Page 8 - HIWT World of Welding Fall 2021-Winter 2022

To Chicago We Went FFA National Convention

By: Melinda Gladish By: Melinda Gladish
After a one-year absence due to the pandemic, the FABTECH Expo was Members of the Marketing and Career Development Team attended the
held in Chicago September 13 -16, 2021. FABTECH is North America’s 94th FFA National Convention in Indianapolis on October 27-29, 2021.
largest metal forming, fabricating, welding, and finishing event. It is held This convention is about growing the next generation of leaders and
annually in either Chicago, Atlanta, or Las Vegas. Not being able to attend highlights the achievements of many student members of FFA. The “sea
events for over a year, the team was ready to get back out and network of blue” is an amazing sight in and of itself but experiencing the sincerity
with others in the welding industry. and professionalism of the students who come from chapters all over the
Our team spoke with industry professionals concerning the challenges United States is truly inspirational.
they have faced during the pandemic, specifically in trying to hire and At the convention, the HIWT team shared information about a career
retain current staff. One solution discussed was to invest in additional in welding and the programs offered at the college. Additionally, they
training for current staff, while showcasing this opportunity as a benefit offered the opportunity via a virtual welder to allow students to try their
for newly hired welders. The team discussed how HIWT’s corporate hand at welding in a safe and controlled environment. This always brings
services/technical training division offers services and professional or out the competitive nature of those who participate as they compete to
skill related courses to assist companies in this area, even to the point of get the highest score.
tailoring training to meet the needs of individual companies. One of our own, Justin Preece, received the American Award at the
If you are in need of corporate training, please contact us at (937) 332- convention. Justin is a June 2021 graduate of Hobart Institute of Welding
9500 or hiwt@welding.org. and is a welder for Farmers Equipment Inc. in Urbana, OH. Justin served
as President for the Urbana FFA Chapter and completed multiple career
development events in pursuit of the American Award. HIWT is proud to
call Justin a member of our family and offers him congratulations on his
award.

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