Isn’t it time you started getting involved? That’s what these students thought!

I met them recently at one of our local AWS (American Welding Society) section meetings.  Daren Hitchman and Fred Paregoy (3rd from left in top and bottom rows) are the member recruiter and publicity chairman of their AWS student chapter, respectively.

I spent some time talking with them and I couldn’t help but take a picture of their workbooks. Unfortunatly, I did not capture the notes and diagrams on the inside; they were very detailed and technical — I was impressed with the level of training that these new students go throught to get certified.

Though they both are currently going to welding school at ECC in San Diego, they make the time to get involved in the local welding community by coming to events like this one.

Through attending meetings and events sponsored by local welding supply companies, professional organizations etc., these students are getting a better idea of the jobs that are available to them once they leave school.

Who knows? They might even meet a future boss, or learn about an opportunity to open their own shop just by hanging around and learning about the latest welding equipment!

Find a chapter of AWS near you and get involved!

Today is the start of the Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona, California.  This weekend, Jim Watson, aka Joe Welder, will be joining more than 40,000 other hot rod aficionados for a weekend of cars, cars, and a few motorcycles!

But Jim has a bit more on his mind — he just learned that one Glen Dennee has bought his Uncle Ben’s old racing car and is working on restoring it!
He’ll get a chance to meet up with Glen during the show and discuss how best to go about restoring Farmer Ben’s V8 60  Midget!

The Grand National Roadster Show
January 29 – 31, 2010

GNRS Supports Haiti Relief

Come to the 2010 Kragen O’Reilly Grand National Roadster Show this weekend and support the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund! We are donating proceeds from the sales of GNRS programs to this fund, and as this year’s theme is “Mardi Gras,” we’ll be having a good time handing out Mardi Gras beads to showgoers in exchange for small donations. Make a difference – come on out and join 40,000 other hot rodders for Haiti!

MORE INFORMATION ->

Are you free the 20th or 21st of February?

Come join Jim Watson, aka Joe Welder, and Ron Covell of Covell Creative Metalworking at Hot Rods & Custom Stuff in Escondido, CA for Covell’s Beginning and Advanced Steel Workshops!

Ron is one of the preeminent fabricators in the custom automotive industry and has been a good friend to us here at Arc-Zone.com!

You can head over to our webstore to check out a few of his welding DVDs.

If you don’t live in Southern California or can’t make it on this particular weekend, you can head over to Ron’s website and check out a complete list of his workshops in the upcoming year.

Who knows – he just might be coming to your neck of the woods soon!

It was the day after Larry Dorsey’s 54th birthday when Katrina hit.  He spent the next week just trying to survive.  Now, 4 years later, Larry is not just surviving; he is thriving, thanks in part to a shiny new welding certificate.

Hurricane survivor, KCC student earns premier welding certification

NICOLE FINKBEINER • READER SUBMITTED • OCTOBER 6, 2009

Larry Dorsey (Kellogg Community College)

Larry Dorsey, 58, received notification on Wednesday, September 30, that he pass the American Welding Society’s 6G Pipe Welding Certification.

The national certification means that the Air Force veteran can make approximately $25-30 per hour inspecting and supervising welding projects.

The certification is rare, and opens up a broad range of employment prospects.

Dorsey arrived in Battle Creek after surviving seven days of flooding from Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans. It was the day after his birthday when the flood waters came and he thought, like all of the other times, the waters would subside.

Within two days, the food he had ran out so he used a refrigerator door as a flotation device to find food for him and his neighbors. When he realized the waters were not receding, he knew it was time to leave.

CONTINUE READING ONLINE ->

Jerry Fuhriman is, at heart, a painter.  At least, that’s what most people would have thought until this, his most recent exhibition — Mr. Fuhriman has traded in his paintbrush for a welding torch, his pallet of paints for an array of stainless steel.

Showing his metal: Providence artist’s steely sculptures on display tonight

By Emilie H. Wheeler
Published: Friday, September 18, 2009 4:46 AM CDT

Jerry Fuhriman is known throughout the valley for his watercolors and oil paintings, but tonight people will get to see another side of the Providence artist.

A handful of Fuhriman’s newly created metal sculptures will be on display during the downtown Gallery Walk tonight at Fuhriman’s Framing & Fine Art, one of 12 businesses displaying artwork or hosting live music.

But for those who have visited Abravanel Hall in Salt Lake City recently, the artwork will look familiar.

Dubbed “Missy’s Rocket,” a 10-foot stainless steel rocket created by Fuhriman and Arthur Taylor of Hyde Park is on display in the symphony hall’s plaza. Like “Missy,” all of Fuhriman’s work on display tonight is put together using salvaged pieces of stainless steel.

CONTINUE READING ONLINE ->

I took my family to the opening night of the 64^th Annual Del Mar National Horse Show at the world famous Del Mar Fairgrounds, in Del Mar, Calif.  This event signals the start of the horse show season in this historic, beach-side arena.

As we approached the Del Mar Arena, I was surprised to see that a brand new roof had been installed on the open air stadium; the last time I had seen the venue had been at a Vintage Flat Track & TT motorcycle race not too long ago.

This massive project was completed in just 7 months by the Turner Construction Company.  For more information on the project you can check out this video from the San Diego Daily Transcript:  New Roof for Del Mar Arena ->

If you watched the video, you saw that this massive project featured tons of structural steel and miles of welding, cutting, fitting and joining.

The majority of the project was Stick (SMAW) and MIG welded, but a lot of the utility “high-pressure” piping, etc. was TIG welded.  This is yet another example of how the welding and metal fabrication market is involved in nearly everything that we do.  It’s just another reason why I love this industry!

So don’t let yourself be fooled into thinking that the industry is in decline — hardly!  In fact, if you look around, you’ll find that there are plenty of opportunities to build some really neat stuff — now more than ever before!

With more and more companies looking into alternative energy sources, Lincoln Electric has decided to take the lead by hosting seminars on welding wind towers.

Lincoln Electric Hosts Two Successful Wind Tower Welding Seminars

Day-long seminars provided industry veterans and newcomers insight into trends and technologies

The alternative energy industry continues to focus on wind power as a viable addition to address the ever-expanding global energy demand. With this in mind, Lincoln Electric has recently hosted more than 120 industry professionals interested in learning more about wind tower fabrication for several day-long seminars.

Seminar attendees traveled from across the United States and as far away as Brazil and Portugal to Lincoln’s Cleveland, Ohio, headquarters to learn more about wind tower fabrication. Each seminar featured an industry overview, technology sessions and live welding demonstrations for companies already fabricating wind towers and those currently considering it.

CONTINUE READING ONLINE ->

At the beginning of September this year, way up north in Calgary, Alberta, hundreds of young professionals from all over the world competed in WorldSkills 2009.  Participants competed in areas ranging anywhere from bricklaying and hairdressing to robotics and floristry.

However, since this is a welding blog, you’ll probably be leaning toward the construction metal works, welding, and sheet metal technology categories.

This is what WorldSkills International has to say about it:

Power. Passion. Precision. Craftsmanship. Camaraderie. Competition!

These six words represent the thrill, excitement and spirit of WorldSkills International.

Every two years, hundreds of the best young professionals from trades, service and technical programs around the world gather to showcase their talents and abilities.  This thrilling, high-performance, four day WorldSkills Competition is the biggest event of its kind in the world.

WorldSkills International was established in 1950. Today it is made up of 51 Member countries/regions worldwide. Participants compete for gold, silver, and bronze medals – striving to excel in world-class standards in 45 skill categories, ranging from cabinetmaking to web design.

Yet WorldSkills International is more than just a head-to-head challenge between aspiring professionals. It is a unique, not-for-profit, non-political, non-denominational association whose Members are responsible for promoting vocational education and training in their respective countries/regions.

CONTINUE READING ONLINE ->

For more information, you can go to the WorldSkills Calgary website HERE.

As only the second Canadian host of this event in its 59-year history, WorldSkills Calgary 2009 is proudly hosting The 40th WorldSkills Competition from September 1 – 7, 2009. Over 900 international Competitors will compete simultaneously in 45 skill categories during four days of intense Competition on Stampede Park in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Hailed as the pinnacle of global skills, trades, and technology competition, this biennial event promotesWelding, construction metal works, and sheet metal technology excellence and international competency industry standardsCONTINUE READING ONLINE -

Bellingham Technical College hosts an elaborate metal sculpture competition annually. Ten amatuer highschool and college teams must capture their artistic visions in scrap metal sculptures in just eight hours. This exciting event exemplifies altruism in action as artworks are subject public auction, with the proceeds benefiting the BTC Welding Student Scholarship Fund, the Welding Rodeo, and participating artists. Visit their website for more pictures and information.

What have YOU built lately? What do you do with your scrap metal?

At SEMA this year, Miller promises not only to be there with their newest products, but also to let anyone and everyone test them out right there on the floor.  This’ll be a great opportunity for welders everywhere to test out the new machines before they actually write out a check.

Miller Offers Special Discounts, Hands-on Demonstrations Of New Welding and Cutting Equipment at 2009 SEMA Show

Visitors encouraged to “get under the hood” or ask for professional demonstrations of MIG welding, TIG welding and plasma cutting, protective apparel and auto-darkening welding helmets.

Highlights/Key Facts

Visit Miller booth #23813 in the Racing & Performance pavilion

Newest products available to “try before you buy”

APPLETON, Wis. Aug. 10, 2009—Miller Electric Mfg. Co. plans to offer special show discounts and hands-on demonstrations of its newest generation of MIG welding, TIG welding and plasma cutting equipment at the 2009 SEMA Show, Nov. 3 to 6 in Las Vegas. Discount details will not be released until show time. To learn more, visit Miller at booth #23813 in the Racing & Performance pavilion, located in the Central Hall of the Convention Center.

CONTINUE READING ONLINE ->

For more information about the SEMA show, you can visit their website HERE ->.

Are you planning on attending? Tuesday, November 3 – Friday, November 6, 2009… LAS VEGAS CONVENTION CENTER, LAS VEGAS, NEVADA, USA … and remember what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas!