Comparison · Last verified: October 2026
Soteriaa vs SharePoint for welding qualification records
SharePoint is a capable document library with file version history and Power Automate flows; Soteriaa is a structured register of welders, qualifications, WPS and WPQR records that tracks continuity and revalidation dates, emails reminders before they lapse, and keeps document version history, jobs and issued packs. The practical difference shows when you try to find one welder's current certificate and its history, so this page runs that test in both.
Last updated . Reviewed by Soteriaa team.
Retrieval and history test
Find a welder's current certificate and its history.
Checked October 2026 against Microsoft's own documentation. The SharePoint column assumes a document library with one folder or metadata tag per welder.
On smaller screens, scroll the table sideways to see every column.
| Step | SharePoint library | Soteriaa |
|---|---|---|
| Find the current certificate | Search or browse to the welder's folder and open the latest file; works if naming and metadata are kept consistent | Open the welder: each qualification shows its standard, dates and status, and prints to PDF |
| Is it still valid today? | Not from the file itself; needs a date column or list that someone maintains, or a Power Automate flow you build | Continuity shows due soon within 30 days and revalidation within 90 days, or overdue |
| See earlier versions of the document | Library versioning keeps previous versions you can view and restore, with major/minor versions and configurable limits | Each supporting document has a Version history tab: version number, editor, time, changed fields and an optional edit summary. View a past version and open its file; uploading a new file keeps the previous one. Stale edits are refused. There is no one-click restore |
| See the continuity history | Only if the team keeps a separate log or list of confirmations | Every continuity confirmation is kept: date, who confirmed it, method, next due date and evidence link |
| Get reminded before a date | Power Automate can trigger on created or modified items, so reminder flows are possible once you build and maintain them | Built in: daily reminder emails by default 90, 60 and 7 days before, plus overdue; lead times from 1 to 365 days |
Sources, checked October 2026: SharePoint versioning and SharePoint triggers in Power Automate.
Jobs, revisions and export
Tie qualifications and procedures to the work.
SharePoint can hold job folders and versioned files; how they link to welders and procedures depends on the lists and columns you build. Soteriaa has these records built in.
On smaller screens, scroll the table sideways to see every column.
| Need | SharePoint library | Soteriaa |
|---|---|---|
| Controlled WPS/PQR revisions | Major/minor file versions, approval if you configure it; links between a WPS and its PQR are up to your metadata | Issue numbered revisions with a source document and reviewer notes; a WPS needs an issued PQR revision; earlier revisions are kept |
| Record who welded what | Possible with a custom list you design and maintain | Weld operations on a job record the welder, the qualification and the controlled WPS revision, with review warnings for mismatches |
| Issue a job pack | Assemble a folder or document set by hand | Reviewer confirms a traceability pack that keeps the document versions it was issued with; export to PDF or Word |
| Take the data out | Files and lists already sit in your own Microsoft 365 tenant | Owners and admins export the workspace or one job as a ZIP of CSV, JSON and original files with a checksummed manifest |
Soteriaa's pack is a traceability summary that links the original files; it does not confer qualification or engineering approval.
What each one is built for
Document control versus a qualification register.
SharePoint keeps the file
Versioned storage for signed certificates, WPS and WPQR documents, with permissions and automation your Microsoft 365 team can configure.
Soteriaa keeps the dates
Qualification, continuity and revalidation dates as structured records, with status and scheduled reminders that need no flow-building.
Getting certificates in
Soteriaa's AI import reads a welder qualification certificate PDF and proposes the fields; nothing is saved until you review and confirm them.
Verdict
Choose SharePoint or Soteriaa?
A scope-based verdict, not a ranking. Many teams use both: SharePoint for master documents, Soteriaa for the register and the dates.
Soteriaa publishes this comparison and is one of the tools compared. It does not certify welders or calculate qualification ranges; ranges are entered as written on the certificate. For a wider view, read the welder qualification software guide. If the register lives in an Excel sheet inside SharePoint, see the welding qualification spreadsheet alternative.
- Choose SharePoint if you need a general document library across the business, with version restore, Microsoft 365 permissions and someone who can build and maintain the lists and Power Automate flows that track dates.
- Choose Soteriaa if you want welder qualification, continuity and revalidation dates tracked out of the box, with document version history, controlled WPS/PQR revisions, job records, issued packs and workspace export in the same tool.