The following letter is a response to the article in the Winter 2006/07 issue of The World of Welding by Andre Odermatt titled, “Are We Heading For Big Trouble?”

I entered the work force “many” years ago.  First, let me say I am a HUGE fan and supporter of Hobart School of Welding for two reasons.  One, I received an extremely valuable start in life and understanding of “skilled trades” in Troy, Ohio, back in the early 1970s.  My instructor said something back then that I remember to this day, “You will learn at least two things while attending Hobart; one, you’ll learn how to weld and two, you’ll learn about welding.  You can’t learn how to perform a trade until you learn about the trade.”

He was so right!  I’ve been learning ever since.  Personally, I feel that makes me more of a tradesman than the 40 or so welding certs I’ve obtained over the years.  That was the key to my 17 years of teaching at Indiana Vocational Technical College in South Bend, Indiana, a long time ago.  I was reprimanded several times for being too aggressive and demanding and I finally gave it up.

I developed a welding library that consumes over 60 linear feet of shelf space.  That is what sets HOBART miles ahead of the rest of the country’s “welding schools,” and in my travels, I’ve visited dozens of them.  The others don’t teach “about” weldilng.  Big mistake! 

So many welders today have mastered the how but not the why.  Too few can think for themselves.  They can’t reason out problems or troubles because they never learned ABOUT welding.  How effective would an auto mechanic be if he did not understand how the automobile worked; or how knowledgeable and skilled would an electrician be if he didn’t understand electricity?  You get the message.  Long overdue… Thank You Hobart.

But this letter is more than just a “thank you”.  It’s a response to your [Andre Odermatt’s] article, “Are We Heading For Big Trouble?”

The title is a little off base.  The article proves we are not heading for big trouble, we ARE in big trouble!  (As other authors have so elegantly said in previous journals.)  And I was shocked when I saw the Wall Street Journal admitted it also. 

This is my evaluation of one major contributor to the problem:  It starts in public schools.  Failing students are passed on to the next grade when they FAILED, just to move them along the system and get them graduated.  From grade school through high school, they are rewarded for failing.  Now industries have a misguided and misinformed labor force.  Industries can’t use “failures”! 

A statement I have heard several times is that those students need to get into the trades since they aren’t college-bound.  Another BIG mistake!  The trades don’t need failures either.  Industry is crying for help and the tax-supported public school system is failing them and they can’t do anything about it.  This is 2007.  Labor needs to be smarter than the labor they received back in 1970.  Also, most high schools today don’t have shop classes any more.  Those shop classes didn’t teach us a trade, they “prepared” us for the “trades.”  That was their only purpose.  From there we went on to apprenticeships. 

Speaking of apprenticeships, “What has happened to metal working apprenticeships?”  They are all but gone.  Only electricians value apprenticeships anymore.  My millwright/welding apprenticeship was taught by a journeyman from Studebakers Auto.  Four years and over 60000 hours!  That’s unheard of today – in 2007! 

Another evaluation of those other trade schools out there:  Most of the vocational teachers today have no idea what the trades are even about; very few have more than ten years in industry and their view of “the trade” is very shallow.  I am not saying they aren’t skilled welders, (although some aren’t) but as I stated earlier, it takes more than just ability.  They know very little about filler metals, gases, processes, and procedures.  That information is extremely important for problem-solving skills. 

The lack of proper education in this country IS our biggest problem.  We are dying from the inside and not enough leaders of industry are aware of where to start in solving this crisis.  We have to fix education and change the identity problem and misunderstanding of “skilled trades.”

This is a huge problem and I don’t have all the answers.  We need to get back to the basics we once understood. That whole apprenticeship process would not be that hard to fix.  It would take industry involvement, the same as when I took mine.  It’s sad, but HOBART cannot train all the nation’s welders… I wish they could.  There area a lot of excellent, skilled welders out there; but how long can this problem go on?  It’s funny… I’ve even offered to donate my time to train in industry, but was turned down! 

I’ve probably worn out my welcome, so I’ll close and thank you very much for your time.  I anxiously wait for the spring edition.  I enjoy them very much.

                                                              Sincerely, Phil Evans
AWS/CWI-CWE
NOCTI Certified – 1990
OSHA 501 Qualified
Sr. Master Tradesman/Welder
Florida

I have been receiving your magazine for years and really enjoy reading it.  My nephew has decided to become a structural welder and I think that Hobart would be the best place for him to start when he is ready.  Right now, he’s 15, so I thought this would be a great time for him to start receiving your magazine.  I can’t think of a better way to inspire him!                                                      

~ Karl F. Bean, Rochester, NY

I am on your mailing list to receive The World of Welding magazine.  I really enjoy reading them and I find them to be very helpful.  I am a teacher’s aid at Marion Correctional Institution.  I really enjoy teaching young men here the welding trade.  It is really rewarding!  I am still “striving for that perfect weld!”  Thank you.                                                                                                            

~ James Hagwood, Marion, Ohio

I am writing a note to express my great gratitude to you and your staff at Hobart.  My son, Nolan, came to your Institute in the fall of 2005 with two years of vocational school welding under his belt and a large desire to learn more.  Both you and your staff are to be commended not only for teaching him the skills that he came to you for, but maybe even more importantly, you took time to encourage him and give him your personal attention.

Nolan speaks very highly of all of the staff at Hobart.  Every time we would talk on the phone, he would have a story about what he and an instructor had either talked over or done that day.  This gave him an even larger desire to excel.  This personal attention is something that is almost unheard of in today’s world and I want to thank you for it.

With the skills that you taught Nolan and the confidence you gave him, he is working as a welding technician and learning more by the day.  Nolan’s experience at Hobart and the skill level upon completion exceeded any expectations that I had when I came with him to enroll in your program.

Nolan knocked on your door and you not only opened it, but you also opened up to him a whole new world of opportunity.  I thank you for that. 

Sincerely,                                                                  
~ Dan Allbritain, Sarahsville, Ohio

I’m just a beginning welder and enjoy information on anything I can get my hands on.  I’ve got to stay one step ahead and be smarter than all those boys!                                       

~ Lauren Jensen, Kings Mills, Ohio

As an American Welding Society Welding Educator, I enjoy the human interest stories in The World of Welding.  Keep up the good work.                                                                                  

~ Zeke Cocran, Holden, Louisiana