“NOT EVERITHING THAT GLITTERS IS GOLDEN”
- CHINESE PRODUCTS -

In the last year it seems that there has been an acceleration of Chinese imports into different Countries and it would be interesting to examine which countries are more vulnerable to this action and which products in the welding field are really exported from China and why (price? low technology? etc).

Our opinion is that the only area where the Chinese manufacturers are really successful is where the manufacturing of a product is based on a combination:

Low costs of production + low technology + high volumes + culture of the importing Country.

To know something more about some Chinese welders our president, Philip Ippaso, has conducted a short interview with one R&D technician, Gabriele Grilli.

Q: I understand that among the various functions you cover with your colleagues in the R&D Department you have been given the task of testing some specific welding machines produced in China. Why is it you carry out these tests and how do you do it?
R: Our export sales managers report back to us that competitors of our importers all over the world have started to import Chinese welders and whereas some of our importers understand that purchasing price is only one element of the equation, and for certain high technology products, not even the most important, they want to know a bit more of their specifications, performances, compliance with current standards, etc.
We carry out tests on welders indicated by our commercial people and originated from sound Chinese manufacturers. First of all we check that the declared specs correspond to what the mcs really give. Then we check other valid aspects.

Q: Can you tell me about your findings?
R: In the last six months I have tested the following samples:

1. Portable arc welders 145A – Manufacturer A
Findings:

- The insulation of winding is class F whereas our European qualified production goes for class H (class F implies that temperature can go up to 155° C and class H up to 180° C).
- The data label does not conform with European Standards.
- No trace of compliance with CE directives.
- No trace of Duty Cycles.
- The earth cable came away easily from the connection to the case by exercising a mild pulling force.

2. Portable gasless mig welder 100A – Manufacturers A
Findings:

- Windings were class F and not class H.
- No trace of compliance with CE directives
- There was no manual
- While welding the arc was not stable and was tending to switch off in both positions
- The welder had two different welding positions and the difference between the two was very small.

3. Inverter MMA 170A – Manufacturer B
Findings:

- First test :
• Potentiometer was stuck with glue and not screwed as usually is done
• A wire on PCB was not connected
• Wires on faston to the light switch were loose

Not satisfied I asked for a 2nd sample

- Second test on second sample:
As soon as it was switched on there was a flame and did not work. It was the connection between switch and PCB.
Once it was repaired, it was observed that some welding on PCB was defective.
No compliance with CE directives.

4. Inverter MMA 200A – Manufacturer C
Findings:

• As soon as the case was taken away to find out the cause for vibrations it was shown that the transformer had collapsed because the screws were not tight enough.
• Declared specs were 200 Amp with a duty cycle of 35 %. On test it was shown that max Amperage was 180 A.
• Standards: No trace of compliance with CE directives
• Insulation class: B (windings temperature goes up to 130° C only).