Stainless Steel Workshop: Stainless steel production certification

As a buyer, you have the right to insist that for a given alloy the product being supplied meets or exceeds the designated classification. If you are ordering a 308L covered electrode, you should expect to receive a product that conforms to the AWS A5.4 specification. Unfortunately, not all suppliers meet the criteria, and unknowingly you can be supplied a nonconforming product. As the buyer, you have the responsibility to insist on the proper documentation to validate that electrode's actual weld deposit analysis.

Two types of documentation are available: the typical certification and an actual certification. A typical certification simply implies to the buyer that the analysis listed on the certificate is typical of that product, falls within the guidelines for that respective specification, and is not lot-specific. The certificate should claim that a given lot will meet the classification, if tested. The actual certification, on the other hand, indicates that for a specific lot number, the item was tested and the results conform to the classification for that specification.

For a covered electrode or cored-wire product, the test to determine the deposit analysis is performed based on the appropriate AWS specification, with the analysis being the actual result of the weld test. On stainless bare products, a sample of the specific heat is analyzed using optical emissions spectroscopy and would likewise confirm the actual wire analysis.

It is always in your best interest to insist on an actual certification for the product. If this is left to the discretion of the supplier, most often you will receive a typical certificate of analysis. Be advised that not all alloys are equal, and you are completely within your right to insist on an actual wire or deposit analysis.