Fastening, Joining & Assembly

I'm not in the job market(retired), but it is an interesting thought. It would depend on several things. Age of the person, physical condition, surviorability(how badly do you want to make it). I think if I were still in the market and I satisfied the above criteria, I would go into the welding field.

Would I do this? Yes I would. Long ago I served the long toolmaker's apprenticeship during which I was required to spend three (3) months in the welding shop. In order to obtain certification for that area I learned to successfully weld with mild steel and low-hydrogen mild steel electric arc rods in all positions, and learn the proper use of an acetylene torch to cut, weld, and braze, and solder metal. Those three (3) months occurred during the summer, and took any perceived glamour away from the idea of a career as a welder!

From the standpoint of wages and benefits I should say that I have done far worse tasks than be a professional welder. After my transition from being a master toolmaker to being a mechanical engineer, I spent several years as a chief engineer. During 2006 I and several senior co-workers collectively had a career interruption due to the fact we were a bit long in the tooth and grey in the beard.

I sought work during the 4th quarter of the business year, and of course there was very little work to be found. So, I took the only job I could find and worked as a 2nd shift electrician/mechanic in a dog food plant at just over 1/3 of my engineering pay rate-but I am a man and it was a job-an honest job. After several months I again found another engineering position and watched it disappear due to the purchase of my then-current employer. (drum roll.....Forbus is about to stop whining!) But during the first quarter of 2008 I found a really good engineering position-perhaps the best I have ever had.

Again to the question-would I do this? Yes I would, even with the risks involved. Would I do it for the remains of my working life? If I needed to do so, of course I would. I perceive myself to past the point of having a "career" and now perceive myself to have a "job". I think for the remains of my working life that it may well be one job after another, unless our business mindset changes. In short, my hands are ever eager to engage dirt, and let's face it; if the job is something you don't hate and the money is good, why should you not do it and be very proud of it?

Best Regards,

Ing. Robert Forbus

I'm not just taking TIG courses just for fun, even if it is. Lots of private vineyards/wineries around here. A good side job or profitable hobby if nothing else.

Brad

I often look at a trade as an option. 20 years is a long time to be doing the same thing. A change to welding would be a good choice. A "good" welder is always in demand. Especially since there are so many not-good welders.

you make an interesting comment about "good welders" . I worked as a industrial mechanic all my career. We were required to learn to weld as part of our advancement. There are many levels of abilities when it comes to welding. Most guys could do most welding required for the regular jobs. However, we did have certified welders on the staff, who did welding that required x-ray passing quality welds.

As long as anything is being built, it will require trained, certified welders. By the way, I consider those that can pass certification to have some artistic ability to be a "great" welder. There is artistic ability demonstrated with completition of a quality piece of welding work. The work speeks for itself. it not only looks good, it is good.

I have seen some guys doing some out of position, difficult welding, making it look easy--but it's not . My hats' off to those guys.

watching a good, and I mean GOOD, welder (AND his trusted fitter) perform a difficult job is to watch an artist.

even more interesting, watching someone weld out of position, and making it look as good as his other work.

I worked in the chemical industry, and when field welding in the dry part of a fertilizer plant, a whole new set of skills had to be learned. They don't teach these skills in school.

We had to learn how to weld dirty metal, that could only be cleaned so much. We also had to learn to weld in horrible conditions, many times wet and muddy. or in dusty, difficult to breath environments. How do you teach someone to weld contaminated metals, and make it stick.??

Fortunately, that was in my younger days, and I don't have to do things like that anymore. But the memory of some hell holes I have had to weld in is still vivid.

I would, in a minute. It beats the hell out of being a sales associate at Radio Shack, as I was when I found myself between engineering jobs.

Granted, I was in my late 50's and engineering job acquiring is no longer an easy task, age discrimination be damned.

Hooker

i would do anything to get food on the table

I hope that is a sliding scale of "anything". You wouldn't murder 12 people for a $2 cheese burger when you had $1000 in your pocket..... I hope?

off course not for a cheese burger, maybe for a Burger king XXX?

No what i am trying to say is that a lot of engineers i knew (in Holland) where kind of elitists that the idea to work below their engineering status was incomprehensible. i never mind to dig holes or work in a factory until a better opportunity comes along.

Yes, I have experienced this elitist mindset as well.

Myself, I enjoy working in a more practicle job from time to time. After everything that is involved in engineering and design to accomplish even the simplest task, it's nice to pick up a shovel or a hammer or a torch and just get the job done.

I started professional welding in 1964. There were no MIGs at that time. We had to be proficient in flat, overhead, vertical and horizontal welding with a stick welder. It was a pure matter of pride to be the best. Later I became the management person that controlled welder requirements and testing. In testing some great number of candidates, I found that only 40% of the applicants could pass minimum requirements. Of the 40% only a few could weld with a MIG in all positions. Our minimum requirements for an applicant were at least two years of production welding.

I'm a weldor, welding engineer, robotics man, lah lah lah and so on. What I know about welding is but a very small portion of welding. There are welder and then there are weldors. there are all levels of experience and so many different fields of welding. I have a pacemaker that was welded together. Computers have their leads welded on. You trust your life to a welder when you ride a thrill ride at six flags, drive down the road or fly in an airplane. Buildings, bridges, cars, trains, medical equipment, space shuttles, guns, all would not be possible with out welding. I can take a welder and make a good machinist out of him but can I take a machines and make a good welder out of him? I suppose I'm a bit defensive about welding but it takes a very special person to do a good job at welding. If you look at it as a lesser job you probably ought to get that job at Micky Dee's. Don't bother to attempt to take a weld test. Your wasting someones precious time. Become a machine operator. You'll notice I didn't say machinist. Welding is a tremendously rewarding profession. R Johnson CWI

Every Tom, Dick and Harry says they are a welder because they were once paid to glue two metals together with some heat. I've done a bunch on the job and at home but I'm no welder. I say "I've welded" and that's about it.

It is an art. And it's true that some people just don't get it and never will. I've been in the position to spec, inspect, test and diagnose welds many times. It's a tough position to be in when you have to tell a guy that his welds are no good when he is standing there with his chest stuck out saying "I'm a welder". In fact I find it's the people that say "I'm a welder" that you have to worry about. In my experience if they say something like "I'll do my best" you most probably will end up with good welds.

I guess the difference is having pride in the fact that your a welder rather than pride in your work as a welder. Like the definition:

1. also wel·dor (-dər) A person who welds, especially as a profession.
2. A device that is used for welding.

A welder can be a person who welds as a profession or a person who acts as a device for welding.

TEKTONE Global Technologies Foundation Inc. is a technical-vocational institution in Bicol that is the premier training provider of globally-competitive skilled workers in construction, tourism and related sectors. It provides competency-based training of welding and heavy equipment operation.

Welding, (as much as this author knows), is a sculptural process that joins and combine materials, usually metals and thermoplastics, by causing coalescence. Sounds complicated right? Then yeah I agree with you, welding is an integral part on building, repairing and constructing. And through the years it has advanced quickly from blacksmiths pounding two metals together which is called forge welding, to arc-welding & oxyfuel-welding, to laser beam welding and electron beam welding, and now even to the very futuristic robot welding which researchers continue to develop and improve. So as you can see welding is a very important tool, as it can be used on almost anything, from your car repairs and even for your house maintenance, yes welding does the job. *Anyway one important thing that needs a lot of reminding is that welding needs a lot of safety issues, as it can be very hazardous to a person that doesn't know what his doing, you need a lot of safety gears such as protective suits, leather gloves, goggles and of course helmets, so as you can see only professional welders should do the repairing and constructing of certain things, just a reminder for those kids out there. All in all welding can be fun to a certain degree, as you can do experiments and stuffs.

anything? hehe... I would say almost

I don't know how to weld but I would shurely love to learn. I sometimes get a little bored with being inside the manufacturing plant all day... I think my time is up as a manufacturing engineer.

does anyone have a job offering in the US for a Mexican? :) will work for 25 bucks an hour! 7 days a week, 12 hours a day!

Wood is Good, but Steel is Real. - I have cut and done grinds and painting for a welder who I hired later to fabricate a design I made up that made some people some money. Know thyself and treat all with respect.

Going back to fitting pipe would be a last resort too many young people comming out of school need these jobs.

There is such a need for welders and it doesn't seem to be diminishing. Where do you want to weld? On an oil rig, in a factory, build ships, pipelines, overseas, under water, up high, down low, in a mine, at a mine, on a chair, in a lab, in your garage. Age seems to play an important roll in becoming a proficient welder. Older makes me slower at developing needed skills. Fabrication welding is sometimes hot and dirty in small shops but dirty is becoming a bad word in contract fabrication, machining, and assembly. Process are becoming defined and controlled and require less of the welder then twenty years ago. I think the answer to "going back to welding" would have to be qualified by where? I'd love to go back to welding. In our facility one welder holds a degree in English and is qualified to teach. Another has a degree in physics and welds because it pays better. One is an electrical engineer and is welding because he couldn't find a position. It's a beautiful cross section of wonderful creative people.

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