H Hold point
Hold point · Inspección y ensayos · ISO 1101 + ASME Y14.5
Example in plan
How to interpret it
On the drawing, “Hold point after welding and PWHT, before final machining” states a hold point requirement.
What controls
Point in the process at which manufacturing must stop and cannot continue until inspection (internal or by the customer) verifies and explicitly releases it. It is a process requirement with a blocking effect: the evidence that it was met is the release signature or record, not the measurement result. It is placed where going further would make it impossible or very expensive to check or correct something afterwards.
How to verify
What is verified at the hold point depends on what is being released: dimensions, non-destructive testing, hardness, surface condition or simply the existence of the prior documentation. What always exists is the signed and dated release record, identifying the part or lot and who authorizes continuing. Without that record, subsequent operations are called into question even if the part is fine.
Common mistakes when interpreting it
- Confusing it with a witness point: a hold point always blocks, a witness point does not.
- Releasing the hold point internally when release was assigned to the customer.
- Continuing “just a little” with operations that then prevent verifying what the hold point was meant to check.
How to get it in the workshop / if it comes out of tolerance
It typically appears before a weld is covered up, after heat treatment, before final machining or before painting. Plan for the wait: a hold point without proper notice leaves the machine idle. Nobody on the shop floor can self-release it if the plan assigns the release to the customer or to quality. Record the notification with date and time, because the inspector's availability also has to be documented.
If the part moved on without the hold point being released, it must be reported: depending on what has been covered up, it may require undoing work or additional testing. If the inspector does not show up, escalate instead of continuing. If the hold point becomes a recurring bottleneck, the solution is to replan the sequence or negotiate a change with the customer, not to skip it.
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