Welding Procedure Generator — Ask Flux for Your WPS
A welding procedure generator produces the written WPS that AWS D1.1:2025 Clause 5.2.1 requires — covering the 21 essential variables in Table 5.5 (process, position, base metal group, preheat, filler metal, technique). Flux is a conversational generator: describe the joint and steel, get a draft with cited clauses or a Clause 6 PQR-required flag.
Per AWS D1.1:2025 Clause 5.2.1: “All prequalified WPSs shall be prepared by the Contractor as written prequalified WPSs.” A generator produces the draft — the Contractor signs and adopts it.
The one-sentence version: A WPS generator produces the values that go on the form. The form (Annex J template) is just paper — the generator decides what each field should say. Flux returns drafts with cited D1.1 Clause 5 references.
What a Welding Procedure Generator Does
A welding procedure generator is a tool that takes a job description — base metal, joint, process, position — and returns the values that belong on a written welding procedure specification (WPS). Under AWS D1.1:2025 Clause 5.2.1, every prequalified weld requires a written WPS prepared by the Contractor. The generator does the lookups; the Contractor reviews, signs, and adopts the document.
Generators come in three forms. Blank PDF templates (the AWS Annex J sample form, or a fabricator's house format) capture a WPS that has already been decided. Form-based builders walk the user through fields one at a time, often with dropdowns for filler metal classifications and base metal groups. Conversational AI generators like Flux let the user describe the job in plain language and produce a cited draft — useful when the procedure is still being resolved, not just documented.
Whatever the form factor, the generator must address the same set of 21 essential variables that Table 5.5 requires in every prequalified WPS, plus the 10 variable-tolerance entries (items 22–31) that define allowable ranges for amperage, voltage, travel speed, and shielding-gas flow. The format is flexible — Clause 5.2.1 allows any convenient format provided all required variables are addressed.
Why Flux Is Positioned as the Generator
Flux is built specifically for the moment when a fabricator is still deciding what the WPS should say. Most form-based generators assume the user already knows whether GMAW short-circuit transfer is allowed (it is not, per Clause 5.5.1), which Group their A572 steel falls in (Group II per Table 5.6), and what minimum preheat applies at 1.25 in. thickness (50 °F per Table 5.11 row 2). Flux returns those answers with citations to the specific clause, table, or figure that supports the value, so the Contractor can verify before adopting the draft into a written WPS.
That citation discipline is what separates a generator from a guess. A WPS that lists "preheat: 50 °F" without a code reference is a number on paper — an inspector cannot trace it back to the standard. A WPS draft that lists "preheat: 50 °F per D1.1:2025 Table 5.11 row 2 (ASTM A572 Gr.50, 1 in.–1.5 in., SMAW low-hydrogen)" is a defensible engineering decision. Flux is structured around that second behavior.
For numeric chip prompts — preheat lookups, fillet weld minimums, heat input, carbon equivalent — the answers are served from a deterministic answer cache backed by the encoded D1.1 tables. Free-text questions go through retrieval-augmented generation against the indexed D1.1 corpus with a confidence threshold; low-confidence answers fail closed rather than guessing.
Inputs Flux Needs from You
To generate a useful WPS draft, the generator needs the inputs that drive the 21 essential variables in Table 5.5. The list is short:
With those inputs Flux can produce a full prequalified WPS draft — or, if any input violates Clause 5 limits, it raises a boundary warning and explains why the procedure must be qualified by testing under Clause 6 instead. The boundary check happens before the draft is returned, not after.
Output: Prequalified WPS or PQR-Required Flag
The generator output takes one of two shapes. Understanding which shape applies to your job is the first decision a generator helps you resolve.
Prequalified WPS Draft
Returned when the requested combination falls inside Clause 5 limits. Cites Table 5.6 (base metal), Table 5.7 (filler), Table 5.11 (preheat), Table 5.5 (essential variables), and the applicable figure (5.1, 5.2, or 5.3) for joint detail.
Typical scope: SMAW, SAW, GMAW (not GMAW-S), or FCAW; Table 5.6 base metal; standard groove or fillet; no CVN required.
Boundary Warning
Returned when any input violates Clause 5. The generator explains the trigger and points to the PQR path under Clause 6.
Common triggers: GMAW-S (Clause 5.5.1 excludes it), GTAW or ESW (not listed), base metal not in Table 5.6, joint not in Figure 5.1/5.2/5.3, CVN requirements, filler metal outside Table 5.7 matching.
Most structural fabrication work falls in the prequalified path. Plate-girder connections in A572 Gr.50 with E71T-1 wire and a Figure 5.1 CJP detail prequalify cleanly. The PQR-required flag fires for the edge cases — a non-listed steel, a custom joint geometry, a process the code does not cover. When that flag fires, the PQR process takes over: a test weld is produced to the proposed WPS, specimens are extracted and tested mechanically, and the results are documented on a PQR that supports the WPS.
Form-Based Generators vs. Conversational AI
Both styles produce a valid WPS; they help at different stages. Form-based generators (Annex J PDFs, fillable templates, vendor builder apps) are best when every variable is already decided and the work is documentation. The user knows the process, the steel, the joint, the filler — the form just captures it for the file.
Conversational generators are better at the decision stage. When a fabricator is still resolving whether GMAW-S is allowed, which Table 5.6 group A1011 SS lands in, or whether a 30° bevel on a backing-bar groove matches a Figure 5.1 detail, asking those questions in natural language and getting cited answers is faster than scrolling through a form. Most shops use both: a conversational tool to resolve the procedure, then a form to document it.
The Annex K reference checklist in D1.1:2025 lists the code subclauses a prequalified WPS must address — provisions across Clauses 1, 4, 5, 7, 9, and 10. A good generator covers that checklist; the form just records that coverage.
When You Need a Real PQR Instead
Generators cannot produce a prequalified WPS for every job. Clause 5 draws hard lines. When the job crosses any of them, no generator can return a prequalified draft — the procedure must be qualified by testing per Clause 6 and supported by a PQR.
The most common Clause 5 boundaries that trigger the PQR-required path:
- Process not in Clause 5.5.1. SMAW, SAW, GMAW (excluding short-circuit), and FCAW are the only prequalified processes. GTAW, ESW, EGW, and GMAW-S require Clause 6 qualification.
- Base metal not in Table 5.6. The five Group I–V tables list every steel that can be welded under prequalification. Anything else — including high-strength steels above A913 Grade 80, certain pipe grades, cast steels, and most stainless — needs a PQR.
- Joint geometry not in Figure 5.1/5.2/5.3. CJP, PJP, and fillet details are tabulated in those figures. Custom geometries fall outside prequalification.
- Filler metal not matching Table 5.7. Filler must match the base metal strength level per Clause 5.6.1 and the matching tables.
- CVN (notch toughness) requirements. Prequalified WPSs do not establish CVN properties — if the contract requires impact testing, a PQR with impact tests at the specified temperature is required.
Flux flags each of these conditions when it sees them in the inputs. The boundary warning is explicit: which trigger fired, which clause governs the PQR path, and what test specimens Clause 6.10 requires for the qualification.
Calculators That Feed Your Generated WPS
The numeric values the generator returns — preheat, heat input, fillet minimum, carbon equivalent — come from D1.1 table lookups and standard formulas. You can run the same lookups directly:
"A generator that returns a number without a clause reference is just guessing. The Contractor signs the WPS — their license is on the line. Citations are not optional decoration; they are how the procedure becomes defensible."
— Standard CWI guidance, reflecting D1.1:2025 Clause 5.2.1 requirements for written WPSs prepared by the Contractor
Frequently Asked Questions
A welding procedure generator is a tool that produces a written welding procedure specification (WPS) — the document AWS D1.1:2025 Clause 5.2.1 requires for every prequalified weld. Generators range from blank PDF templates and form-based builders to conversational AI tools like Flux. The output must address the 21 essential variables in Table 5.5 (process, position, base metal group, preheat, filler metal, electrical parameters, technique, and PWHT) and follow the format rules in Clause 5.2.1, which permits any convenient format provided all required variables are addressed.
AI can generate a WPS draft, but the document is only valid when the Contractor — a qualified person under AWS D1.1:2025 — reviews, signs, and adopts it as written per Clause 5.2.1. A generator that returns a prequalified WPS for SMAW on Group I steel with E7018 electrode is producing a draft based on Table 5.6 base metals, Table 5.7 filler metals, Table 5.11 preheat, and Figure 5.1/5.2 joint details. The Contractor remains responsible for verifying the draft matches the actual job and signing it. Flux is built around this constraint: it returns drafts with cited clauses so the Contractor can verify each variable against the code.
A generator needs the inputs that drive the 21 essential variables in D1.1:2025 Table 5.5: welding process (SMAW, SAW, GMAW, FCAW), base metal specification and grade (e.g., A572 Gr.50), thickness, joint type and geometry (CJP groove, PJP groove, fillet), welding position, filler metal classification (e.g., E7018, E71T-1), and the service environment (notch toughness requirements, PWHT plans). With those inputs, the generator can look up preheat from Table 5.11, confirm process eligibility from Clause 5.5.1, match filler metal from Table 5.6/5.7, and select the correct prequalified joint detail from Figure 5.1 (CJP), Figure 5.2 (PJP), or Figure 5.3 (fillet).
A WPS generator should flag the PQR-required path whenever the requested combination falls outside Clause 5 prequalification limits. Common triggers per AWS D1.1:2025: GMAW short-circuit transfer (GMAW-S — explicitly excluded by Clause 5.5.1), GTAW or ESW processes (not listed in Clause 5.5.1), base metal not in Table 5.6, joint geometry not in Figure 5.1/5.2/5.3, filler metal outside Table 5.7 matching, and CVN (notch toughness) requirements that prequalification cannot cover. When any trigger fires, the procedure must be qualified by testing per Clause 6 and supported by a PQR. Flux raises a PQR-required boundary warning instead of returning a prequalified draft when these conditions appear.
They solve different problems. Form-based generators (Annex J PDFs, fillable templates) work well when you already know every variable and just need to document it. Conversational generators like Flux work better at the decision stage — when you are still resolving whether a process is prequalified, which Table 5.6 group your steel falls in, or whether your joint matches a Figure 5.1 detail. Conversational generators surface code lookups (Table 5.11 preheat, Table 5.5 essential variables) inline and can flag the PQR-required boundary before you commit. Most fabricators use both: a conversational tool to resolve the procedure, then a form to document it for the file.
Flux returns answers with citations to specific D1.1:2025 clauses, tables, and figures (for example, "Table 5.11 row 2 for ASTM A572 Gr.50 at 1 in. thickness — minimum preheat 50 °F"). Each citation points to the corpus passage that supports the value, so the Contractor can verify before adopting the WPS. Numeric chip answers — preheat, heat input, fillet weld minimum, carbon equivalent — are served from a deterministic answer cache for the curated chip prompts, with the underlying lookup grounded in the encoded D1.1 tables. Free-text questions are answered with retrieval-augmented generation against the indexed corpus and a confidence threshold; low-confidence answers fail closed rather than guessing.
A template is a blank form — typically the AWS D1.1 Annex J sample WPS or a Contractor's house format — that the user fills out manually. A generator produces the values that go into the template: it looks up preheat from Table 5.11, picks the prequalified joint detail from Figure 5.1, matches filler metal per Clause 5.6.1, and confirms the process is allowed under Clause 5.5.1. The template captures the WPS for the file; the generator decides what each field should say. Both are useful — Clause 5.2.1 only requires the WPS to be a written document in any convenient format, not any particular template.