Verity Thomson Q&A - CSWIP Visual Welding Inspection Course

CSWIP Visual Welding Inspector course Q&A with Trainee, Verity Thomson

Verity Thomson, who works as an Associate ME Technician Welding Coordinator at Swagelok Limited, recently took TWI Training’s CSWIP Visual Welding Inspector course.

We spoke to Verity about her experience of the training and how it will help her in her work.

Hi Verity, can you start by letting us know a bit about your role with Swagelok Limited?

I have worked with Swagelok for 4 years now. I joined the company as a Manufacturing Engineering Clerk, was later promoted to Manufacturing Engineering Coordinator, and then to my current role as an Associate Manufacturing Engineering Technician. Recently, I took training to become the Welding Coordinator.

Which training course did you take with us?

I took the CSWIP Visual Welding Inspector 3.0 course with TWI.

What made you decide to take the specific version of the course, rather than the online course?

It was recommended by my company as part of a career development opportunity - leading to the role of Welding Coordinator. Having less experience in welding inspection, I felt it was better to travel and considered it a benefit to be in the classroom. It really helps in the practical aspects of the course.

How did you find the course content?

Being less experienced in inspection, I thought I would find it really hard and difficult to grasp, but Steve Jones was fantastic in presenting the content.

How did you find the experience of in-person learning?

I thoroughly enjoyed it; it was nice to be back in a classroom with other people learning, having done the rest of my courses remotely online.

How comfortable were you, being the only woman in the class? Tell us more about your experience.

At first, when I arrived, it was very daunting but, after an hour or so, I felt much more relaxed. Steve was brilliant at breaking the stigma and the rest of the men on the course were all very chatty and I did not feel any gender inequality at all.

As for the practical elements of the course and the examination, how did you find those were handled at TWI?

I found that was the best way of learning, just getting stuck into the practical mocks. It started to bring light to everything we had been covering in terms of the theory, and it was good to be able to have a chat with other members of the class when first doing the practical elements to get others’ opinions on some of the defects we could see in the welds. The examination was handled very professionally, and I felt like we were given adequate time to get all the practical elements completed.

Are you considering any more training soon?

Definitely. I will be doing more training in the future as part of my career development with Swagelok Limited. I have already started looking into what other courses TWI offers.

Finally, what would you say to anyone thinking of training with TWI?

Do it! The facilities are fantastic, as are the lecturers. From the very start of booking the course, everything was handled professionally. There were clear instructions on what is required prior to the course and everything you will need while being there, such as travel directions and details of nearby hotels. Especially for women in the field of engineering, I would say, please go ahead and take these courses!