West Hills Center
Certificate

This program provides students with the skills and knowledge for employment as a pipe welder in industries such as crosscountry natural gas transmission and natural gas  retailers.

Upon successful completion of the program, the graduate will:

1. Demonstrate the technical skills for employment as a welder in the Marcellus Shale industry.
2. Apply safety procedures and theory of the Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) processes.
3. Utilize multi-layered welds in different weld joints and weld positions.
4. Make a shielded metal-arc weld on schedule 80 pipe in a fixed 6G position.
5. Transition pipe welding skills to the downhill process using specialized electrodes.

Successful completion of this program prepares students for the following certification examinations: Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW)—D1.1 and D1.5 American Welding Society (AWS) test on one-inch plate in the vertical position; American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) and American Welding Society (AWS) pipe welding certification in uphill Shielded Metal Arc Welding (SMAW) for 6” diameter, schedule 80 pipe in the 6G (45 degree) fixed position; and The American Petroleum Institute (API) downhill shielded metal-arc pipe welding process employed by the Marcellus Shale industry to connect natural gas cross country transmission pipelines.

The Welding Technology program is located at the CCAC–West Hills Center as a day or evening program. The program is also offered at Career and Technical Centers (CTC), based on demand and lab availability. Credit for some courses may be awarded for work completed at an area Career and Technology Center (CTC) through Students Occupationally and Academically Ready (SOAR) articulations, trade schools or from the military. Students will be required to purchase welding tools and equipment.