conarb
Registered User
I am putting this under Residential Framing because that's what it is, here in California we are moving more into steel framing, at the very least every structure has steel moment frames. I know there is some disagreement on whether a contractor can pay the Special Inspectors, but the way I read it the owner has to pay, owners always balk at this, but I have put the cost of special Inspection into my Architects' Cost Control Breakdown with a note: "To be paid by owner" and not included it in my total costs so may owners are aware of the additional costs, this has served me well up until this job where Special Inspection firms are competing to get the work. In my current situation the Special Inspection firms have competed so "vigorously" for the Special Inspection contract (calling the owner and annoying him) that my owner thinks it's a total fraud and wants to pay as little as possible, thinking that there are too many layers of inspection, he wants top quality on everything, but draws the line at paying for multiple layers of inspection.
Question #1: Reading the 2007 CBC Table 1704.3 I see which welds require Continuous and Periodic inspection, and all Full Penetration welds require continuous inspection, but my steel subcontractor states that they not only require continuous inspections but also X-ray (actually ultrasound now) all Full Penetration welds, the structural engineer disagrees stating that it's one or the other, I see no references in the code to X-raying welds, so after Continuous Inspection is X-raying mandatory?
Question #2: I've inquired about X-raying filet welds, I have it on good authority that filet welds can't be X-rayed, that they are visually inspected during periodic or continuous inspections, but that there are some expensive spectrographic studies that can be made. Anyone here know if filet welds can be X-rayed?
Question #3: Can anyone give me code referenced welding standards applicable to these situations?
My Structural Engineer is German, he states that all inspectors in Germany have welding inspection certificates, if they question anything they can, and do, require everything be X-rayed, that seems to make more sense, forgo Special Inspection on all welding and require X-rays of all welds upon completion of the structural frame.
Question #1: Reading the 2007 CBC Table 1704.3 I see which welds require Continuous and Periodic inspection, and all Full Penetration welds require continuous inspection, but my steel subcontractor states that they not only require continuous inspections but also X-ray (actually ultrasound now) all Full Penetration welds, the structural engineer disagrees stating that it's one or the other, I see no references in the code to X-raying welds, so after Continuous Inspection is X-raying mandatory?
Question #2: I've inquired about X-raying filet welds, I have it on good authority that filet welds can't be X-rayed, that they are visually inspected during periodic or continuous inspections, but that there are some expensive spectrographic studies that can be made. Anyone here know if filet welds can be X-rayed?
Question #3: Can anyone give me code referenced welding standards applicable to these situations?
My Structural Engineer is German, he states that all inspectors in Germany have welding inspection certificates, if they question anything they can, and do, require everything be X-rayed, that seems to make more sense, forgo Special Inspection on all welding and require X-rays of all welds upon completion of the structural frame.