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The U.S. fabrication and welding industry is facing a crisis with the shortage of trained welders. The National Tooling and Machining Association reports that 40 percent of its member companies have been forced to turn down business due to a lack of welders. The AWS predicts a shortfall of 200,000 skilled welders by 2010. With demand this high, there has never been a better time to become a welder. This truly is a vocation with great job security, as well as good benefits and salaries.

“ESAB has supported welder education for many years,” says Mark Elender, vice president of sales and marketing for ESAB North America. “We have partnered locally with Florence-Darlington Technical College’s Southeastern Institute of Manufacturing and Technology (Florence, SC) for a number of years, and we are embarking on a new relationship with Ranken Technical College in St. Louis. ESAB recently donated $55,000 in seed money to establish a scholarship through the American Welding Society to train welders at Florence Darlington Technical College. We are always proud to support programs that encourage careers in welding.”