Know how much welding really happens. Without changing a thing.
WeldWatch is a small device that fits onto a welding helmet and automatically records arc-on time for every welder. No logins, no swipe cards, no machine integration. Your team welds as normal and you get the numbers.
- Fits standard welding helmets
- Works with any welding machine brand
- Zero operator input
Typical share of a welder's paid day spent with the arc actually on. Most shops have no idea where their own number sits.
Logins, swipe cards, PIN codes or job numbers your welders need to enter. WeldWatch is fully passive.
Works across your whole fleet of welding machines, old and new, without wiring into a single one.
You pay for every hour. You can only see a fraction of them.
Welding labour is one of the biggest costs in any fabrication shop, yet most workshops run on gut feel and timesheets. The systems that do measure arc time tend to be expensive, tied to one machine brand, and ask operators to log in and key in details.
- ✕Timesheets show hours paid, not hours welding
- ✕Machine-based monitoring means instrumenting every welder in the fleet, often one brand only
- ✕Data tied to a machine, not to the person using it
- ✕Swipe cards and manual inputs get skipped, and bad data is bad data
Three steps. Only one of them is new.
WeldWatch watches for the light of the welding arc and logs exactly when each weld starts and stops. Nothing else about the job changes.
Fit it to the helmet
WeldWatch fits just above the lens of the helmet each welder already wears, facing the work. It's designed to sit clear of the auto-darkening sensors and leave the lens alone.
Weld as normal
No buttons, no app, no job numbers. Each arc is detected and timestamped automatically, and each welder's data stays with their own helmet.
See the numbers
Arc data comes off each device and into a clear dashboard of arc-on time by welder, by day and across the shop, with a CSV export for your own analysis.
Real numbers on your biggest labour cost
Built with and trialled in a working structural steel fabrication shop, for workshops that want facts instead of guesswork.
Accurate arc-on time, per person
Every weld start and stop is timestamped at the helmet, so the data belongs to the welder, not to whichever machine they picked up.
Nothing for welders to do
No logins, cards or keypads. Because it's passive, the data is complete, consistent and free of the gaps that manual input creates.
Brand-independent
Works with any welding machine. No need to replace equipment or instrument every set in a mixed fleet.
Find what makes your best welders best
See who sustains 20% arc time and who sits at 12%, then find out why. Weld-length patterns show the difference between fit-up and production welding.
Sharper quoting and job costing
Compare real welding time against what you estimated. Combine it with your timesheets to see where jobs are winning and losing money.
Your data, your systems
A clean dashboard for the workshop floor, and a straightforward export to bring arc data into your own payroll, timesheet or ERP tools.
Value is added while fabrication is happening. How much is yours?
Every second of arc-on time is value going into the product. But a fabricator's day isn't all welding. Tacking, fit-up and prep add value too, while hunting for drawings or waiting on a crane doesn't. Most shops can't tell the difference today.
See when value is being added
Every arc is timestamped, so you can see across the day when work is going into the product and when it isn't.
Tell fabrication from welding
Lots of short arcs with gaps between them means tacking and fit-up. Long, steady runs mean production welding. WeldWatch reads these patterns automatically.
Put a dollar figure on it
Compare value-adding time with paid hours and see what each extra percentage point is worth to your business. Try the calculator →
One fabricator's 8-hour day
What WeldWatch sees, and the question it raises
- Production weldingLong, continuous runs0.8 h
- Tacking & fit-up arcsShort bursts with gaps0.4 h
- Everything elsePrep, fit-up, handling, waiting6.8 h
Some of that 6.8 hours adds value and some doesn't. WeldWatch gives you the baseline to start finding out which is which.
From "I think" to "I know"
Arc time on its own is a powerful baseline. Over weeks it shows trends by person, team and shift. It also gives you a fair, objective starting point for coaching and training conversations.
- ✓Daily arc-on hours and percentage of paid time
- ✓Number of welds and average weld length
- ✓Work type read from each welder's arc pattern
- ✓Shop-wide totals, trends and CSV export
Example data for illustration. Avg = average weld length (min:sec).
What is an extra 1% of arc-on time worth to you?
Small shifts in value-adding time add up fast. Move the sliders to match your workshop and see what one extra percentage point of arc-on time is worth in labour capacity each year.
How it's worked out: paid hours a year = welders × hours per week × 46 weeks. One extra point of arc-on time adds 1% of those paid hours as welding time. We value that at what it costs you to produce the same welding time today (paid hours needed at your current arc-on rate × your hourly labour cost). Estimates only.
a year in labour capacity from +1% arc-on time
Simpler than the alternatives
WeldWatch doesn't try to do everything. It does one job well, at a price that makes sense across the whole workshop.
| Timesheets | Machine-based monitoring | WeldWatch | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Measures actual welding | No, only hours paid | Yes | Yes |
| Linked to the person | Yes, self-reported | Only with logins or swipe cards | Automatically |
| Works with any machine brand | n/a | Usually one brand | Yes |
| Operator input needed | Daily | Logins, job and weld details | None |
| Change to workshop process | None | Significant | None |
| Cost to cover the whole shop | Low | High | A fraction of machine-based systems |
Built for workshops where welding drives the margin
Structural steel fabricators
Beams, columns, trusses and connections with large, mixed welding teams.
General & heavy fabrication
Job shops quoting one-off and repeat work who need tighter estimates.
Manufacturers
Production lines with welded products, from trailers and boats to equipment.
Operations & estimating teams
Anyone who quotes welding hours and wants to know if the numbers hold up.
Register to pre-order WeldWatch
We're now taking pre-order registrations from fabricators and manufacturers. Tell us about your workshop and we'll be in touch to talk through what you need.
- ✓Early access to the first production units
- ✓A say in the product. Your feedback shapes the features and the dashboard.
- ✓Founding-customer pricing for early registrations
Prefer email? hello@weldtag.com
Common questions
Does it work with my helmets?
WeldWatch is designed as a standalone unit that fits standard welding helmets, so your team keeps the helmets they already like.
Does it work with my welding machines?
Yes. WeldWatch detects the arc itself, not the machine, so it works the same regardless of brand, age or process.
Will it interfere with the auto-darkening lens?
It's designed not to. WeldWatch sits away from the helmet's own sensors and doesn't connect to the lens or its electronics.
Will it pick up other welders nearby?
It's built to respond to the arc in front of the wearer. In production trials, detections were checked against machine logs and CCTV footage, with no meaningful pick-up from other work in the shop.
What do my welders need to do?
Nothing. They wear their helmet and weld as normal. There are no logins, buttons or check-ins.
Can it tell fabrication work from welding?
WeldWatch sees every arc, including tacks. The pattern of arcs (many short tacks with gaps, or long continuous runs) shows whether someone is mostly fitting up or mostly production welding.
How is the data shared with my team?
You decide. Many workshops share shop and team totals widely and let each welder see their own figures. We recommend agreeing this with your team up front.
When will it be available, and what will it cost?
We're working with early customers now. Register your interest and we'll share timing and founding-customer pricing directly.