. The evidence portfolio proves them. One spine, three surfaces.