Virtually everyone applies torque – but are they doing it correctly? From wrenches to screwdrivers, knowing the right amount of torque required, and correctly applying it, is a requirement in the wind industry these days. Photo by © Istockphoto.com/iñaki antoñana plazaTorque is the twisting motion used to attach a fastener to any kind of threaded anchor. The application of torque is ubiquitous in North American industry, around the world, and at home. Assembly of virtually every product requires application of torque at some point; who hasn’t fixed their bicycle by tightening bolts that hold the rear wheel onto the frame? Virtually everyone applies torque – but are they doing it correctly?

That is the big question Snap-on Industrial asked when representatives of the wind industry came forward to inquire about the company’s willingness to take a leadership role in development of a torque certification program. On the face of it, torque is one of the most intuitive things we see every day. Bolt, washer, fastener – thread, tighten, repeat. But there is much more to it than that, and the people who need the most enlightenment tend to be long-time industrial workers who have been bolting metal together for years, but never had any instruction about how it is done most precisely and effectively.

Identifying Goals
A program was launched by Snap-on Industrial in conjunction with representatives from Gateway Technical College in Wisconsin, Frances Tuttle Vocational Technical Center in Oklahoma, and wind industry representatives. It has proven to be a real public-private partnership.

“The wind industry requires an incredible number of fasteners, on the wind turbine and on the tower, and there is no standard for people who do bolting. Bolting has been left to chance,” says Bob Braun, Gateway instructor. “The concern is this: When a wind turbine fails, it does so in a spectacular fashion – it is on the news. If electrical cables or other systems are not torqued properly, you have a fire 300ft in the air.”

The program is designed to bring an ever higher standard of maintenance to the wind power industry. Professionals in other disciplines require extensive training and certification by a recognized third-party – welders for example. Snap-on Industrial’s torque certification program was created to ostensibly certify that a technician knows how to properly attach a flange and can secure virtually any fastener on any anchor. The curriculum, which is divided into three segments, includes 24 hours of instruction that focuses on torque theory, application of torque and corresponding safety measures, and proper use of hydraulic torque tools with large fasteners.

An overview of the job a fastener must perform is in the theory portion of the program:

• How to identify bolt grades;
• Indentifying metal grades; and
• Applying the associated science.

The second leg of the program, application of torque, is about hands-on use of tools:

• Calibration equations;
• Making wrench adjustments; and
• Using extension tools.

These activities are guided and judged by the professional instructor. And last, students are trained and tested on hydraulic torque tools.

“You can find certified welders, they have been around for decades, but you cannot find a certified bolter,” Braun says. “Think about this, you have to X-ray and certify welds, but for critical systems that must be assembled with a fastener, there is no specialized training.”

Building the Program
When the training need was identified to Snap-on Industrial, the company was well positioned to respond immediately. The company already had developed curriculum for automotive diagnostics, so a template already existed. The outcome is a structured, practical exam combined with a hands-on demonstration of how to execute torque techniques.

The program’s first module is basic fasteners and mechanical torque. That includes training on how threads work, what thread sealers do, and other details associated with the fastener itself. The next module involves mechanical torque, which incorporates application of the correct tool for the job, selecting the right wrench extension, and applying the right amount of torque to complete the job correctly. Students are required to successfully complete a variety of lab activities toward completion of the course; these are pass-fail tests. If the student fails one of the milestone tests, they must re-take that portion of the program.

Torque certification represents an opportunity to professionalize tasks and
careers that have been overlooked as being something anyone can do.The next level of the program focuses on electronic torque instrumentation, including torque meters. Students are required to set up a test, properly record information, and detail the differences between foot pounds and Newton meters. Finally, there is the hydraulic torque certification. Students learn about products, set up, and testing procedures, and then take an exam to complete the course. The complete program incorporates three, eight-hour modules.

The program includes safety curriculum as well, which incorporates electrical. “So much of the failure in proper torque techniques involves fastening conductors,” Braun states. “Obviously, there is a lot of mechanical equipment to worry about, but electrical is less forgiving than mechanical. In the wind power industry, electrical failure means there is a fire risk, potentially catastrophic damage to electrical gear, and damage to wiring.”

Beyond all of the academic instruction, torque certification has a physical component as well. Students must pull a wrench on a fastener within a set tolerance in another pass/fail milestone. There is an element of hand-eye coordination in doing this work that is not unlike golfing or hitting a baseball. “Anyone can swing at the ball real hard,” Braun says. “But, you need to do that with a certain level of accuracy, and that is what we are doing with the torque wrench – pulling it with the right level of finesse, the right amount of accuracy.”

What We Have Learned
There is a perception about how to torque a fastener among people who have been doing that work for a long time. Often times they have bad habits that have developed over years. Though the sample size is small, torque certification instructors have found that it is more challenging for experienced workers to essentially re-learn their craft than for new students to come in and immediately adopt the proper techniques. For some people, the program may seem like remedial training, but doing the work right, and ensuring that every fastener is within specification, will prove-out in the end with less equipment downtime and zero safety incidents.

The program does not require any specific skills on the part of students, beyond understanding how tools work and the role of fasteners. Additionally, a variety of other industries are represented in classes, including workers on the move from the automotive industry and other industrial manufacturing sectors. It is easy to understand why these students, some with existing university degrees, are considering this professional option – every wind tower has thousands of fasteners and there are more than 600 fasteners in the tower alone.

Torque certification represents an opportunity to professionalize tasks and careers that have been overlooked as being something anyone can do. It is true that anyone can use a wrench, but knowing that you are torquing a fastener properly, that the action was within specification, and that you can validate this through measurement is tantamount to the difference between night and day. Although the wind industry was the driving force behind Snap-on Industrial’s torque certification program, virtually every industry can benefit from this training.

Snap-on Industrial
Kenosha, WI
snap-on.com/industrial