If you live in the Pittsburgh area, have a gun, and want to learn how to weld, you can now trade that gun in for welding training as part of the Boilermakers Union latest job program. The program aims to keep guns off the street and to provide critical job training to individuals in need of work.
Those who turned in guns during the first day of the program received an application and a date to show up for a drug test. Those with substance abuse issues can also receive drug and alcohol treatment through the union if they enroll in the program. The training program for welders runs for six months and pays between $20-$24 an hour.
Pittsburgh’s Boilermaker’s Union isn’t the only group of welders on target this week. Here’s a roundup of the latest welding job, school, and safety news:
Welding Jobs
Students Receive on the Job Training as Interns: his first week as an intern at Superior Industries, Morris Area senior Billy Bearson learned how to program and weld using a robot.
Bearson is one of four Morris Area High School students participating in a new welding mentorship program organized by AG instructor Natasha Mortenson and staff at Superior Industries and Westmor.
Over the semester, the students will spend two hours each day at one of four shops in the company, learning about different kinds of welding from experienced mentors in that division.
Welder of the Year Competition Encourages Job Seekers in South Africa: Air Products South Africa, sponsor of the South African Institute of Welding’s (SAIW) Young Welder of the Year, sees the competition as another opportunity to further its aim of investing in the youth of this country.
“Welding skills are critical in many industries and it is no secret that there is a dire shortage of engineering skills worldwide, specifically when it comes to expert welding. It is our great pleasure to have provided welding gases to facilitate this competition in the various areas of welding,” says Josua Le Roux, General Manager: Central Support at Air Products South Africa.
Welding Schools
Welding and Craft Brewing Added to Grand Rapids, MI College: Grand Rapids Community College will use a $2.9 million state grant to buy new equipment and expand its workforce development programs, an investment administrators say will benefit students as they train for jobs in high demand fields.
The grant, announced this week by Gov. Rick Snyder, will be used to expand and renovate the college’s machine tooling lab, purchase 10 virtual welding machines, buy a new HVAC training system, create a craft brewing program and add seven new vehicles to the automotive technician program.
California Juvenile Center Builds Oil Rigs for Africa: Officials say a brighter future for young offenders is shaping up at Juvenile Hall after the launch of a welding class that is helping build water well-drilling rigs for Africa. Juvenile Hall started the welding program in September after years of planning, said Wayne Barley, chief deputy probation officer with the Butte County Sheriff’s Office.
Ohio Welding Instructor Honored for Dedication to Trade: Ryan Eubank, welding instructor at the Willoughby-Eastlake Career Center in Willoughby, has been given an Ohio Strong Award by Ohio Treasurer Josh Mandel.
Ohio Strong is an effort started by Mandel to help recognize local workers in manufacturing and the skilled trades, and raise public awareness to encourage more people to pursue careers in these fields.
Wisconsin Welding Students Create Art and More for Competition: Central Wisconsin high school students showed off their creativity at the 5th annual welding competition at Northcentral Technical College in Wausau.
They can be judged in the utilitarian category or artistic category. Utilitarian includes anything from a wood stove to a grill, and in the artistic category anything goes.
Cheerleader Gabby Whatley Excels at Welding: Gabby’s dad, Shawn, is an iron worker and she always thought it was a really cool and fun job. In eighth grade, she had the opportunity to enroll in metal shop. That’s where she got her first hands-on experience with welding.
From that moment on she was hooked, an idea started to take shape and Gabby decided to pursue her dream of becoming a welder.
Welding Events
2015 International Brazing & Soldering Conference (IBSC), April 19-22
Now in its 6th Year, the IBSC remains the premier event for the brazing and soldering community. For years, the IBSC has provided professionals, scientists and engineers involved in the research, development and application of brazing and soldering, a unique networking and idea-exchange forum. This three-day conference provides cutting-edge education and technical programming for the brazing and soldering community, as well as peer networking and a full exhibit program, showcasing the latest trends, products, processes, and techniques available in the industry.
Welding Gone Wrong
Utah Welder Loses Truck and Home in Welding Blaze: A man was welding underneath his truck on Wednesday when a fire started and destroyed his home.
David Clay said he was working on his Toyota truck that he had spent more than 1,000 hours on when the fire sparked.
“I think it just caused a spark and it lit the truck on fire that I was working on and it went really fast from there,” Clay said. He said within seconds, the garage was engulfed in flames.”
Sprinkler System Saves Oregon Welding Shop: A fire in a southeast Bend industrial park Thursday night caused $30,000 in damage to a welding shop, but likely would have been far more severe and spread to adjoining businesses if a sprinkler system and fire alarm hadn’t kicked in, officials said.
Welding Supplies on Sale
Now that you know what’s going on in the world of welding, visit Baker’s Gas and Welding for the latest deals in welders, welding safety gear, and welding supplies.
