Welding, Joining and Cutting

Welding and joining technologies are fundamental to engineering and manufacturing. Without the ability to make strong and durable connections between materials it would be impossible to produce the many different items we all rely on in our everyday lives – from the very large (buildings, pipelines, trains and bridges), to the very small (medical implants and electronic devices).

TWI has its roots in welding and joining technology and, over many years, has been responsible for developing and encouraging the adoption of new techniques and best practice in all industry sectors, providing our Members with the right manufacturing choices first time. The technologies we can help you understand and apply include:

Arc processes All main process variants.
Laser processes Welding and cutting
Electron beam processes In/Out of vacuum variants.
Friction processes Including linear, rotary and friction stir
Adhesives and sealants Pre-treatments, selection and testing

Resistance and mechanical fastening Covering metallic and dissimilar joining applications
Composites and polymer joining Multiple fusion and non-fusion process options
Brazing and diffusion bonding High quality processes for simultaneous joint manufacture

Recent developments

The work of our joining technologies group is varied and wide-ranging. Some of the projects we have worked on recently include:

Materials, joining technology and thermal management techniques for an advanced high-temperature electronic sensor module, followed by modelling and demonstration of a prototype in HERCULES, a European collaborative project

Development of an antimicrobial coating for aluminium and textiles using copper nanoparticles and Vitolane technology

Development of a water-repellent coating for textiles without fluorine via the Texshield project

Development of novel heat exchanger designs and manufacturing processes for renewable energy project RenewX

Development of joining methods for thermoelectric generators designed to capture the energy lost as heat in automotive exhaust emissions, for the PrinTEG project (PDF)
Demonstration of in-process quality assurance system for friction stir welding for the SignaStir project.
Identification of the physical limits of friction stir welding (FSW) process miniaturisation
Improvement of FSW tool performance when welding high-strength aluminium alloys
Installation and implementation of FSW production capability for shipbuilding in the Far East
Publication of patent application and further fundamental development of novel radio-frequency-excited plasma electron beam source
Development of Surfi-Sculpt® technology, through research and human–machine interface improvements
Electron beam probe development, from Mk3 prototype research tool, into BeamAssure™ production-ready system
Development of thermally assisted piercing of composites
Development of autoclave optimisation software
Development of fire-resistant systems for pipes
Development of adaptive electrode tip dressing technology SmartDress
Crack-free remote laser welding of automotive aluminium sheets
Underwater laser cutting
Laser welding of copper-to-copper thin sheets

Joining Technologies Equipment Factsheets

For more information please email:

contactus@twi.co.uk