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Job Description

Overview

The Certified Welding Inspector (CWI) position requires certification in AWS D17.1_D17.1M_D1.1 or equivalent Fusion Welding for Aerospace applications, along with CWI certification. The role involves operating welding machines, training team members, and ensuring quality in welding processes.

Responsibilities

  • Operate GTWA and GMAW Welding Machines.
  • Weld thin Aluminum 035-060 and Steel.
  • Understand basic measurements using calipers.
  • Have a basic understanding of welding symbols per AWS 2.4.
  • Read blueprints at an advanced level.
  • Own all necessary tools for welding jobs.
  • Set up jobs, support the welding team, train, and approve jobs.

Requirements

  • 10 years of MIG welding experience (Preferred).
  • 10 years of TIG welding experience (Preferred).
  • Certified Welding Inspector certification (Required).
  • High school diploma or GED; or equivalent combination of education and experience.
  • Ability to read and comprehend simple instructions and correspondence.
  • Ability to write simple correspondence.
  • Basic computer skills.

Benefits

  • 401k
  • Health Insurance
  • Dental
  • Vision
  • PTO

Additional Information

  • Must be comfortable working in a warehouse environment.
  • Must be able to lift up to 40 lbs.
  • Must be able to work in a standing position up to 8 hours per day.

Benefits

401k
Health Insurance
Dental
Vision
PTO
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How this job compares in Orange, CA

Pay in context

At roughly $25/hr, this posting comes in about 21% below the $32/hr median for welding jobs across California, where the middle half runs $27–$38/hr across 313 postings with published pay. Put another way, it pays more than about 19% of the comparable postings we have wage data for. That gap is worth raising directly — in a market this size there is normally room to negotiate toward the median, particularly if you already hold the certifications the posting asks for.

The local market in Orange, CA

This is the only active welding job we're currently tracking in Orange, CA, which makes it worth moving on quickly — there is no local competing offer to weigh it against. Across California as a whole we're tracking 399 other active welding openings from 207 employers. Browse welding jobs across California.

The most active employers in California at the moment, by number of open welding reqs, are SpaceX (20), Aerotek (17), and Volt (16). Volume like that usually means either a genuine expansion or a staffing agency working several client sites — worth knowing which before you apply.

Within California, the best-paying metros we track by median hourly rate are Santa Ana at $48/hr, Los Angeles at $38/hr, and Hawthorne at $36/hr. If you can relocate or commute, that spread is worth factoring in.

What you'll be running

This posting calls for MIG and TIG work. MIG (GMAW) feeds a continuous wire electrode through a shielding-gas nozzle. It lays down metal fast and is forgiving on clean material, which is why it dominates production and light fabrication work. TIG (GTAW) uses a non-consumable tungsten electrode with filler added by hand, giving the operator the most control of any process. It is slow, demanding, and the standard for stainless, aluminum, and anything where the bead has to look as good as it holds.

Certifications this posting mentions

  • CWI — the AWS Certified Welding Inspector credential. It is an inspection qualification rather than a welding one, requiring documented experience plus a three-part exam, and it is the usual route off the torch into QC.

Read straight from this posting's text. Confirm the exact qualification the employer wants before you test — requirements vary by shop even under the same code.

Similar openings near Orange, CA

Pay figures are medians computed from live postings in the Welding Pros index, not from survey data, and they move as employers post. Certified Welding Inspector (CWI) figures were last recalculated when this page was built.