New from Miller Electric Mfg. Co. (www.millerwelds.com) is its PipeWorx Welding System, a multi-process method designed for use in pipe fabrication shops. The company reports the system is easy-to-use and provides exceptional pipe-welding performance with quick, one-button changeover between processes.

The system's stick, TIG, MIG (including Miller's Regulated Metal Deposition and ProPulse technologies) and flux cored processes have been optimized for pipe fabrication. Switching between the processes is almost instantaneous, with no need to manually adjust polarity, cables or hoses, thus increasing productivity and eliminating a potential source of errors. With this system even new welders can produce code-quality welds quickly and with less training, said Miller.

Setting up a new process requires only a few simple steps, resulting in quicker training times and reducing the chance for input errors. Operators need only to select the desired process and, as applicable, the electrode or wire, the gas, the voltage and the wire feed speed. Up to four programs can be stored for each process, and processes can be shared among different machines via a memory card. The front panel designed by pipe welders for pipe welders, is clearly labeled, easy to use, and provides only the controls necessary for the task at hand. To eliminate confusion, only backlit controls are adjustable.

Because all cables remain connected to the unit and do not need to be switched for the different welding processes, changing between processes can save several minutes per weld joining, as compared with changing processes with older technology.

Quick Set technology automatically sets the correct polarity and returns to the last settings for that process. A storage system keeps cables organized when they're not in use and helps to eliminate the potential for incorrect or loose connections that may lead to weld defects. The system comes ready to weld, “out-of-the-box.”