The Case for …
Continuing Professional Development
______________________________________________________
I would like to share with you some thoughts
about The Welding Institute, of which you are a
member, and how it can help you in your future
career.
Once you have started to earn
money in your chosen career,
whether in industry or academia,
there are several things that you
will have noticed. You will hopefully have more
disposable income than when you lived at home
and went to school, or attended college or
university. You will have fewer holidays and less
free time than before. You have to assimilate new
methods of working, and you will want to progress
further in your chosen career, whether within the
firm you are currently employed or moving in the
future to one or more organisations in the same or
a similar field of technology.
For the last item, you should accept that your last
formal education is a starting point in your search
for knowledge in your profession. Industry will
have a lot more information to download to you so
that you can operate at an increasingly higher
level than before, and usually greater rewards go
hand in hand with greater knowledge and
responsibility. So it is in your own interest to
develop as fully as you can.
Another step you may have taken
is to join the professional
institution covering your chosen
sphere of work, be it engineering,
metallurgy, physics, chemistry or welding. And
that institution, as you apply to move to a higher
grade, will want to check that you are a competent
professional, and part of that assessment will
include their requiring confirmation that you have
not stood still in your professional knowledge and
development.
So they will ask how you can demonstrate that
you have widened your knowledge since leaving
your last place of formal education. While it is
useful to be able to say that your firm has sent
you to conferences and exhibitions as attendees,
or supported you as you have submitted technical
papers to journals and conferences covering
aspects of your subject, the former does not
usually come with documentary proof of your
participation – at least as an attendee, A list of
conference authors will show you were expected
to be there (assuming you showed up on the day,
rather than spending the day on the beach
instead).
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…… or why you should read on!
This is where Continuing Profession Development
comes in. And this is where The Welding
Institute can be of invaluable assistance.
There are three basic areas of
continuing personal development that
are covered –
A. Learning new and wider technical skills and
knowledge;
B. Evaluating and discussing trends and new
developments in technology;
C. Communicating technology.
These main areas are firstly you listening to
experts passing on their knowledge to you;
secondly exchanging and sharing knowledge to
build up a more extensive knowledge base; and
thirdly to help you when you are imparting the
knowledge and expertise that you have to others.
These are worth considering in greater detail.
A. Continued Learning
This started with your schooling and any further
full time education before taking up a place in
industry, and perhaps continued with some of the
following:
 National Certificates and Diplomas, N/SVQs,
Advanced Modern Apprenticeships;
 Higher degrees such as MA, MBA, MPhil,
PhD, DSc;
 Open University courses, Association of
Business Schools, the Open College;
 Courses, such as those provided by TWI and
other professional institutions;
 Employer supported in-house training and
external training courses;
 Attendance at exhibitions, conferences and
seminars as observers, including those
organised by TWI or other professional
institutions.
All of these items are ways of
increasing your personal knowledge
database. What you were taught at
school and at college or university is
necessarily established and, in areas
will be somewhat out of date, knowledge. The
cutting edge of knowledge is in the research
departments of universities and advanced
technology firms. This knowledge may be rapidly
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evolving, and may also be subject to
confidentiality prior to formal publication or
patenting, so sometimes it will not be possible to
speak about it outside the circle of those who are
involved on a need-to-know basis.
Certainly one of the aspects in this section is
keeping up to date with current developments in
research and industry. The Welding Institute
Sheffield branch started in 1938, just before the
Second World War and the problems with the US
Liberty ships breaking up at sea – which prompted
the fracture research of welded structures at
Cambridge University and later moved out to
Abington Hall stables, to become the British
Welding Research Association in 1946, and then
The Welding Institute in 1961.
And just think of the advances in welding
technology since those early days – there were no
lasers, no high voltage electron beam guns, no
friction stir welding (and very little friction welding),
no robotic welding devices, no automatic weld
control, etc. There was little structural plastic in
use, so welding methods for that material were
not yet established. The design of arc electrodes,
torches and power units were quite primitive, and
no high speed photography had yet helped in
understanding the physics of weld pool motion
and molten droplet transfer.
So over the years there has been a
continuing need for all engineers,
but particularly those with a welding
and joining interest, to keep abreast
of the latest developments for their
own benefit and ultimately that of their firm, if and
when the new technology can be applied to their
own fabrication methods. The formal approach of
the CPD record is to verify that you have spent
significant time in fulfilling this requirement.
B. Continued Evaluation
 Participation in conferences and seminars,
especially when presenting a paper or
demonstration; making formal presentations
at major in-house meetings
 Participation in technical committees,
including Welding Institute branches, TWI
committees, IIW committees, British
Standards’ committees, Industry code of
practice committees
 Attendance and perhaps making
presentations at Welding Institute Technical
Groups and Welding Institute branch
meetings.
It may be asked why presenting a paper at an
external conference enables you to learn any
more. However, as with the literature survey in a
PhD thesis, a wide search of available literature
about your research subject often reveals aspects
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of technology and potential avenues of further
research of which you may not have previously
been aware or considered. Similarly in preparing a
paper to present at a conference or seminar
entails a thorough assessment of all relevant
aspects of the work you are describing, so that
you are ready for any technical questions you may
be asked.
This will be equally important when making a
presentation within your own organisation, where
the attendees will be well aware of many
peripheral matters about the work you are
involved in, including any confidential aspects that
would not be known to outside people attending
an external conference, and therefore you need to
be prepared for those potentially more searching
questions.
When participating in technical
committees, you are inputting
your knowledge and experience,
and sharing it with others around
the table. Here there will be a
greater in-depth discussion about the topic and
the need to arrive at a consensus view of
proposals to be agreed by the committee. Again
you will need to be adequately prepared to
support and perhaps defend your viewpoint, and
this can entail considerable background reading
on your subject and ancillary aspects, in order to
verify that what you are suggesting is sensible
and practical.
Similarly with Institute branch meetings, where
often an expert in a particular field of research or
industry is the speaker, there will be a greater
opportunity to discuss and share experience than
at formal conferences with tight timescales with
regard to the length of time for discussion periods
after presentations. However, within The Welding
Institute organisation, for example, there are also
the Technical Groups, which offer additional
opportunities for such exchanges of information
on some specialised aspects of joining
technology. The current Technical Groups usually
meet once or twice each year and cover the
following technical areas:
 TG1 Advanced Structures
 TG2 Welding Processes
 TG3 Materials
 TG4 Offshore Oil and Gas
 TG5 Pressure and Process Plant
 TG6 Structural Integrity
 TG7 Polymers
 TG8 NDT & Condition Monitoring
These cover most aspects of the welding industry,
and the meetings offer insights into
the latest technology and any new
or updated industrial standards.
The programme of meetings is
regularly updated on The Welding
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Institute website. And remember that the Institute
branch committees welcome all grades of
membership, from associates to fellows – in fact a
diverse range of committee members will ensure
that a balanced programme of relevant topics can
be developed for the branch meetings.
C. Communication
 Imparting knowledge by coaching, teaching
or lecturing, interacting with both in-house
and external people
 Learning or improving languages, computer
and presentation skills, all with a view to
improving your ability to communicate
 Relevant voluntary work, such as in schools
and colleges, local government, community
activities
There is little point in compiling all
the knowledge you have, if you are
not able to pass it on – at least to
your successors, if not to wider
audiences. So the ability to educate
others in the techniques and methods of operating
that you have developed or refined is also
counted as important. The coaching may be on a
one-to-one basis, for example assisting in the
tutoring of a graduate researching for a further
degree, or helping a junior work colleague who
has recently joined the firm, in which you might be
considered as the technical in-house expert.
Teaching or lecturing usually involves an
audience of more than one person, and may
include making a presentation about the technical
work you do or your firm does to a class year of
undergraduates, or to a college group, or at a
themed seminar where you are making several
presentations during the one day or longer
meeting. Academia will often invite industrial
speakers for their students to
gain an idea of what it
is like to work in
industry,
information
about which in their normal cloistered academic
world they would not otherwise have access to.
In order to function in these activities, you will
need presentational skills. Nowadays this will
normally include the use of computer software,
and you need to know how to create what you
want to say in a series of slides, for example, in
an efficient way. It may be that your firm operates
in foreign countries, and while the indigenous
people will probably have a grasp of English, for
you to interact with them at any level in their own
language will be greatly appreciated – by them
and by your firm.
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And as for the younger end of the education
spectrum, there are sometimes opportunities to
interact with schools and
colleges – and these
children are the future
engineers and technology
specialists of the future. So to
inspire them to even think of a
career in industry will demand different skills from
making presentations to intelligent and
experienced adults. However, the voluntary work
that includes coaching the 6-a-side football team
would not count, as far as CPD points are
concerned, although you may very well enjoy the
interaction with the children in any case.
Something for Newcomers and Old Hands
CPD is important to people who have just started
work and remains important to those who have
been working for many years. Your firm will value
your contribution in proportion to the activities with
which it can entrust you to organise and perform,
and also as it can allow you interact with external
people and customers at an increasingly high
level. Thus for the internal promotion or change to
a higher grade of job, you will need to
demonstrate how much you have grown
intellectually and in practical knowledge. Very
often, when climbing the ladder of success in your
organisation, they will want to see your inter-
personal and organisation skills improve. Do not
pass up the chance of joining a Welding Institute
branch or technical committee, and
assist in organising future branch
activities – in the long term, it could
be for your own good!
If verifiable CPD is important for internal
promotion, it is even more important if you wish to
join a new organisation. Your CV will be your
passport to an interview, and what you can
include on that piece of paper will determine
whether or not you are selected for interview.
Most new employers, without the benefit of
internal feedback from section and department
managers as to your capabilities, will normally
want to see someone who is a self-starter and a
self-motivator, and who has grown in his or her
chosen profession. Again the inclusion of
participating in Welding Institute activities, for
example, will demonstrate the ability of working
with other professionals as well as succeeding in
attaining goals such as the finalising next year’s
programme of branch events.
CPD will also be important if you want to move up
the ladder of professional membership of the
institution of which you are a member. This
progression will involve interviews covering many
aspects of your personal career and outside
interests, but the assessors will be particularly
interested in how you can demonstrate that you
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have kept up with technical developments in your
discipline. They are correct, for example, to
expect a 40-year old to have a greater awareness
and industrial experience than a 21-year old who
has just left his academic college or university and
is starting his first job. And to provide proof to
them, you will have a written CPD record card of
your attendances at technical meetings, Welding
Institute and otherwise.
As an example, there was an engineer works
colleague in his late twenties who wanted to
transfer to a higher grade in the Institution of
Mechanical Engineers. There was
no argument that he had been
gaining experience at work since
joining us and that he had
developed on several fronts, but
when the examiners asked about
CPD he came to an abrupt stop.
Yes, he had attended some conferences, but had
no proof of such activities, and it came as no
surprise to him when his elevation in grade was
deferred. He asked me what he could do to
remedy the situation and I said attending the local
Welding Institute branch meetings and
maintaining an up-to-date CPD card would
undoubtedly help. But why not go the extra mile?
The branch committee always welcomes new
members, and he could suggest topics and
organise speakers for some of the meetings – he
might actually like the interaction. He did, and
enjoyed participating in the organisation of the
branch meetings schedule, and his new ideas
were a breath of fresh air to the committee –
definitely a win-win situation. And when his next
IMechE interview came up, he passed with flying
colours. CPD really works!
Also there is the professionalism with which you
are running your own life or that of your section or
department. If you are a manager, as new
employees come into your sphere of operations,
they will bring in new experience and knowledge.
You should at least have some knowledge of their
activities and input, so keeping abreast of new
areas of work and technology is very important.
The Welding Institute branch and technical
meetings enable you to keep up with the latest in
technology – and if you are not up to date, you
can guarantee that some if not all of your
competitors will be.
And keeping abreast of technological
developments is not only important with regard to
welding. If your branch has a joint meeting with
professionals from other disciplines, such as the
different engineering and metallurgical societies,
then do not write off the meeting as being of no
potential use to you. They will often give you an
insight into how other areas of industry are
developing, and what new problems they are
encountering, and where possibly you may be
able to assist them in overcoming them. More
than that, the methods they have used to
surmount the different technical challenges in their
fields and which previously blocked their paths to
progress may be of use to you – very often an
idea can be altered and adapted into another
discipline and solve an unrelated problem. You
should look at your CPD as potentially widening
your horizons as well as improving your
knowledge of only your own technology.
An example of a CPD record is given below, and
The Welding Institute issues CPD cards to
members for them to use as a diary of meetings
they have attended. There are also electronic
forms available, which makes life easier when
keeping computerised records of your
development activities, but obviously this will not
be authenticated by a stamp verifying your
attendance, so the cards are still useful.
Conclusion
Now you have started in your chosen career, you
will wish to be considered as a professional in
your field of work. And one whose experience and
grasp of technology has broadened since the
days of your formal education. CPD enables you
to demonstrate that you are still developing as an
individual, as well as doing all of the above.

Example of CPD Form

Date Details of Activity Learning Follow up Hours Total Authentication

Include all development outcomes Make a note of the use Record your hours signature or
activities undertaken, not Give you own that you will make of the estimate of the official stamp*
only formal courses. assessment of new knowledge and of any hours spent in
Remember you should what you further work in the area useful
have both technical and learned which could be of benefit development
non-technical activities

Dr Richard Johnson, FWeldI, CEng

Vice Chairman of the Branch Management Committee PAG/037/CPD/Feb2013

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