Wednesday, November 14 Thomas Lecture. David Bolser of The Boeing Co., St. Louis, Mo., gave this year’s Thomas Lecture, “Standards for Friction Stir Welding Aluminium” — Fig. 6. He identified friction stir welding (FSW), patented by TWI Ltd., England, in 1991, as a solid-state welding process that produces high-quality welds in difficult-to-weld materials. When increased FSW use created the need for a U.S. standard, AWS published D17.3/D17.3M:2010, Specification for Friction Stir Welding of Aluminum Alloys for Aerospace Applications. Also, when increased FSW use created the need for an ISO standard, Bolser was asked to lead a working group to write this specification. In detail, he described the five parts of ISO 25239, Friction stir welding — Aluminium, including vocabulary; design of weld joints; qualification of welding operators; specification and qualification of welding procedures; and quality and inspection requirements. In summary, Bolser stated the adoption of FSW standards represents a significant leap in the technology readiness level of the process and its ability to move into production. During the Q&A portion, he offered good advice; the team leader works hard with committee members to put together a standard, so three-day meetings are best, and have someone who knows the system tutor you. 10th Annual Image of Welding Award Winners Honored. The American Welding Society (AWS) and the Welding Equipment Manufacturers Committee (WEMCO) recognized the recipients of the 2012 10th Annual Image of Welding Awards during a ceremony at FABTECH — Fig. 7. The winners are as follows. • Individual Category, Ernest D. Levert, Dallas, Tex. Levert, the senior staff manufacturing engineer for Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control, Dallas, Tex., is a past AWS president and an AWS Counselor. He has averaged more than 1100 h of volunteer service to the Boy Scouts of America and local schools each year. 32 JANUARY 2013 decade.” She said manufacturing is still where high-skilled, high-level, high-paid, middle-class jobs can be found, but women have made up only 2.5% of the skilled trades over the past 30 years. “Two things need to be done,” she said. “Manufacturers need highly skilled workers and workers — male and female — need training for skilled jobs.” Two new scholarships for women were announced during the reception. Air Products and the AWS Foundation are jointly establishing a $50,000 scholarship to help enable women to develop the skills required to pursue technical careers. The first annual $2500 scholarship will be awarded this year to a woman pursuing higher education in a welding or engineering discipline, who has proven to be an exceptional student and is eager to start her career in the industry. “We are excited about coming together with the AWS to provide this scholarship opportunity to women for the benefit of our industry,” said Sue Reiter, regional distributor sales manager at Air Products and a member of the WGW strategic committee. “This scholarship program supports not only Air Products’ future employment needs, but also the creation of a workforce with the skills necessary to help companies compete in today’s global economy.” The William F. Fray National Women in Welding Scholarship will also be awarded through the AWS Foundation. Fray was a life member of AWS and owner of a stainless steel tank fabrication company in Bridgeport, Conn. His daughter, Elizabeth (Liz) Fray, who ran the organizational side of the tank company for 20 years, wanted to honor her father. The $50,000 endowment will povide an annual award of $2500. The first award will be made after November of this year. Liz Fray decided to create a scholarship specifically for women because there was not one in place previously, and her focus is to encourage and support women toward a welding career. Fig. 6 — David Bolser explained the five parts of ISO 25239, Friction stir welding — Aluminium, during his Thomas Lecture. Fig. 7 — Pictured at the 2012 Image of Welding Awards (from left) are winners Ernest D. Levert (Individual); David Parker (Educator); Allie Reynolds (Distributor, WELSCO); David Corbin (Large Business, Vermeer Corp.); and Glenn Kay (Educational Facility, Washtenaw Community College).
Welding Journal | January 2013
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