8 / 234
The first 40 years of IIW’s existence encompassed great change. This provided
the foundation for future expansion of the Institute as IIW approached and entered a new
millennium. Up to this point the formative years of IIW had been covered by Philip Boyd,
former Secretary General of IIW, in his book
Joining Nations – A History of the International
Institute of Welding – 1947-1990
. Boyd’s book provided an authoritative account of the
circumstances contributing to the foundation and evolution of IIW, its background and
development, as well as the inevitable economic, political and technical changes that
impacted on IIW during those years. On reflection, Boyd did express disappointment that
it was not possible to review, in detail, the activities of the working units, because his book
was short and had to cover a diverse range of topics in a relatively limited period of time.
Much has happened since then, the detail of which is essential in
understanding and analysing events of more recent years, which reflected on
the great heritage that IIW had already built upon. IIW had the foresight to
record the events of the last 25 years in a more comprehensive way before
the detail of this was lost or became indistinct over the course of time.
As author of this history, I called upon my metallurgical background and
broad experience in welding, non-destructive testing, failure analysis and
research into life assessment of critical power plant. Having a keen sense of
history, and previously authoring
The History of Non-Destructive Testing in
Australia
and
Lighting the Flame – The History of Welding in Australia
, I am
indebted to IIW for the opportunity to write its history over the last 25 years.
The subsequent research and writing of this history has been both rewarding
and stimulating since, beyond the assembling of facts and information, it has
confirmed and revealed the significant importance of welding, and the part it
has played in the progress of all nations.
This narrative on the history of the International Institute of Welding from 1990-
2015 is somewhat different in style to that of Boyd and reflects to a larger extent the
contribution of the Working Units such as Commissions, Select Committees, Working
Groups and individuals, including those of the Board of Directors, Technical Management
Board, International Authorisation Board, IIW Secretariat, and many others too numerous
to mention, all of whom have contributed significantly to the success of the Institute. The
early chapters focus on events that formed the Institute in the years leading up to the dawn
of a new millennium, including the significant changes in its structure, and the inevitable
challenges that arose through combining two secretariats into a single secretariat. The
remaining chapters feature a more focussed approach on the various activities of IIW with
respect to publication and marketing; education, training, qualification and certification;
research and innovation; standards; regional activities; health, safety and the environment,
as well as IIW meeting the challenges of the future.