Lincoln Electric completing expansion of consumables facility

Lincoln Electric Co. is adding 120,000 sq ft of production space to its consumables manufacturing operations in Mentor, Ohio.

Production crew members and on-air personality John Littlefield from Extreme Makeover Home Edition spent a week on site at Lincoln Electric’s Welding School in Cleveland to get hands-on training in welding. Lincoln serves as the show’s exclusive welding partner.

The Lincoln Electric Co. is putting a 120,000 sq ft expansion onto its Mentor, Ohio, consumables facility, and expects production to start in the new part of the plant sometime in the first quarter of 2008.

The company said in a statement that the plan for its Mentor facility is a cornerstone of its North American manufacturing. It launched the expansion to increase wiredrawing capacity at the plant.

“The Mentor expansion is part of an unprecedented built out of the company’s manufacturing capabilities around the world,” a company statement said.

“Lincoln Electric has 10 plants planned, under construction, (and) nearing completion or expansion in eight countries, including a Greenfield site in Chennai, India. The company recently completed two new plants – gas apparatus production and flux cored wire manufacturing – in Poland. A flux cored wire plant in Shanghai is in the final stages of completion, and Lincoln Electric is creating an automated welding center of excellence in a building it acquired next to its world headquarters and main manufacturing campus in Euclid, Ohio,” the statement added.

Separately, Lincoln Electric Holdings Inc. acquired Vernon Tool Co., a manufacturer of computer-controlled pipe cutting equipment used for precision fabricating in the infrastructure and energy-related industries.

The San Diego-based Vernon Tool has about $9 million a year in sales.

The company was founded in 1930, and Lincoln Electric said two of its current owners would remain with the company.

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Carolina Energy Solutions expands welding school

Carolina Energy Solutions is doubling the size of its welding school and is expanding into Florida to provide more facilities to train welders.

Carolina Energy Solutions owns the Construction Industry of America (CIA) School of Welding in Rock Hill, S.C.

It is building a 10,000 sq ft addition to add 50 welding booths to its Rock Hill facility, Al Lovins, training director for the school said. The school currently has 50 welding booths in which 120 to 150 students a year are taught manual and automatic welding. The school covers TIG, stick, and flux core welding, along with other technologies.

Lovins said the additions are to be completed and classes will begin by March.

Meanwhile, the CIA School of Welding also is planning to launch a welding school in Lakeland, Fla., that will have 50 welding booths, he added.

Carolina Energy Solutions is a complete field welding, machining, and post weld heat treating company that services the power generation industry. It provides a wide number of services to power generating companies that use nuclear and fossil fuels, and hydropower, and to companies that are involved in the waste to energy, petro-chemical, gas and general fabrication industries. Its technicians include welders that work with pipes, boilers, turbines and valves and who do original fabrication, installation and repair.

Carolina Energy Solutions was acquired in November by Westinghouse Electric Co., and Westinghouse identified the Construction Institute of America Welding School as a strategic asset in its decision to make the acquisition.

The school is known for attracting a steady stream of students into the welding trades, and Jimmy Morgan, president of Westinghouse Electric Co. Welding and Machining, said in a statement that his company expects to expand and replicate its model programs in new locations in the United States, and internationally.

Westinghouse Electric Co. Welding and Machining is based in Lake Bluff, Ill. It owns PCI Energy Services, a company that specializes in field welding and machining services, and related services of laser metrology, tool design and manufacturing, and quality assurance and control. PCI Energy Services serves industrial customers in the power, oil and gas, pulp and paper, and petrochemical industries.

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American Welding Society Foundation gets $100K donation from Hobart Institute of Welding Technology

Donation is directed at relieving the shortage of welders

The Hobart Institute of Welding Technology donated $100,000 to the American Welding Society and the AWS Foundation for the AWS Foundation Welder Workforce Development Program to help relieve the nationwide shortage of welders.

The AWS Foundation Welder Workforce Development Program was launched in 2006 to address the critical need for recruitment and specialized training of entry level welders while supporting welding workforce needs for companies, and is part of the AWS Foundation’s $10 million capital campaign, “Welding for the Strength of America.” Welding for the Strength of America is aimed at facilitating programs, scholarships and other initiatives in support of the welding industry. By the end of 2007, the AWS Foundation raised $2.6 million toward its campaign effort.

It is estimated that there will be a shortage of at least 200,000 welders by 2010. The American Welding Society is the world’s largest organization dedicated to advancing the science, technology and application of welding. The Hobart Institute of Welding Technology provides training and education about various welding technologies.

“The support we have received from the Hobart Institute of Welding is a testament to the importance of the AWS Foundation campaign and will enhance our ability to make positive changes in the welding industry,” Ronald C. Pierce, chairman of the AWS Foundation, said in a prepared statement.

“The Hobart Institute of Welding is one of the best welding training facilities in the country. Their graduate job placement rate is among the highest in the industry and they are deeply attuned to the needs of American business. The nation-wide shortage of welders has been detrimental to manufacturing and businesses will continue to suffer unless we act together as an industry to fill this urgent need.”

The Hobart Institute of Welding Technology is located at 400 Trade Square East in Troy, Ohio.

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Koike Aronson Inc. to move some production to U.S.

Koike Aronson Inc. is planning to produce some of its Lasertex Series of CO2 laser cutting systems in the United States.

The company’s U.S. operations are based in Arcade, N.Y.

It has not announced where it would base U.S. production, nor did the company say how many machines it intends to build in the U.S. However, in a statement it said its plans to move some production to the U.S. was based on its desire to cut delivery times and to reduce production costs.

The company produces welding, positioning and thermal cutting equipment, including: universal balance positioners, turning rolls, manipulators, robotic, and geared elevated equipment.

The company’s thermal cutting machines are designed to use oxyfuel, plasma arc, and laser technologies, and are used by small fabricators to major steel service centers.

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Airgas Inc. acquires four distributing companies

Airgas Inc. announced in December that it acquired the following companies:

• Smith Welding Supply & Equipment, Inc. and its affiliated company, Bayer Welding Supply, LLC, based in the Detroit area.

• Wright Welding Supply Inc., an industrial gas and welding equipment distributor based in Des Moines, Iowa.

• And distributors in Texas and British Columbia.

The acquisition of Smith Welding Supply closed Dec. 31, and the transactions in Iowa, Texas and British Columbia closed Dec. 1, 2007.

The acquisitions added approximately $38 million in annual sales to Airgas.

The Smith Welding Supply & Equipment acquisition included six locations in the Detroit area. Those operations have been integrated with Airgas Great Lakes, one of the regional companies within Airgas.

Smith and Bayer had combined annual sales of $16 million in 2006.

The 90-year-old company had a central industrial gas fill plant in Ferndale, Mich., that supported branches in Wixom, Clinton, Detroit, and Auburn Hills, and a location in Warren, Mich., that operated as Bayer Welding.

Irving Sparage, who operated the Smith Welding for the past 28 years, and about 60 associates joined Airgas Great Lakes from Smith Welding/Bayer. Sparage is the grandson of Jack Smith who founded the business.

Wright Welding Supply Inc. operated in Iowa and eastern Nebraska from five locations in Des Moines, Fort Dodge, Oskaloosa, and Council Bluffs, Iowa, and Omaha, Neb., and had an industrial and specialty gas fill plant in Des Moines.

The operations, with about 40 employees, have been integrated into Airgas North Central.

In Texas, Airgas acquired Basin Welding Supply in Odessa that was owned by industry veterans Randy Squibb and Scott Joyce since 2002, and operated by Joyce. Basin Welding was integrated into Airgas Southwest.

Brent Sparks, president of Airgas Southwest, said a fill plant that Basin Welding opened in February 2007, will improve his company’s abilities to provide packaged gases for customers in Odessa and surrounding areas.

In British Columbia, Airgas acquired Mainland Welding Supplies Ltd., of Surrey. The gases and welding distributor was founded in 1988, and its owners, Elizabeth and Richard Rickert, and their 15 employees, joined Airgas Canada.

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Electron Beam signs distribution agent

Electron Beam Technologies, Inc., which designs and develops the trademarked Fast ‘N Easy welding conduit systems, has signed Advantage Marketing of Plymouth, Minn., as a sales agent.

Advantage Marketing will represent Electron Beam Technologies for sales in Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

The company said in a statement that it chose the agency because of its product knowledge and relations with welding distributors and with users.

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AWS publishes codes for bridge welding and nickel flux cored wires

The American Welding Society has published a new standard for bridge welding.

The standard, AASHTO/AWS D1.5M/D1.5:2008, is to be used in conjunction with the AASHTO American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Standard Specification for Highway Bridges or AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications.

The code covers the best practices and general provisions of routine bridge welding applications, and represents the culmination of many years of cooperative work by the Joint AWS/AASHTO Committee on Bridge Welding. The joint code was developed in response to industry demand for a single document that could provide management, engineers, foremen, and welders with cost-effective bridge fabrication approaches, while addressing the issues of structural integrity and public safety.

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration requires states that use federal funds for the construction of welded highway bridges conform to these standards for design and construction.

The 2008 code revisions include additions and updates to usage, handling, and storage requirements for consumables, performance test specifications, filler metal variables, inspection personnel qualifications, HPS-485W (70W) and HPS-50W high-performance steel grades, new commentary, and more.

The standard is contained in 410 pages, and includes 37 tables, 86 figures, and 7 forms. The price is $264 for non-members or $198 for AWS members.

Separately, the AWS Specification A5.34 provides standards for nickel cored wires, according to the Stoody Company. Stoody is the only U.S. manufacturer of allposition nickel flux cored wires.

The company said the specification allows fabricators to specify the most common nickel-based welding consumables as flux cored wires.

In a statement on the specification, the company said having the standard allows fabricators to move from processes such as shielded metal arc welding or gas metal arc welding to the flux cored process. The company said the flux cored process is more efficient than stick welding because it allow for longer welding times, and avoids the starting and stopping and stub-loss waste associated with stick welding. In addition, the company said flux cored wires also provide higher rates of deposition than solid wire.

AWS publications may be purchased in the United States and Canada by calling 888-935-3464. Outside the U.S. and Canada, call 305-824-1177, or fax to 305-826-6195. The standard also can be ordered online at (www.awspubs.com).

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Focus on the Internet

Five tools that you can’t do without

The question is posed and posted on the Internet: What are the five most indispensible tools for the welder?

The guy posting the question identifies himself as a mature apprentice, and he’s asking advice from the pros.

He assumes you have a welding helmet that fits properly, doesn’t let heat build up, and is auto-darkening but lets you see the weld puddle.

And he assumes you have a welding rig and, no matter what color it is, that you know how to use it.

Then the question is: What do I need next? And what do I need that I won’t be able to live without?

And, the pros respond with the basics. Out of 42 answers that were posted by early January, the most common responses were:

1. 1. A good tape measure and squares.
2. 2. A good, 4.5-in or 5-in grinder with a healthy assortment of grinding wheels and wire brushes.
3. 3. A set of hammers and wire brushes.
4. 4. Clamps, clamps and more clamps because, as one old pro says: “if you have a 1000 you’ll need 1001 for the job.”
5. 5. And, good personal protective gear.

But, there were other answers, only not as common as these.

The more practical suggestions included vise grips, scrapers and chisels, tube notchers and tube benders, liquid paper fine pens, and a comfortable stinger, while the less practical ranged from the quirky to the unpredictable, including a good set of eyes, hands and fingers.

One old pro said he wished sometimes that he had 20 fingers, while another suggested that the well-equipped welder can’t do without Coppertone 50 SPF

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You can read it all online – and you can post your own responses – at: (www.weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=12609). It’s part of information stored at WeldingWeb. com, the interactive, Internet community for the welding industry.

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Letter to the Editor An appreciation of Omer Blodgett Dear Editor: I have anticipated with regret the day that there will be no more Blodgett’s Basics. I came into this business most of 30 years ago via the back door with no formal training; only a natural aptitude garnered from a career in gunsmithing and farming. I run and own a successful welding, repair shop with some light fabricating. I feel that I am a hip pocket engineer. Twenty five years ago I became acquainted with Design of the Welded Structures and have eagerly read anything with Omer’s byline. I occasionally get lost in the theory and the math, but he has the ability to convey what he is talking about to the user, an ability many educated people lack. I have the privilege to see what failed but am always amazed by the simple engineering principles that are so often ignored by the engineer or deleted by the bean counter. Design of the Welded Structures is something I ask any employee who I hope to have for any length of time to read or at least study the pictures and captions. Omer, I wish you many more Blodgett’s Basics. Thank you, David Christen, DC Welding, Wadena, Iowa Editor’s Note: Omer Blodgett has this month off. His column will resume in the February issue of Welding magazine.

 

Online Contents Newbies Can you weld a set of wire coat hangers together to make a bridge? Here’s a test and tips. www.weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=4576 What can you do to make money in welding? www.weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=17592 Welding Chat room www.weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=17592 MIG, TIG and Stick Welding Have a question? Here’s the website to get an answer or post a solution. www.weldingweb.com/forumdisplay.php?s=f855c6fd0349b78319c0d46fb5b655a9&f=2 Equipment forum If you like a rig or need to find a new one, or if you need a new grinder, or a drill, or need to know what not to buy, the pros have an opinion that you can find at www.weldingweb.com/forumdisplay.php?s=f855c6fd0349b78319c0d46fb5b655a9&f=9 Picture and project postings Everyone likes to share their successes. But, if you have problem, and need advice, you can post pictures of the projects you’re working on to get advice on how to fix your weld at www.weldingweb.com/forumdisplay.php?s=f855c6fd0349b78319c0d46fb5b655a9&f=10 Shop operations Do you ever think that you could work better if your shop wasn’t so messy? Here are some tips on keeping your work area clean. www.weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=18168. Welding safety Want a welder’s opinion on welding fume lawsuits? There are plenty of them at www.weldingweb.com/showthread.php?t=17339. Setting up If you need help setting up your equipment, guys who have done it before have shared their stories at www.weldingweb.com/forumdisplay.php?s=f 855c6fd0349b78319c0d46fb5b655a9&f=35 Shop, trade or sell forum If you’re looking to buy or sell equipment, here’s a place to start: www.weldingweb.com/forumdisplay.php?s=f855c6fd0349b78319c0d46fb5b655a9&f=42 Manufacturer Product Forums Welders are particular about -- and loyal to – their equipment. This forum features welders talking about why they like their rigs, their good points and things that could be better. www.weldingweb.com/forumdisplay.php?s=f855c6fd0349b78319c0d46fb5b655a9&f=14