Linde : 19.10.2016 / Trade News / Linde launches pioneering welding management service

Munich, 19 October 2016 - Linde Gases, a division of The Linde Group, today announced the launch of AVANTO™, its innovative process management solution for welding. The new service will provide enhanced traceability and significantly increased efficiency and quality assurance in welding operations. Initially targeting customers in the structural steel segment, the service will eventually address the needs of customers across a number of sectors involved in metal fabrication.

AVANTO™ leverages advanced Cloud-based technology to capture, monitor and analyse the vast amount of data that is required to manage a modern welding operation. Stored in a single, centralised repository, the data can be retrieved via PC or mobile devices, extending access and analysis of information beyond the office to the shop floor and remotely to any location.

Incorporating a fully integrated software system, AVANTO™ manages, end-to-end, the entire welding workflow - from job and welding procedure creation, management of welder qualifications to the allocation of resources required to complete a weld, such as consumables, shielding gas, welding equipment and welder. Confirmation of job completion to expected standards and subsequent quality test results can provide everyone involved in the job, from welding engineers and supervisors to quality assurance managers, with full visibility of the process and easy compilation of documentation packs for customers.

'AVANTO™ will transform the way welding is performed and documented. Currently the recording of processes is very labour intensive, largely undertaken manually and open to human error,' said Kathy Hocker, Global Head of Merchant & Packaged Gases Portfolio Management at Linde. 'Not only will AVANTO™ improve the accuracy of welding process traceability, it will significantly improve efficiency in capturing the data and enable swift analysis.'

The introduction of European regulations such as EN1090 in the structural steel segment have placed greater emphasis on the need to streamline the collection of welding data required to meet full traceability. Many companies meeting these regulations do so using manual processes thereby adding cost and complexity to their business.

A key aspect of AVANTO™ is that it is offered as a service available via a subscription model, so providing a genuine alternative to current welding management offerings - usually comprising high end welding machines combined with software solutions requiring professional installation and high upfront investment. AVANTO™ is also ideal for companies operating machines from multiple welding OEMs.

'Linde has always played a pioneering role in terms of technology and service development within the industrial gases industry,' continued Ms Hocker. 'AVANTO™ is a true breakthrough in that it removes what were prohibitively expensive barriers in adopting a welding management solution and provide accessibility to all customers regardless of their size and budget.'

AVANTO™ will be showcased at EuroBLECH on Linde's stand number 142, hall 13, from October 25-29 in Hannover, Germany. It will initially be available in the UK and Germany and will be rolled out to other geographies in due course.

About The Linde Group

In the 2015 financial year, The Linde Group generated revenue of EUR 17.944 bn, making it one of the leading gases and engineering companies in the world, with approximately 65,000 employees working in more than 100 countries worldwide. The strategy of The Linde Group is geared towards long-term profitable growth and focuses on the expansion of its international business with forward-looking products and services. Linde acts responsibly towards its shareholders, business partners, employees, society and the environment in every one of its business areas, regions and locations across the globe. The company is committed to technologies and products that unite the goals of customer value and sustainable development.

For more information, see The Linde Group online at www.linde.com.