Opposed electrode welding – The product being welded is placed between two opposed electrodes using either a moving or fixed lower electrode. The upper electrode applies a controlled pressure which triggers the welding current pulse through the joint.

Parallel gap welding –  Both electrodes are placed on the same surface of the product and the weld takes using the flow of current between the two electrodes. The electrodes cane be individually mounted with an adjustable gap or alternatively be a bonded pair with fixed gap.

Step electrode – This is similar to parallel gap welding but uses one electrode placed on the bulk of the product and the second electrode placed on the item being welded to it. Both electrodes are independently sprung to ensure good electrical contact.

Welding power supply – This can be one of a number of variants – High Frequency DC (HFDC), Linear DC, Capacitor Discharge (CD) and AC. The correct choice depends on the application although our preferred option is a closed loop unit either Linear DC or HFDC.

Weld Heads – These can range from manual products to full servo drive units. The weld head is a key component as it is critical to provide a controlled welding force which is maintained during the material melting which takes place during the welding process. Typical types of weld head are opposed manual or pneumatic, servo drive heads, parallel gap heads and constant force heads for low force applications.

This is a process using a non-consumable Tungsten electrode. It is sometimes referred to as the Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) process. The key components are the power supply, welding head, cables and gas control if required.

Power supply – This provides the welding power together with the high voltage arc start energy. Units can be of closed loop design providing precision control of the output or alternatively capacitor discharge. For low volume applications touch start can be used.

Welding Head – The welding head is primarily designed to hold the electrode accurately and provide a gas or air shield together with any required extraction. Accurate electrode positioning is important to ensure consistent welding results.

Cables – As high voltage arc starting is generally used the cables must be suitably insulated and positioned to avoid causing any electrical interference to any adjacent equipment.

Gas control ­– Where gas or air shielding is used the flow rates must be carefully controlled to ensure consistent performance. Flowmeters should be used for this.

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