When a shipyard quotes IACS-affiliated welder certifications, what does that actually deliver to the buyer of a hull-construction service? This article unpacks the term, what the International Association of Classification Societies does, how welder qualification is structured under that framework, and what a procurement team should verify before signing off on a sub-contractor mobilisation.
What IACS is, and is not
The International Association of Classification Societies is the body that coordinates the major classification societies, Lloyd's Register, DNV, Bureau Veritas, ABS, RINA, ClassNK and others. IACS itself does not issue welder certifications. What it does is set the unified requirements (URs) that member societies reference when they audit a yard or approve a build.
The practical effect: a welder certification that follows the IACS framework is recognisable by all member societies. A welder qualified to weld a particular material grade in a particular joint position under that framework is generally acceptable to any classification society regulating the build, as long as the certification is current and the qualification continuity has been maintained.
How qualification continuity works
A welder ticket is not a one-time certificate. Classification societies require evidence that the welder has actually been welding regularly, typically a six-month continuity window. If a welder has been off a particular process or material for too long, the qualification lapses and has to be re-tested before they can be assigned back to that scope.
For procurement: this is what to verify. The ticket itself is necessary but not sufficient. Continuity records, signed by yard QA or independent inspectors, are the operative document.
What to verify at mobilisation
- Certificate validity (is it currently valid, not just historically valid)
- Continuity records covering the recent qualification window
- Match between ticket scope and project scope (material grade, joint position, process)
- Welder roster traceability, who is mobilising onto which scope
Mature sub-contractors hand over this documentation as part of mobilisation. If it is treated as a special-request item rather than a standard deliverable, that itself is a signal.
How RS Marine handles it
Every welder we field carries an IACS-affiliated certification appropriate for their assigned scope. Tickets and continuity records are tracked in our internal roster. At project mobilisation, the documentation is handed over to the yard QA team and to the attending surveyor before crews touch a workpiece. The same discipline applies whether the engagement is luxury yachts at DAMEN, commercial work at Karstensen, or naval programmes at PGZ Stocznia Wojenna.
RS Marine Sp. z o.o. delivers hull construction, refit and repair, industrial HVAC and electrical installations from Gdynia, Poland. Operating since 2018 with IACS-affiliated welders and a team of over 100 specialists.