A retired welder in Omaha told me to always check the fit-up before the first tack, no matter what the print says.

I was on a turnaround at the Cargill plant maybe five years ago, and this old timer named Frank was watching me prep a section of 12-inch pipe. He just pointed at the gap with his coffee cup and said, 'Kid, the drawing don't feel the heat.' He walked off, and I checked it. Sure enough, it was off by almost an eighth. That one sentence saved me a huge headache later. Do you guys ever find the prints are just wrong on the ground?

3 comments

3 Comments

jessica92123d ago

My old foreman in Toledo called prints "suggestions from the warm office.

ray17323d ago

Frank had it right. Those office prints never account for pipe sag or a bad bevel. Saw a spool last month where the iso called for a perfect fit, but the field weld neck flange was clocked wrong from the fab shop. You learn to trust your tape over the paper every time.

grant.olivia22d ago

Hold up, I gotta disagree here. Good prints come from people who did the job first. The problem is when engineers get stuck at a desk and never see the field. A correct iso should have the fab notes and know about standard fit up gaps. Blaming the paper feels like letting the office off the hook for bad work. Shouldn't we push for better plans instead of just ignoring them?