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HANS
LEITNER SUCCESSFULLY BRINGS AUSTRIAN BACKGROUND AND WORK ETHIC
TO THE U.S.
“When I arrived in
the United States in 1976, I knew very little English.
I had a two-year degree from the Welding Technical
Institute in Austria, but it was a struggle to read
specifications and blueprints in English,” explains Hans.
“I was working days at SEW
Eurodrive, Inc. in Troy and attending a third-shift class at
the Hobart Institute.”
Hans and his wife,
Brigitte, had followed her sister and her husband to Troy to
establish a home in the United States.
As his English improved, Hans moved to Akron, Ohio, and
accepted a job with Reuther
Mold & Manufacturing.
Eventually, he purchased the company and Leitner
Fabrication. Ltd. was created on March 16, 1996 from
the former Reuther-Leitner Fabrication Company. With over twenty years of experience in the fabricating and
welding industry, Leitner, now located in Medina, specializes in
the fabrication and welding of axial and radial fans for the
utility and power industry for most of the major fan companies
in the world.
Leitner
Fabrication knows that their welders are some of the best in
this industry. They currently employ 46 people including 28 welders.
“We
expect the welders that we hire to have a high level of skill in
various welding processes including gas metal arc, gas tungsten
arc, shielded metal arc, and flux cored arc welding,” says
Hans. “They need
to be capable of working on virtually any type of welding
application.”
The
Hobart Institute can assist individuals to obtain the training
and skill levels required for jobs like these and can assist
companies with certification services to assure that their
welders meet the specifications.
The
pay scale for welders here ranges from twelve to sixteen dollars
per hour. Applications at the company range from products containing
A36 mild steel to various types of quenched and tempered, high
strength steel or stainless steel to those fabricated of any of
a variety of specialty alloys including A514, A517, and A588
materials.
“We
have an extensive list of approved weld procedures and qualified
welders that can weld on stationary, rotational, and pressure
equipment according to code requirements,” Leitner continues.
“Some of the fans we build also require special wear
liner material on the blades and centerplates from materials
such as AR400 and chromium carbide.”
Leitner
Fabrication owns one of the largest balancing machines (110,000-
lb. capacity). The
shop continues to grow and has added machining to their
extensive list of capabilities. Along with the fabrication
equipment, they now own two vertical boring mills, and one
horizontal boring mill. He
also owns 50% of Olson & Pugh in the Kent, Ohio facility
with 22 employees and a sister company, J & J Fabricators in
Columbiana, Ohio, with 20 employees.
“Our
machining specialties, as well as the horizontal boring mill,
have given us greater capabilities and the ability to be a
one-stop shop for our customers,” says Hans.
Welding,
however, was the cornerstone for the successful career of this
entrepreneur.
For further
information, visit Leitner Fabrication web site at http://www.leitnerfab.com
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