The second step of the welding workflow is to allocate a WPS and welders to the welds, and later mark them completed with the materials, machines and filler metals used, for full welding traceability. This is done in the Weld Log. You will find the "Weld Log" button on the Welds page, and on each work pack's page, where the Weld Log lists only that pack's welds.

The Weld Log works like a spreadsheet, so a whole shift's welds can be updated in one go.

Click "Explain this function" next to a page title for a narrated walkthrough of that page, or the book icon beside it to open this article.

Step 1 - The Weld Log

1. Planned / Allocated / Completed: the welds are listed by stage, each with its count. The page opens on Planned; click a stage to switch;
2. Search: type part of a value to narrow the grid to the welds you are working on, for example one drawing or tag;
3. Advanced Search: filter by several fields at once, and edit locked (completed) welds or delete welds (Steps 3 and 4);
4. Weld Number, Drawing and Item: the weld and where it is. The Item column is shown when the project groups its welds, with the project's name for them (Item, Spool, Assembly or Piece), and is picked from the items of the row's drawing;
5. Status icons: a calendar marks a planned weld, a person an allocated weld, and a padlock a completed (locked) weld;
6. Full screen: open the log full screen, which helps on a project with many columns.

Save at the bottom of the page saves every change at once (Step 5).

Step 2 - Allocating and completing welds

1. WPS # - Rev: pick the WPS first. Only the WPS the project uses are listed;
2. Welder ID Root, Fill and Cap: only the welders qualified to the selected WPS and within continuity for its processes are listed, so a welder who is not qualified cannot be picked. The welder you pick for the root is copied to the fill and cap; you can change them, or pick more than one welder for a pass;
3. Date Welded: pick the date the weld was completed. The weld moves to Completed and is locked: a padlock appears, and the columns up to the date can no longer be changed. To change a locked weld, see Step 4;
4. Material 1 and Material 2: the heat numbers of the materials joined. Optional;
5. Machine ID: the welding machine, from the machines qualified to the selected WPS, if you track machines. Optional;
6. Consumables: the batch numbers of the filler metals. Optional;
7. Custom fields and Comments: the project's two custom fields, named in the project configuration, and comments. Optional.

The columns to the right of the date welded (materials, machine, consumables, custom fields and comments) can still be filled in after a weld is completed.

Deemed qualifications: when a welder holds a deemed qualification for a WPS they are not formally qualified to, the welder ID is listed below a dotted line in the welder columns. See the article on deeming of welder qualifications: https://support.weldtrace.com/portal/en/kb/articles/deeming-welder-qualifications-from-formal-qualifications

Copy and paste work within the grid and from Excel (Ctrl+C / Ctrl+V, or Cmd+C / Cmd+V on a Mac). Paste fields that are checked against each other in steps: paste the WPS first, then the welder IDs, because the welders are checked against the WPS.

Step 3 - Advanced Search

Click Advanced Search in the Weld Log.

1. Search fields: up to four. Pick what each one searches: the tag, the drawing and revision, the joint type, the category, the WPS, the welders on the root, fill or cap, the machine, or the item when the project groups its welds;
2. Then type a few characters or click the box below, and tick the values. The values picked show above the field; when more than two are picked, a number shows how many, and you can click it to see them;
3. Matching welds: the count of welds that match, updated as you add conditions;
4. Load welds to edit: load the matching welds into the Weld Log, up to 1,000 at a time. When more welds match, the button is disabled and you are asked to refine the search.

Step 4 - Edit Locked Welds and deleting welds

After Advanced Search, the Weld Log lists only the welds found.

1. Filtered Welds shows next to the count;
2. Advanced Search changes colour. Click it again to refine the search. Clear goes back to the normal Weld Log;
3. Edit Locked Welds: slide it on to change completed (locked) welds. Only project administrators can do this; super users and account administrators have the project administrator privilege;
4. Delete: with Edit Locked Welds on, a Delete column appears. Tick the welds to delete and click the delete button. Deleted welds cannot be restored.

Step 5 - Saving the changes

When you click Save, every change is checked first.

1. A cell with a problem is outlined in red. Here a date welded was entered on a planned weld, so its WPS and welder cells are needed. Other examples are a weld number already used on that drawing, tag and item, a missing value, or a welder not qualified to the WPS;
2. The warning above the grid says the data cannot be saved until the highlighted cells are corrected. Correct them and save again.

When the changes pass, they are saved in the background and a message shows at the top right when the save is done. The Welds list is not refreshed by itself: refresh the page, or open another page and come back, to see the changes.