GD&T Certification

[KENAT]

My current employer is looking to better implement GD&T.

I’ve been using GD&T since I started working as a Design Engineer back in the UK but only at a very basic level.

I’ve read over the course notes from some training they had just before I joined and we’ve also got an online training software which I want to find time to complete. Plus I’ve learnt a lot from our Checker and researching the standards.

There is talk of eventually getting some GD&T certification for some of us so my questions are these.

1. Are any of you certified in GD&T and to what level?

2. Have you found the process of getting certified has actually helped increase you knowledge of GD&T and made using it easier/faster?

3. Has having the certification had any benefits in the job market, i.e. do you get paid more for having it, is it easier to find a job because of it?

Thanks for your time.

Ken

 

[PaulJackson]

1) Yes, Senior
2) "Helped increase knowledge?" Yes anytime you invest in studying helps to widen your knowledge. "made using it easier/faster?" No actually knowledge gives you a bigger burden to carry. You are likely to be more well equiped to discern erroneous use but that will insure you will encounter many more senarios that you think should be changed but cannot be for myriad reasons. Also the more you understand about how gd&t is interpreted and applied in other disciplines the more burden you have in making selections that are less likely to be miss interpreted.
3) Don't Know, Not Sure, Havn't tried.

 

[dingy2]

I am certified as an ASME GD & T Professional - Technologist Level and I am also certified as an ASQ Quality Engineer. Believe me, the GD & T exam was much tougher and I believe that in Canada we have only about 6 people certified. The failure rate is really high.

I took 2 weeks off work and studied the standard until I was ready to throw it in the garbage. Did I learn something?? Absolutely - but the standard is confusing at times and it does not reflect measuring methods. One can be certified and not really know the best way of measuring cylindricity, as an example.

I need the certification in business since I provide seminars in the subject.

I would absolutely recommend certification since employers ask for some sort of certification, etc. in the subject especially in design. Some of the drawings that have attempted to utilize GD & T are terrible - impossible datum setups, wrong symbols or one just could not measure it. The person generating these drawings were certainly not certified.

Go for it but be prepared to work hard.

Dave D

 

[KENAT]

Thanks for the responses.

 

[JohnNabors]

Kenat-

I'd also recommend if you have shop floor inspectors that you get them certified by the ASQ as Certified Mechanical Inspectors. Not only will they learn a lot doing it (including GD&T), it will also get noticed when all of your inspectors' business cards have those three little capital letters after their names.

Also, look up the Quality Council for Indiana. Being a Floridian I had never heard of them until a few years ago, but they publish absolutely superb primers for all of the ASQ certifications.

-John

 

[KENAT]

Thanks John.

We don't actually do much inspection (don't get me started) but I appreciate the suggestion. There is talk of getting a proper inspection department with CMM etc and if this goes ahead I'll be sure to make the suggestion (I'd insist but it wouldn't do me any good).

 

[JohnNabors]

Kenat-

If you do get a CMM, I got yer back if it is any of the following: a DEA Swift (in which case I'm sorry about your luck, bud), any Zeiss with the U-MESS or Calypso software including with the VAST scanning probe, Mitutoyo, Numerex with U-Soft and Brown and Sharpe.

If your superiors suggest that you should buy a Sheffield or a DEA, shoot them and then run real fast for the Kerguelen Islands. They probably can't find you there.

Regards- John

 

[KENAT]

I think I can safely say I have no input or control over what CMM machine they may get but I'll drop an email to my manager for him to forward if he's feeling brave. Giving suggestions to people in other departments here can be painful, lots of politics.

Thanks for your input.

 

[JohnNabors]

Kenat-

I know the feeling - I have had a proposal in for a Faro CMM arm, a proposal enthusiastically endorsed by the VP for engineering on the president of the company's desk for over 6 months... but dammit, I can hold my breath a little longer!!

Regards -John

 

[MechNorth]

Certified GDTP-S since July'05; certificate #400 at the senior-level.

There are 10 or so Senior-level in Canada, but I'm not sure about Technologist-level. (If any other Canadian certificate holders are interested in getting in touch, they can reach me through my website...see I didn't ask for anyone's e-mail address this time!) I heard that there is an increase in interest by Europeans to become certified in the last couple of years. There is no formal ISO certification that I have heard of.

The exam varies by individual (questions are drawn randomly from the database) from 100 to over 150 questions (I was lucky enough to get 161!!!), allows 6 hours, and is done online at a certified testing centre. Be prepared to leave your wallet, kleenex, soft drinks, and everything else out in the waiting room, because they aren't allowed in the testing room!

Tec-Ease prepped me for the exam, and warned me of about an 80% failure rate (as I recall the conversation). It's not for the weak of heart! The preparation method recommended by ASME in the Y14.5.2 manual, and taught by Tec-Ease is to follow through the links in the material...read the first section, read all the cross-referenced sections and figures and appendixes, etc, and re-read them each time that item is re-referenced. It sounds pretty simple, but it's really easy to get lost. Anyway, if you follow this method, you can pretty much pick up the book (for about 6-8 months after exam anyway) and find the exact section you need within seconds, even for obscure items. Y14.5.2 outlines the Body of Knowledge required for both the Technologist and Senior exams. So yes, you learn a lot while preparing for the exam. I had just been downsized, so I had some time on my hands anyway.

What it has allowed me to do is start my own company and offer consulting services on GD&T among other things. Plus, I can answer questions on this forum without embarrassing myself too much!

Go for it & good luck!

Jim Sykes, P.Eng, GDTP-S
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