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CSWTO: A Must Have for Welder Training Organisations

Thu, 19 August, 2021

The Certification Scheme for Welder Training Organisations (CSWTO) enables further education (FE) colleges and private training providers to demonstrate to the market place that their training facilities, equipment, teaching materials and procedures have been assessed by an independent third party and meet best practise. CSWTO is supported by the CSWIP Welding Instructor and CSWIP Welding Examiner certification schemes, and is a mark of competence to deliver welder and brazer training and assessment.

To apply for certification under the CSWTO scheme, applicants are asked to complete and submit an application form. From here ,TWI Certification Ltd (TWI CL) will provide a no obligation quote and issue a contract for signing and returning. Once in place, a TWI CL auditor will conduct a stage 1 assessment to establish the training provider requirements and any shortfalls, followed by a stage 2 (full assessment), including any examinations for the CSWIP Welding Instructor/Examiner. A recommendation for certification will be presented to the Scheme Manager for review and a decision, and if successful, a certificate will be raised.

The CSWTO process requires assessment by one of TWI CL’s verification engineers (the auditor), who will ascertain if the organisation is compliant with the CSWTO scheme document. Successful assessments result in the issue of a CSWTO certificate, a TWI CL ‘Approved Centre’ plaque, as well as the addition of the organisation to the TWI CL CSWTO register.

There are now over 40 colleges and training providers in the UK and overseas who hold the status of ‘Approved Welder Training Organisation’ from TWI CL, reflecting the importance, relevance and benefits of the certification. CSWTO certified organisations experience enhanced client confidence in their training services; greater industry visibility; an elevated organisational profile and reputation; and the ability to attract and safe-guard student enrolment, all of which demonstrates their capability to deliver training, and produce personnel that are competent to meet industry requirements.

In addition, the most proficient CSWTO certified training organisations can also add to their products by gaining approval as a CSWIP Welder examination venue. This enables them to perform welder assessments, on behalf of TWI CL, for current students and staff who wish to gain CSWIP Welder certification in accordance with international, industry-recognised standards such as ISO 9606.

More information for colleges and training organisations interested in becoming an Approved Welder Training Organisation can be found on the dedicated CSWTO webpage.

Emma Freckingham, Head of Company Certification for TWI CL said “The Certification Scheme for Welder Training Organisations (CSWTO) enables FE and private training providers to evidence that they are able to provide individuals and employees with the high quality training they require, in order to become suitably competent and qualified to meet industry requirements.” “And with hundreds of centres in the UK offering welding courses, achieving the CSWTO standard can make all the difference in influencing customer choice when they decide where to train.”

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