The Welding Department of Saint Paul College would like to extend an open invitation to all AWS members and companies or businesses in the welding industry to our open house.

The event will bring together various aspects of the welding industry and allow individuals to become familiar with Saint Paul College and our mission to produce quality welders for the industry.

• Experiment with the latest in welding technology with the Lincoln™ virtual welder
• Tour Minnesota’s largest welding training facility
• View the latest products in the welding industry at vendor booths
• Seminars
  • “Staying Pro-Active in a Slow Economy”
  • “Benefits of Employing Certified Welders”
  • “Maintaining Materials on the Jobsite for Optimal Performance”
  • “Cost Reduction within the Welding Profession”
    
• Meet Saint Paul College’s Welding Instructors

David Fitzgerald – Lead Welding Instructor

Todd Hankel – Welding Instructor – Fabrication

Ric Eckstein, CWI – Welding Instructor

If your company has not received an invitation, we would greatly appreciate your participation in our event.  You are welcome to set up a booth to demonstrate your company’s products/equipment.  Please contact us so that we can provide you with enough space and access to electricity/ventilation.

Date: Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Time: 10:00am to 5:00pm

Location: Saint Paul College
235 Marshall Ave.
Saint Paul, MN 55102
RM# L280

Parking: Free – Lot F is closest to the welding department
RSVP: e-mail Ric Eckstein or call 651-403-4096
Lunch: BBQ with sides and drinks, served at 12:30pm

Chair: Jay Gerdin
1st Vice Chair: Chris Hensiak
2nd Vice Chair: Bob Renner
3rd Vice Chair: Ric Eckstein
Secretary: Korey Parchem
Treasurer: Mike Hanson

This is the first time in years the Northwest Section has had more than one vice chair. The Northwest Section also welcomes newcomer Ric Eckstein, an Indiana AWS transfer with previous vice chair experience.

Announced committee chairs:

Scholarships: Mace Harris
Certification: Mike Hanson

Other committee chairs to be announced at a later date.

1. The Board and Executive Committee page is current with new officers Jay Gerdin and Bob Renner assuming their respective positions as of June 1, 2009. (Woo-hoo!) Also, all subcommittee chairs are now listed by proper titles (like to help one of those subcommittees? Keep reading) according to the…
2. Full 2008-2009 Northwest Section Report to AWS National, posted here and here in PDF format, and also at the top of…
3. New 2008-2009 Section Meeting Minutes page now posted, along with the new 2009-2010 page. These new pages are arranged by year, with the final Section Report in PDF format at the top of the page when the section fiscal year ends.Meeting minutes are listed in reverse chronological order (newest on top.) As meetings are held and previous meeting minutes approved by the Executive Committee,  all updates shall appear at the top.

Now for the plug: As you read the links, and see what we are all about, and have some skills that can help us (event planning, narrative and expository writing, expert AWS code knowledge), contact Mace Harris or Todd Bridigum for more information.

All that is needed to join us is a current AWS membership and enthusiasm for getting involved!

That goal is now coming within sight as the Northwest Section is pleased to welcome in two new officers for the 2009-2010 year: Jay Gerdin and Bob Renner.

Jay Gerdin is an instructor at Anoka Technical College and a CWI. Jay will become the new Vice-Chair replacing Bob Sands, placing Jay in line to eventually replace Todd Bridigum as the Chair.

Bob Renner is a welder at Valleyfair, constructing and upgrading the metal structure of the rides. He will replace Mace Harris as Secretary, freeing Mace to better serve as District Director.

Please welcome both therse gentlemen as they assume their new duties in June!

The decision was made to suspend the newsletter for the remainder of this year. Cost for printing and mailing are high, and without the financial support of advertisers it is cost priohibitive to continue the newsletter. We will continue to send oput fliers and mailings giving information about the various events for the rest of the year.

In addition to our regular website, a new website [you're on it-Admin] and Facebook page have been created to better communicate with our members and provide quick and easy access to information about upcoming section events.

I’m a new AWS member as of January 2009, and along with fellow Executive Committee and classmate Dan Johnson (running our Facebook page), I took on the responsibilty to help provide our members with up-to-date current information. I chose the Word Press blog format for this site because of the ease of operation, ease of updating, ease of reading, and cost-effectiveness. It also provies us with a branding opportunity; no longer will visitors have to follow a convoluted path to get section information, all they need to know is AWSNorthwest.org to get the latest news and updates of upcoming events, and coverage of recently-held events.

Look for more branding of events as time rolls on.

My goal is to make this site the one-stop shop for Northwest Section members, playing an intergral part in making this section once again the great section it was in the past!