The Fourth of July is always a good time to celebrate the USA, and here at Arc-Zone we like to celebrate welding products made in the USA all month long. But first, what does “Made in the USA” actually mean?
According to the federal trade commission, “for a product to be called Made in USA, or claimed to be of domestic origin without qualifications or limits on the claim, the product must be “all or virtually all” made in the U.S. The term “United States,” as referred to in the Enforcement Policy Statement, includes the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories and possessions.”
But that’s enough technical jargon, we covered this last year in our post, “Made (Welded) in the USA” in more detail. I want to kick off this year’s celebration with a little commentary on classic American racing– a true “Made in the USA” sport! After all I got my welding start in open wheel racing, following in the tradition of some American pioneers in industry like Henry Ford, who funded the Ford Motor Company with his (only) race winnings, beating the country’s best race car driver at the time, Alexander Winton. The racing industry taught me a lot, and not just about welding. I learned if you want to win, it’s about working hard and continuous improvement, trying to match the performance of the man and machine to the laws of nature, while taking into account the human element. And, I made a lot of friends for life, maybe because it’s so dangerous, you value those friendships even more….
Anyway, Henry Ford’s first venture had actually failed, but he worked harder and made it happen. Check out this video by his great-great grandson, on The Race That Changed Everything:
We’ll also feature some USA innovations, like the development of the TIG welding torch for the aerospace industry, and some of our favorite products that are made right here in the USA, like the CK Worldwide TIG torches, LENCO Connectors, Diamond Ground Tungsten Electrode Grinders, and the Vortex TIG welding nozzles.
We’re also going to introduce you to the Arc-Zone PRO Partners, starting with Made-in-the-USA Wes Mishler, a fabricator up in Michigan. Wait until you see some of his Made-in-the-USA welds!
And let us know what YOUR favorite Made in the USA welding accessory is! It’s time to celebrate!
