Boiler making is a very versatile, underutilised and widely misunderstood trade. This skill is actually not one that is widely taught anymore, even as demand for a boiler makers specific skills is set to rise in the future due to Australia's impressive mining boom.
Below is a brief explanation of what a boilermaker actually does. This will help you better understand this specialised trade and ensure you best know how to employ the skills of these individuals in the future.
Boilers
Of course, a boilermaker is first and foremost skilled at fabricating industrial boilers. Whilst a boiler maker may sound quite old fashioned, they are in fact still used in industry and larger commercial building complexes. The most common type of machinery they help maintain is obviously, a steam boiler. These boilers rely on high pressures when creating steam and hot water for use in heating large buildings. As you may well be aware, having hot water and steam stored under pressure is a very dangerous proposition. This means that boilers must be expertly crafted and maintained in order to avoid tragic accidents.
It is the traditional job of a boiler maker to fabricate and maintain these pressure vessels using their advanced welding skills. However, as you will see below, there is also a far wider range of applications for these skills outside boiler fabrication and maintenance.
General Fabrication
As detailed above, boilermakers have advanced welding skills due to the precision that is required when maintaining and fabricating boilers. This skill is very versatile and can be applied to a wide range of industries. Increasingly, boilermakers are being employed in mining and construction where there is a large amount of welding, or heavy duty cutting to be done.
Welding And Cutting
Not all welding is the same, even though many people use it as an overarching term. In this section, some of the many varieties of welding and cutting in which a boiler maker is proficient will be explained in some more detail.
There are two commonly used techniques by boilermakers, the first of these being oxy-acetylene cutting. This technique is used to cut and modify both steel pipes and thick steel plating. This is extremely useful outside boiler maintenance, when used in an industrial manufacturing setting. Some tasks cannot be performed by machinery and instead need the detail and precision which can only be achieved by a human armed with a cutting torch.
The second commonly used process mastered by a boilermaker, is of course, a wide range of welding techniques. These include gas tungsten arc welding, gas metal arc welding, or shielded metal arc welding. All of these techniques are used to attach, or modify, metal plating and pipes. Each of these processes is designed for use with particular metals, or in specific situations. Skilled boilermakers are well trained in choosing which of these techniques should be used for each specific situation.
For more information on what a skilled boilermaker can do for you and your business, contact your local engineering firm for more details.
