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Stephenson Engineering: Certifying Improvements

Mon, 11 October, 2021

A fourth generation, family run business, Manchester-based  Stephenson Engineering has a wealth of history and experience in the production of medium to large sized, machined components and fabrications.  Having begun its operations within the mining industry, it has since branched out and now boasts clients in the oil and gas, rail and nuclear sectors.  Services include machined fabrication, engineering design and equipment manufacture, profile cutting, coating systems application and forging.

Stephenson Engineering gained their first certification with TWI Certification Ltd (TWI CL) in 2014, under the Welder Fabricator Certification Scheme (WFCS), a scheme that provides third party certification in accordance with ISO 3834 ‘Quality Requirements for Welding’. Since then, the company has grown their portfolio of certifications with TWI CL to include certification under the Conformity Assessment of the Execution of Steel and Aluminium Structures (CAESAS) in accordance with EN 1090, and in 2021, they have also now added Certification for Welding of Railway Vehicles and Components (CWRVC), which is in accordance with EN 15085.

Of course, Stephenson Engineering’s certification experience in 2021 was vastly different to their previous certifications due to the COVID-19 pandemic affecting how certification assessments could be conducted.

However, Rob Ash, welding engineer and the company’s manager for welding activities, told TWI CL that the assessment “went very smoothly” and even though there were “probably additional man hours involved upfront prior to the audit [he] would not be against remote audits in the future, regardless of world pandemics.”

So why has Stephenson Engineering continued to maintain their current certifications and gain new ones despite the difficulties involved? For Rob, it is because it improves their “welding quality management system and, in doing so, improves quality control,” Furthermore, for potential customers, it demonstrates the company’s ability “to meet their contract requirements.”

When asked why he uses TWI CL for his certifications, Rob was frank. He explained that TWI CL has been Stephenson Engineering’s body for a long time and that although the assessment process may seem “rigid” due to TWI CL’s diligent approach in assessing clients, TWI CL makes the certification process smooth and the team are “easy to work with.”

For other companies seeking certification, or for clients who wonder why they should expect their provider or supplier of choice to have certification, Rob tells us that that the certifications they have achieved sets them apart from other fabricators, and that it provides an opportunity to “break into other markets/sectors.”

Congratulations to Stephenson Engineering for their continued certification and recent achievements. 

If you or your company is interested in gaining a certification from TWI CL please do not hesitate to contact us.

Images courtesy of Stephenson Engineering.

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