Women in welding a focus on new trailer tour

10 May, 2013 9:45 am ⋅ 1 Comment ⋅

In just two months, the Careers in Welding Trailer will once again hit the road to shows kids around the country why welding can be a great career choice.

The main draw on the trailer is, of course, the virtual welders. It gives people a chance to feel what it’s like to don a welding mask, grip a welding gun, and fuse together two pieces of metal. It’s the one thing that makes people want to get back in line over and over again. But it’s not the only thing on-board that aims to show people the great diversity of jobs in the welding industry.

Welding Trailer

The trailer includes five VRTEX® 360 Virtual Reality Arc Welders.

Right now, the American Welding Society is producing a short video that will debut on the Careers in Welding Trailer this summer. It’s focus: women in welding.

With Nancy Cole presiding over the activities of the American Welding Society this year (and this being only the second time a woman has been President of AWS), the theme of “women in welding” seemed to be an important, and appropriate one. It is made even more important when you consider that according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, women made up just 7.8% of the welding, soldering, and brazing workforce in 2011.

With the help of the Women in Welding video, we may be able to see an increase in this number in the coming years.

The video itself will focus on five different women in the industry. The first, Veronica Gonzalez, is a welder at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX. She is currently orbital welding tubes for a pressure system in the space walk jetpacks. We also focus on Amanda Scheffler, a welding instructor at Washtenaw Community College in Michigan who has also participated in Skills USA.

Ashley Webel will represent the Certified Welding Inspector in our video. She currently holds a position at RoMan Engineering in Livonia, Michigan where she does inspections for a variety of products. Further west in Milwaukee, Karen Gilgenbach will show women what it’s like to be a welding engineer and do consulting work with various companies. And finally, down in Alabama we’ll meet with Jenny McCall, CEO of Wesco Gas & Welding Supply Inc, and the former President of The Gases and Welding Distributors Association (GAWDA).

You may notice a few bits and piece of the full video being posted across the American Welding Society’s social media in the coming weeks, but the full video will only be shown on the Careers in Welding Trailer.

You can follow the tour’s Facebook page by clicking here, or take a look at the first video sneak peek on the AWS YouTube channel here.

Posted in: Conferences & Shows

Help us illustrate the new Welding Handbook!

7 March, 2013 12:27 pm ⋅ 2 Comments ⋅

You now have a chance to be a part of the creative process for an American Welding Society handbook. It’s a dream you’ve always had, isn’t it?

Our upcoming Volume 5 will be titled “Materials and Applications,” and we need some help with illustrations. That’s where you – our loyal fan – come in.

In short, we need photographs displaying products and components that were built using the following materials or alloys:

  • Aluminum
  • Magnesium
  • Copper
  • Nickel & Cobalt
  • Lead & Zinc
  • Titanium
  • Reactive, Refractory and Precious Metals
  • Plastics
  • Ceramics
  • Composites

In order for your photo to be considered for publication, please specify the product, the metal or alloy, and its thickness, and mention the joining process used. Also include your name and the company you work for in the body of the email you send.

The photographs can be sent to handbookphotos@aws.org for consideration.

Good luck!

Posted in: About AWS

Alex Pazkowski welds his way to the WorldSkills competition

25 February, 2013 10:02 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

After a week long competition at the Daytona International Speedway, Alex Pazkowski has won the SkillsUSA Team USA finals.

The event, which was hosted by Larsen Motorsports, pitted three finalists against each other in a multi-day welding competition to decide who would represent their country at the international competition in Germany later this year. Pazkowski, who hails from Michigan, was up against Andrew Cardin from Massachusetts, and Tanner Tipsword from Wyoming.

The men were tested on multiple welding processes, and were under such extreme scrutiny that many of their welds were tested for precision with x-ray reviews and hydrostatic pressure tests up to 1,000 pounds per square inch.

For besting Cardin and Tipsword, Pazkowski will travel to Germany in July to compete in the international WorldSkills competition. The event includes competitors from all over the world, including Japan, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, and Thailand. Welding is just one part of the four-day competition, which also tests other contestants in skills such as construction, information technology, and transportation.

Pazkowski also won a $40,000 scholarship from the American Welding Society.

SkillsUSA must raise the money for each competitor to train for and travel to the WorldSkills Competition and the cost is substantial. To donate funding click here.

Posted in: New Talent

Welding and racing meet in Daytona

21 February, 2013 12:39 pm ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

Three top-notch welders are testing their skills this week at the SkillsUSA WorldTeam Weld Finals in Daytona, Florida. The grand prize: a trip to Leipzig, Germany to compete in the 42nd biennial WorldSkills Weld Challenge.

The three finalists competing for the prestigious spot were  picked during the U.S. Invitational Weld Trials, which were held during FABTECH 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Alex Pazlowski, from Washtenaw Community College; Andrew Cardin, from Blackstone Valley Technical High Shool; and Tanner Tipsword, from Eastern Wyoming College are all members of SkillsUSA, the organization that represents the United States in the WorldSkills Competition.

NASCAR legend Donnie Allison with the Competitors.

This week’s competition is being held at the 2013 Daytona 500 as part of Speedweek. In fact, it’s being hosted by Larsen Motorsports and is taking place just outside Turn 4.

The four-day event will have the contestants tested on multiple welding processes,  and each will be measured with extreme precision. According to SkillsUSA,”a number of the welds will require x-ray reviews and hydrostatic pressure tests up to 1,000 lbs per square inch.”

Those are some big requirements to meet, but as Chris Larsen, owner of Larsen Motorsports, puts it: “This is a big deal!” He went on to call the competitors “the absolute best America has, and at their age, they are extraordinary welders.”

Only one will come out on top – with the finalist being announced on Saturday, February 23rd. And to make sure he improves upon his skills, the AWS Foundation will give the winner a $40,000 scholarship.

Then he’ll have five months to get even more practice in, before heading to Germany to represent the United States in the prestigious WorldSkills Competition. The international event includes competitors from all over the world, including Japan, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, and Thailand. Welding is just one part of the four-day competition, which also tests other contestants in skills such as construction, information technology, and transportation.

SkillsUSA must raise the money for each competitor to train for and travel to the WorldSkills Competition and the cost is substantial. To donate funding go to http://skillsusa.org/compete/worldteamdonate.shtml.

Posted in: Conferences & Shows, New Talent

WEMCO and RWMA want you to think green

4 February, 2013 12:52 pm ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

“It’s not easy being green.” So says America’s favorite frog: Kermit. Mr. Frog was, of course, talking about the trials and tribulation of living as a slimy amphibian. He was not talking about sustainable manufacturing, alternative energy, or the mission to reduce greenhouse gases. But when WEMCO and RWMA (Resistance Welding Manufacturing Alliance) come together for their Annual Meeting in Wesley Chapel, Florida this month, that is what they’ll be talking about.

WEMCO Going Green

Of all the industries in the world, manufacturing may be one of the few with the greatest impact on green trends. WEMCO and RWMA realize that, and the theme for this year’s meeting will help provide insights on the future of welding within the context of sustainable energy and manufacturing to those in attendance.

The show will even include annual speakers, such as Alan Beaulieu from the Institute for Trend Research; Mr. John Howell, Senior Marketing Director for Westport Innovations; and Mr. Dave Mizerowski, Regional Manager for the National Accounts for Clean Energy.

In addition to the speeches, the attendees will have an opportunity to interact with members from both committees during meeting breaks, receptions, dinners, tours and golfing.

The three-day event is taking place at the Saddlebrook Resort from February 21st through the 23rd. You can get more information and register to attend by going here. You can also see two flyers for the event below.

2013 WEMCO Annual Meeting flyer

2013 RWMA Annual Meeting flyer

 

Posted in: Conferences & Shows, New Technology

Solar sailing technology gets a big boost thanks to ultrasonic welding

8 January, 2013 11:29 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

Sailing is not just for the oceans. In fact, it’s entirely possible to shoot a craft into space and ride the solar wind in the same way that sailors ride the winds on Earth to make their way across the seas. You may have seen it done in a few sci-fi films. In ‘Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones’, one of the films protagonists makes off from a fight by flying away using a solar sail. And even James Cameron included one in his hit movie ‘Avatar.’

NASA’s concept art for a solar sail. Source: Marshall Space Flight Center

Nowadays, scientists around the world are tinkering with a unique twist on the solar sail. It’s called an ‘electric sail,’ and it uses an electric field for deflecting solar wind protons and extracting momentum from them. It was invented by Pekka Janhunen from Finland in 2006, but until now has been called “impossible.”

Electric Solar Sail diagram, Source: Kumpula Space Centre

Why was it called “impossible”? Well, welding experts said it would be “impossible” to weld together the thin tethers that would make up the sail. That was true –  until the Electronics Research Laboratory at the University of Helsinki successfully produced a 1 km long tether using ultrasonic welding.

Scientists working on the electronic sail projects say the tether needs to be made form several wires joined together every centimeter. This is to prevent micrometeoroids from crashing into the wire and breaking it entirely. The lab at the University of Helsinki began looking at the problem four years ago, and have now successfully manufactured the kilometer long wire using 90,000 ultrasonic welds.

So once again, welding comes to the rescue!

The tethers will soon get to see some action in space. In March 2013, a small satellite called the ESTCube-1 will be launched into space and will deploy a 15-meter long tether to measure the force from the electronic sail.

If all works according to plan, you could one day see astronauts sailing off to distant spots in the solar system using this system. And they’ll have advances in welding technology to thank for it.

Posted in: New Technology

Saving the future of manufacturing with ‘Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs’

14 December, 2012 10:03 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

When you ask a kid what they want to be when they grow up not many will say “a manufacturer,” or “a welder,” or mention anything involving manual labor. Maybe that’s why skilled trade jobs seem to be harder and harder to fill every year, with a recent survey by the Manpower Group naming skilled labor among the most difficult job fields to fill.

This lack of interest in manufacturing seems to begin at an early age. In fact, a poll sponsored by Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs (NBT), and the Foundation of the Fabricators & Manufacturers Association (FMA) showed that 52 percent of teens have little or no interest in a manufacturing career, and another 21 percent are ambivalent about it.

But what could be causing this disinterest and ambivalence towards jobs in manufacturing?

In 2011, the U.S. Department of Labor released a report on this trend and stated:

Too few people consider manufacturing careers and often are unaware of the skills needed in an advanced education environment. Similarly, the K-12 system neither adequately imparts the necessary skills nor educates students on manufacturing career opportunities.

Indeed, if teens are already mentioning their disinterest in skilled labor, then that disinterest must have been sparked at an early age. And where else would that happen than at school?

NBT names two reasons for this student disinterest. First and foremost: the dropping of vocational programs and shop classes to help alleviate stretched school budgets. The reason that shop classes are often cut, according to Dr. Chris Keuhl, an economic analyst for FMA, is that they are the “single most expensive program a school supports.” Kuehl goes on to say that “only 6 percent of all the high schools in America offer shop classes.”

NBT’s second reason for a decline in manufacturing interest is school counselors. Think about it: when have you ever heard of a counselor suggesting that a student study something like welding? It may happen, but it’s rare. NBT puts it bluntly:

High school principals and counselors often fail to realize that manufacturing is a viable career option for students, opting instead to direct them to the typical four-year university program and degree. The education system theoretically should prepare our children for the future, yet does not provide them exposure to skills and fields that offer significant opportunities.

So what can be done to fix this problem?

Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs is doing their part by providing grants for summer manufacturing camps across the country. At the camps, junior high and high school students are exposed to math, science, and engineering principles, as well as manufacturing technology.

They let the kids create a product from start to finish, using 3D design programs, welding, machining, fabricating and more. All the while they’re learning about product creation, problem solving, and team building skills.

NBT is also offering scholarships to students at colleges and trade schools that pursue careers in manufacturing. In 2010, 10 scholarships were given to students across the country. But this is just the beginning of their journey as a manufacturing motivating organization.

NBT still says they need to make believers out of the parents. In a recent report, the organization wrote: “The industry needs to convince them, their children and others in this great country that manufacturing is an honorable and fulfilling career.”

If you want to learn more about Nuts, Bolts & Thingamajigs you can check out their website by click here.

 

Posted in: Uncategorized

American Welding Society celebrates grand opening of new global headquarters

4 December, 2012 9:05 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

The American Welding Society has finally, officially moved into their new global headquarters at 8669 NW 36th Street in Doral, Florida. Our organization made the move official by hosting an open house ceremony on Friday, November 30th that welcomed board members, international counterparts and agents, vendors, and community members.

A little bit of typical South Florida rain forced the ribbon cutting ceremony to be moved inside.

More than a hundred guests packed the second floor of the recently renovated five-story, 122,482-square-foot building to listen to speeches by Executive Director Ray Shook, and even The Honorable Michael Bileca, of the Florida House of Representatives. Miguel Otero, Deputy Chief of Staff for Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, who has an office in the building, also spoke at the event.

Calling Miami home for the past 40 years, AWS’s new Doral headquarters is only seven miles from its previous location and offers the society space to expand its membership, publishing, exposition, and educational operations. The organization currently serves nearly 70,000 members worldwide.

“Over the past few years AWS has seen a significantly increasing interest from across the globe in attaining AWS certifications, standards and membership,” said Ray Shook, executive director, AWS. “We’ve launched a global initiative that will allow us to better serve the welding community, and our new modern headquarters is one of the primary steps to becoming more accessible to our members.”

After all, accessibility is key when you’re the world’s authority on safe, productive welding. People around the world will need to get in touch with you easily when you’re publishing the major technical standards used in welding of all types, and especially when you’re certifying welding professionals such as inspectors, supervisors, and educators.

For now, it looks like our new headquarters in Doral will be our home for a very long time.

Posted in: Uncategorized

The Big Easy will welcome a shipbuilding conference in February

14 November, 2012 11:00 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

Even though FABTECH is in full swing at the Las Vegas Convention Center, we don’t think it’s too early to start talking about even more upcoming welding conferences. And we’re particularly excited about the 8th Shipbuilding Conference that’s coming to the Wyndham Riverfront in New Orleans next February.

The people in the picture don’t realize the awesomeness they are witnessing.

In the world of manufacturing, ships are second only to rockets on a list of “most awesome things in the world to build.” And if you’re in the business, this conference is where you need to be. It’s going to include a technical program featuring presentations on advanced welding processes, materials, and even robotics.  Because the only way to make shipbuilding more exciting is to take humans out of the equation and have bright-eyed droids cutting sheets of metal and bolting together decks.

There will also be a handful of presenters discussing new flux core welding electrodes for high yield steels, a new approach to reduce diffusible hydrogen content in the weld zone, aluminum applications, and welding tractors that can be used for all position welding that do not require tracks.

And if all these features don’t “float your boat” – the American Welding Society is also planning on inviting a keynote speaker who will open the event with an overview of welding technology in shipyards. Once we book a guest, we’ll let you know who it is and persuade you even further to come to the conference.

The 8th Shipbuilding conference is just one of five conference that the American Welding Society has planned for the coming year. We’ll be bringing you more information on the others very soon, but in the meantime you can get more information about the Shipbuilding conference by visiting the conference page here.

 

Posted in: Conferences & Shows

Come to FABTECH and win a free AWO course

7 November, 2012 10:43 am ⋅ Leave a Comment ⋅

Besides being the largest metal forming, fabricating, finishing and welding event in North America, FABTECH is also a place to come together in support and admiration of giveaways. And American Welding Online is fostering that support by offering the chance to win a free AWO course just by visiting their booth at FABTECH next week.

Welders love metal trade shows. But they love free stuff even more.

The big show, which kicks off on November 12 at the Las Vegas Convention Center, is the culmination of a year of planning for show organizers and exhibitors. The event is expected to cover more than 400,000 net square feet and bring in more than 25,000 attendees and 1,100 exhibiting companies.

Thousands of industry leaders will be there, and all for different reasons. In fact, the FABTECH website describes the show like this:

FABTECH provides a convenient ‘one stop shop’ venue where you can meet with world-class suppliers, see the latest industry products and developments, and find the tools to improve productivity, increase profits and discover new solutions to all of your metal forming, fabricating, welding and finishing needs.

One of those “tools to improve productivity” could very well be a free AWO course. AWO is the American Welding Society’s answer to the growing need of virtual education. Any student or experienced welder can head to awo.aws.org and find tools and resources to grow their welding knowledge. Everything from virtual seminars and conferences, to online certifications and podcasts are available on the website.

For those of you visiting FABTECH, all you need to do is pass by the AWO booth (N1933) to become eligible to win a free AWO course of your choosing. Five winners will be selected over the course of the show, and will be announced on the week of December 3rd via email or phone.

If you still haven’t registered to attend the big show in Sin City, you still have time. Signing up for exhibits will be free through November 9. You can register here.

Posted in: Conferences & Shows