Workshop on welding in shipbuilding begins

A four-day workshop, WISH2k14, on ‘welding in shipbuilding’ has begun on the National Institute for Research and Development in Defence Shipbuilding (Nirdesh) campus at Chaliyam here.

The workshop was inaugurated by Commander P.R. Raghunath, Director of Shipbuilding, Mazagon Dock Limited, Mumbai, on Monday.

In his inaugural speech, Commander Raghunath stated that good welding was critical to the long life and fighting efficiency of warships. He appreciated the efforts of Nirdesh in training shipyard engineers and said that Nirdesh should focus on areas such as research and development, design and technology development to support India’s war shipbuilding efforts.

The workshop is being jointly conducted by Nirdesh and Welding Research Institute (WRI), Trichy. It will conclude on Thursday.

B. Bhuvanasekharan and N. Raju, welding experts from WRI, delivered lectures on welding technology, welding process, welding machines, quality assurance and tests to ensure quality.

Presentations on welding technologies presently used for shipbuilding will be made by welding engineers of Cochin Shipyard Limited; Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Visakhapatnam; and Mazagon Dock Limited. The Indian Navy will present a paper on welding quality required for warships.

Demonstration of welding simulators is the highlight of the workshop. Simulation is very useful to train welders, as it prevents wastage of steel, welding electrodes and electricity. The welder can use a computer to simulate welding and improve his skill without actually welding.

Welding simulator can also be used to grade welders. These are ideally suited for shipyards, as welding is a major process in shipbuilding. Three welding simulators are being demonstrated at the workshop by Impact Technologies of Mysore, Tata Consultancy of Chennai, and Ador Fontech of Bangalore.

Twenty-four engineers from Mazagon Dock Limited; Hindustan Shipyard Limited; Garden Reach Ship Builders, Kolkata; and Goa Shipyard, are attending the workshop. Two engineers of Chowghule Shipyard, Goa, are also attending.