31st Asia Welding Federation Meeting In Bangi, Malaysia
The 31st Asian Welding Federation (AWF) meeting was hosted by the Malaysian Welding and Joining Society (MWJS) from 25 to 26 April 2019 in Bangi, Kajang, Malaysia. The meeting took place at the serenity of Bangi Resort Hotel, which is located midway between Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Kuala Lumpur City Centre. In conjunction with the AWF meeting, the Asia WeldTech 2019 was organised by the German- Malaysian Institute (GMI) at their campus in Kajang, Malaysia on 24 April 2019. The theme of the forum was ‘Challenges and Solutions for Industry Revolution 4.0 Era’, with keynote speakers from Japan Welding Engineering Society (JWES) and Chinese Welding Society (CWS). This forum was well attended by more than 130 participants.
The two-day AWF meeting was attended by delegates from societies and interested parties from the various Asian countries. This included China, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Myanmar and Singapore. The aim of this meeting is for the various committees and working groups to deliberate on topics such as training / education, AWF Website, Common Welder Certification Scheme (CWCS) implementation plan, standardisation, new technologies in welding & joining, sustainability of AWF and more. Proposals were reviewed and approved at the Governing Council.
This meeting saw the establishment of the Additive Manufacturing (AM) working group to study ways in which AWF members can adopt and contribute to the development of AM technology and practices. Collaboration efforts with parties, such as the European Welding Federation (EWF) was also discussed to ensure relevancy in the effort to promote and harmonise the adaptation of AM in the region.
A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was also signed between AWF and the International Alliance of Skills Development for Belt and Road (IASDBR). Through this collaboration, Authorised Testing Bodies (ATBs) and Authorised Training Centres (ATCs) certified under AWF could provide welding-related support in the Belt and Road initiative.
Mr Sze Thiam Siong, SWS President, assumed the role of President of AWF with effect from February 2019. He addressed the AWF Governing Council and shared his vision for the Federation during his term of office. He sought the support of all members as well as the AWF Steering Committee members, on the need to review the strategic direction for the Federation with the objective of attracting more new members into the Federation.
Mr Perianan Radhakrishnan took the opportunity to share a promotional video on the 73rd IIW Annual Assembly & International Conference to all the AWF members and invited them to this event. He also shared on the sponsorship opportunities and the availability of various exhibition booths. He said that the mega event will be held from 19 to 24 July 2020 at the iconic Marina Bay Sands Expo and Convention Centre, Singapore. Mr Lim Zhi Yang distributed the IIW 2020 brochure and extended an invitation to all the AWF members to attend this event.
MWJS also hosted all AWF meeting attendees to a memorable dinner cum boat cruise on the serene Putrajaya Lake, a magnificent man-made wonder spanning across 650 hectares of beautiful waters and exotic wetlands. On behalf of SWS, we would like to compliment MWJS for a well-planned and organised meeting at Bangi. Their officials had invested a great deal of effort to make this event a big success for all delegates. We would also like to thank them for their warm hospitality during our stay in Bangi.
The next AWF meeting is scheduled to be held in Korea in October 2019.
