Welding & Gases Today | Q3 2021

The Official Publication of the Gases and Welding Distributors Association

COMMEMORATING MILESTONE ANNIVERSARIES GAWDA members keep their Eyes Up as they celebrate important milestones

SMC RECAP

GAWDA Members Gather in Nashville

Third Quarter 2021

MEMBER PROFILE

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MEMBER BENEFITS

Benefits of GAWDA Membership

ITR ECONOMICS

Preparing for The Looming Depression

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contents Third Quarter • Summer 2021 • Volume 20, No. 3

DEPARTMENTS

06

PRESIDENT’S VIEW We Are Back At It! The Do’s and Don’ts of Attending Conventions

BY ABYDEE BUTLER MOORE

10

DIRECTOR’S DESK Back Together Face-to-Face

BY JOHN OSPINA

12

EDITOR’S NOTE Reunited and it Feels so Good

COVER STORIES

Commemorating Milestone Anniversaries

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO

GAWDA CONSULTANTS

14

42

elping GAWDA Members H Save Time and Money

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO, TOM BADSTUBNER, MARILYN DEMPSEY, MICHAEL DODD AND RICK SCHWEITZER

20

PAGE

PG Filling, Transportation L and Storage

FEATURES

Qualifying a New Driver

BY MICHAEL DODD

22

GAWDA members keep their Eyes Up as they celebrate important milestones

PAGE

28

31

BY MARILYN DEMPSEY

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO

26

GAWDA Members Share Why They Participate in the CGA Subscription Program

104

70

GAWDA CONVENTION PREVIEW 2021 GAWDA Convention to take place October 6-9, 2021

72

ENEFITS OF GAWDA B MEMBERSHIP Members of GAWDA’s Member Services Committee discuss the biggest member benefits of GAWDA

BY RICHARD GOTTWALD

I TR THIRD-QUARTER OUTLOOK Durability of Ascent: 3 Reasons Why it Matters

BY BRIAN BEAULIEU

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO, RAFAEL ARVELO, BRAD PETERSON, COLLEEN KOHLER, BILL VISINTAINER AND JAMES CAIN

MEMBER PROFILE

38

SMC RECAP Eyes Up: GAWDA’s 2021 Spring Management Conference Smashes Records!

INNEAPOLIS OXYGEN M Helping Customers Grow for 75 Years

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO

2 • Summer 2021

PAGE

70

76

GAWDA’s Life Insurance Program

BY BRIAN MCLAUGHLIN

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contents Third Quarter • Summer 2021 • Volume 20, No. 3

THE TEAM EXECUTIVE EDITOR

John Ospina jospina@gawda.org

FEATURES

77

021 Young & Emerging 2 Professionals Summit Sharing best practices and valued experience with our industry’s future leaders

PUBLISHER

Bill Brod billb@gawdamedia.com EDITOR IN CHIEF

PAGE

80

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

84

Choosing a Mentor

BY ART WASKEY

VICE PRESIDENT, SALES

GAWDAMEDIA.COM

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO

very Game is E an Away Game Lessons on understanding resistance to change

Progress in the Gases and Welding Industry

BY J.R. (BUZZ) CAMPBELL, KEN THOMPSON, MAURA GARVEY

100

BY JOHN TAPLEYI

86

The Looming Depression ITR’s Alan Beaulieu discusses the company’s short and long-term economic projections

The Lawyer Effect

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO AND ALAN

BY JAY SPIELVOGEL

BEAULIEU

The Six Attributes of 88

Super-Profit Companies Laser focus is the key to your goals

Lesli Mitchell leslim@gawdamedia.com

STAY CONNECTED

BY BRIAN BLUFF

Digitization Making 98

80

Anne DeSantis anned@gawdamedia.com

Too Many Anonymous Website Visits. Now What?

Andrea Levy alevy@gawda.org

Hannah Gray hannahg@gawdamedia.com

93

for the Gases and Welding Industry

Natasha Alexis nalexis@gawda.org

RELATIONSHIP MANAGERS

BY MIKE MARKS

Search Engine Trends 96

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

Tim Hudson timh@gawdamedia.com

of Sales to Thrive in a Post-Pandemic Market

Steve Guglielmo steveg@gawdamedia.com

Robin Barnes robinb@gawdamedia.com

How to Reduce the Cost 90

BY RANDY MACLEAN

NEWS ROUNDUP

37

INDUSTRY EVENTS

126

NEW OFFERINGS

117

INDUSTRY NEWS

130

ADVERTISERS INDEX

121

IN MEMORIAM

WELCOME NEW 131

MERGERS & 124 ACQUISITIONS

MEMBERS

132

THE LAST WORD

Welding & Gases Today (USPS 22-975) is published quarterly: Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall, with additional publications in Spring and Summer. • Non-member subscription rate is $195 per year. • GAWDA members (key contacts and branch locations) receive the magazine as part of their dues. • GAWDA members can order additional yearly subscriptions (4 issues) for $40. • Welding & Gases Today is published by Data Key Holdings, LLC. on behalf of the Gases and Welding Distributors Association. • Periodicals postage paid at Ft. Lauderdale, FL, and at additional mailing offices (ISSN 1558-5344). • Editorial correspondence should be sent to Editors c/o editorial@gawdamedia.com • Advertising correspondence and materials should be sent to William Brod, Data Key Holdings, LLC., 1415 W. Genesee St., Syracuse, NY 13204; telephone (315) 445-2347, fax (315) 422-1721. • Postmaster: Send address changes to Welding & Gases Today, Gases and Welding Distributors Association, One Oakwood Blvd, Suite 195, Hollywood, FL 33020 • Welding & Gases Today is the official journal of the Gases and Welding Distributors Association (GAWDA) and carries news and announcements concerning GAWDA. • It is not responsible for contents or opinions other than association activities. • Contents are copyright ©2021 Data Key Holdings, LLC. • All rights reserved. • Nothing may be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission of the publisher. • Questions and comments can be sent via e-mail to Editors, c/o editorial@gawdamedia.com. • Data Key Holdings, LLC. reserves the right to print portions of all or any correspondence mailed to the editors without liability on its part and no such correspondence will be returned. • Visit Welding & Gases Today Online at www.gawdamedia.com.

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PRESIDENT’S VIEW

We Are Back At It! The Do’s and Don’ts of Attending Conventions

BY ABYDEE BUTLER MOORE

E Abydee Butler Moore is GAWDA’s 2020-2021 president, as well as President and COO of Butler Gas Products Company. She can be reached at 412771-7660 ext. 316 or abutlermoore@ butlergas.com.

xhale. The transcendent reunion was a success. Over 700 of our industry friends gathered in Nashville for the 2021 Spring Management Conference, after 601 days since our last national meeting.

Just like riding a bicycle, we are back collaborating, networking, and learning at conferences.

The industry calendar awakes from its slumber.

I have been attending industry conferences since I was three months old. From sticking my tongue out on stage to giving speeches on stage, I have run the gamut of what to-do and not-todo at business meetings. As we get back to a packed schedule of industry travel, here are the top things I have learned about getting the most out of industry conventions.

DO sit in the first row. It is a sign of respect for the presenter, and it makes it easier to learn. Speakers notice the people in the front. When we attend industry conferences, our companies are investing in us to be there and learn, with the understanding that we will apply what we have learned to our businesses to make them better. Purposefully sitting in the back is a physical rebellion to that mission, while sitting in the middle is an apathetic attempt to not be noticed. Be noticed. Be present. Sit in the front.

DON’T play hooky. To maximize your return on investment of attendance, you have to show up to everything. I always chuckled when colleagues or

6 • Summer 2021

friends at home ask, “How was your vacation?” upon returning from a business trip. If you are doing it right, you need a vacation upon returning from a business trip. You should be exhausted, and you should be working longer days than you do at home. Showing up is a big deal. Do not skip out on any of the events and content.

There is no truancy in business.

DO bring business cards to every event. More than you think you will need. We can take lessons from other cultures on business card etiquette (and always be sure to research these norms if traveling internationally for business.) Stand up when exchanging cards and read the other person’s card when they hand it to you before tucking it away.

DO work the room. When I attend a Contact Booth program with my dad, we each start on opposite sides and cross in the middle of the room. This ensures that even if we run out of time, at least one of us, if not both, has seen every vendor. At a reception, stand near the bar. You will see everyone in attendance as they cycle through the line. Being social and genuinely connecting with people is the benefit of in-person events. What we lose through Zoom are all the side conversations of value that happen organically when we travel and experience a business conference together. Seek out those moments and get to know our industry colleagues. continued on page 8

Committed To Being Here.

Committed To You. We understand the meaning of essential. Businesses and industries count on you, just like you count on us. In these challenging times, we’ve continued to do what we do best: build a better world by developing welding products and solutions to keep you moving forward. Our commitment is to being here.

Our commitment is to you.

AR20-20 | ©2020 Lincoln Global, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

PRESIDENT’S VIEW

GAWDA SMC 2021

DON’T get absorbed back to old ways upon returning home. It is not what we know

that matters in life, it is what we do with what we know. When our team travels to a conference together, we schedule a

debrief meeting within a few days of getting back. We do our roundtable share of each person’s takeaways from the conference. We write these down and articulate next steps for action. These migrate to our weekly leadership meeting To-Do list, and we hold each other accountable to implement what we have learned. Traveling as a team is helpful because it creates these accountability buddies and there are more ears present to absorb the content. When I would travel solo to conferences, I would get home and scare everyone at the office with these new crazy ideas. It works much better when we learn and buy-in to the crazy ideas together!

For where to be when this year, visit the GAWDA calendar at https://www. gawda.org/events/.

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NEW!

DIRECTOR’S DESK

Back Together Face-to-Face

BY JOHN OSPINA

O John Ospina is GAWDA’s executive director.

He can be reached at GAWDA Headquarters in Hollywood, FL, via telephone at 844-2513219 or via email at jospina@gawda.org.

10 • Summer 2021

ur first Face to Face meeting was completed in Nashville, and what a meeting it was!

It was great seeing all the old familiar faces and many new faces at the SMC. Thank you to all our participating members who took that first leap of faith with us. I’d also like to thank all our volunteer educational speakers for their hard work and insightful presentations. Finally, thank you to our sponsors for their support. Every one of you helped make this an event to remember.

OTHER EXCITING CHANGES Our consultant’s roundtable has been rebranded from “COVID Updates” to “The Safety Manager’s Safety Meeting.” This new format features a wider coverage of safety, compliance, transportation, driver training and HR topics. Sneak previews of upcoming discussion items can be found in the email reminders that GAWDA sends out.

This year, our Scholarship program gave out 15 scholarships, which were announced at the SMC. You can see the recipient list on page 35.

A special thanks to all our corporate donors that stepped up to support this program and helped support future leaders in our industry. The list of donors can be found on page 35. 2022 Corporate donors can contribute to the scholarship program any time during the year. All donors will be recognized during the next Spring Management Conference along with the 2022 recipients. The donation form can be found on the GAWDA website at https://www.gawda.org/resources/ gawda-scholarships-program/

A LOOK AT OUR MEETING SCHEDULE FOR THE REST OF 2021 Our regional meetings this year are scheduled in July and August. You can find the schedule on page 37. or on our website at https://www. gawda.org/events/. Registration for these events is now open.

Our Annual Convention is scheduled to be in Colorado Springs at the Broadmoor. This is a fantastic location. We have a strong program lined up, which you can read about starting on page 70. Registration for our Annual Convention opens in July and can be found on our website at https://www.gawda.org/gawda-annual-convention/.

Please join us as we host another memorable event.

So, let’s get out there, reconnect and network with more of our members!

Our partnership with CGA has been a great benefit for our members. Apart from the Publications Program and e-learning modules, which are free services for GAWDA Distributor members that sign up, we are once again partnering with CGA to host a second Young and Emerging Professional Summit. You can read more about this program beginning on page 77 and you can also sign up online at bit.ly/2021CGA-GAWDAYPSummit.

As the year progresses, we will continue to add events and services as needed. So, make sure you read through the monthly Connection newsletter for updates. I hope you take advantage of all the great benefits GAWDA offers. As always thank you for your continued support of our association and our industry.

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FROM THE EDITOR

Reunited and it Feels So Good

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO

I Steve Guglielmo is GAWDA Media’s Editor-in-Chief. He has more than a decade of experience working with industrial associations.

He can be reached at steveg@gawdamedia.com.

12 • Summer 2021

t feels good to sit down and write this article and have the thought, “This may be the last time I ever have to write about COVID-19 or how it has impacted our industry.” We’ve spent so much time dealing with COVID and talking about the “new normal” that I wasn’t sure this day would ever come. And, while COVID is still a threat, it seems much more in line with the flu than it does the global pandemic that ground the world’s economy to a halt. It’s a part of our lives, but through the advances of medicine and the lessons that we learned along the way, it’s a much more manageable thing.

I wasn’t sure we’d ever get here. But I’m so happy that we did.

I had the opportunity to interview GAWDA SMC Keynote Speaker Anthony Iannarino for an episode of GAWDA TV ahead of the conference. And something he said to me has really stuck with me for months afterwards. He said, “I’m a person that goes against the grain. Some of my peers might say, ‘You’re never going back to normal.’ You’re going back to normal. We’re human beings. We’re social animals. That isn’t going to change. People are talking about, ‘The New Normal.’ But we’re going back to normal.”

At the time, I didn’t think much of it. He’s in sales and also he gives presentations to packed convention halls. Of course he wants to believe that things were going back to normal. But then I attended this year’s SMC in Nashville.

I was struck by just how…normal it all was. It was like we had never left. And that quote popped back into my head, and I reflected on it and now, I’ve come to believe what Anthony said. There is no new normal. There’s just normal. And it seems like we’re getting back to it.

GAWDA SMC 2021

I was so unbelievably proud of our industry and of the GAWDA team for pulling together this year’s SMC under the craziest circumstances. We set not one, but two attendance records. The new educational format was a smash hit. The Contact Booth program was so well-attended, and the networking was exactly how it always was. People craved this normalcy and GAWDA was able to provide it in spades.

It was wonderful to see, and it was an amazing reminder that there is nothing our industry and our group can’t weather.

So, I look forward to never writing in this spot about COVID fallout again. And I can’t wait to get together with all of you again this summer at the Regional Meetings and in October at the Annual Convention to make more memories.

CONSULTANTS ROUNDTABLE

CONSULTANT ROUNDTABLE

Helping GAWDA Members Save Time and Money

How GAWDA consultants can help GAWDA members avoid costly mistakes

BY TOM BADSTUBNER, MARILYN DEMPSEY, MICHAEL DODD, RICK SCHWEITZER AND STEVE GUGLIELMO

T

he GAWDA Consultant Program is a GAWDA Member Benefit that is included as part of your annual dues to the association. It is consistently rated as one of the most valuable member benefits that GAWDA provides. Between the four to them, GAWDA’s Consultants bring more than 100 years of industry-specific experience to the association. For this issue, we spoke to the Consultants about specific examples of times where they were able to help GAWDA members save money and avoid costly issues.

Thank you to Tom Badstubner, GAWDA’s FDA and Medical Gases Consultant, Marilyn Dempsey, DHS, EPS and OSHA Consultant, Michael Dodd, DOT Consultant, and Rick Schweitzer, Government Affairs and Human Resources Consultant, for lending their time and expertise to discuss these important topics. The following is a lightly edited transcript of that conversation.

WELDING & GASES TODAY: When speaking with GAWDA members at this year’s Spring Management Conference, one common theme that emerged is that the Consultant Program is one of, if not the most valuable GAWDA Member benefits. We’ve talked in the past about how to get more GAWDA members engaged in using the Consultants. Could you share with me any stories that stick out in your mind of times when you worked with a 14 • Summer 2021

GAWDA member to help them save money?

MIKE DODD: There are several examples, in EPA, fatalities, audits and vehicle accidents. I’ll start with the EPA and specifically cylinder disposal. Every so often, I get distributors who call because they all tend to collect these odd-ball cylinders in the corner of their property. And they want to clean them out. Some of these contain odd chemicals or specialty gases that they’ve gotten back from customers. And now it has become a disposal issue.

So, I had one that called, and they had gotten quotes from people that were ranging anywhere from $500,000 to $1 million to dispose of these cylinders. And, with a simple phone call to me, I gave them a company name and a phone number, and they called back a week later absolutely ecstatic because I had saved them several hundred thousand dollars with one phone call.

MARILYN DEMPSEY: Also, you and I have worked with a couple of members who were disposing of acetylene cylinders and had similar problems with disposal companies treating the depressurized acetylene cylinders as HAZMAT. We’ve been able to give them documentation that supports disposal without the HAZMAT issue and that has saved them thousands of dollars.

MIKE: That’s right. We were able to show them a couple of letters from the past where the EPA had acknowledged

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that acetylene cylinders were no longer considered hazardous waste, they were only considered industrial solid waste. That’s a good point and it saved those members a lot of money. And that’s an ongoing process.

WGT: Mike, you said you were able to give that member a name and a phone number of a company. Was that another GAWDA member?

MIKE: Yes. WGT: That’s interesting. I think a lot of people might be under the assumption that you can only speak to the various governmental regulations. But, with all your industry and association experience, you can be just as valuable facilitating relationships between members. That’s kind of an unheralded benefit of the Consultant Program that you bring to the table.

MIKE: Absolutely. And the beauty of our team of four is that we can tell members, “Just ask one of us the question. We will point you to the right person.” I get an awful lot of phone calls where they might not be my area, but they’re so used to talking to me about so many other things. And we’re able to get that question off to the right person by copying them.

And that way, they can see, very quickly, here is the name and contact information of the person who handles that area. And we always copy each other back and forth so that we can each see the answers, as well. That makes all four of us smarter in each other’s areas.

WGT: That’s a perfect example. Tom, have you had any similar experiences in the area of FDA? TOM BADSTUBNER: There are some members who want to begin to produce their own Carbon Dioxide, USP or Helium, USP. These bulk medical gases are sometimes difficult to find, especially if you’re in a region that is not well-served with those products. So, we have developed a process where you can convert food grade Carbon Dioxide into medical grade Carbon Dioxide. Likewise, you can convert industrial grade Helium into medical grade Helium. The process involves validating the manufacturing (purification) and submitting the “certification” paperwork to the FDA. This FDA submission will result in a “New Drug Application” (NDA). Following the validation and certification, the drug product listing is updated with the NDA number. This then allows the GAWDA member to buy food grade Carbon Dioxide and for very little cost convert it into high value medical grade Carbon Dioxide.

WGT: That seems to be a very hot topic recently.

TOM: The legacy suppliers of medical grade carbon dioxide have already been through the process for their bulk plants. This may be an opportunity that allows you to make the medical gas yourself, control your own destiny, while lowering your

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CONSULTANTS ROUNDTABLE

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WGT: Marilyn, you had talked about the acetylene cylinders earlier, but did you have another example you could share?

MARILYN: I do. Dealing with COVID we saved our members time and money finding answers and creating the business contingency plan for them. And now, business flow is opening up but there are employee issues, especially if they have long COVID. Some of those employee issues are OSHA related and some of them are labor issues. Rick and I work in tandem on those, and our collaboration has again saved the members time, money and frustration, so that they can do what they need to do to run their businesses.

Some of the other things that I’ve worked on are cylinder securement. For example, the fire marshal comes in and says, “You must secure cylinders to the wall” and I can give them documentation regarding nesting. They don’t have to search for the reference material. That saves them time and money from having to put up chains or straps and it helps keep

16 • Summer 2021

their people safe. I’ve also worked to include air monitoring, electrical requirements in flammable areas, EPA filings and issues at customer sites.

And now that restrictions are loosening, I am able to visit member companies and perform physical audits. Because when you’re in your own home, you may not notice the safety issues; I can go in, identify issues and may even help save them money by providing efficiencies in the audit process.

WGT: You mentioned long COVID. There was a presentation at the SMC discussing an employee who was dealing with that and all the repercussions that meant for the company. A lot of the things that we dealt with this year were in areas we had never seen before, and we had to learn on the fly. Abydee used the term that you “saved the day,” referring to the Business Continuity Plan that you put together at the beginning of COVID. How different was this year, with COVID, than a typical year for all of you?

RICK SCHWEITZER: It was completely different than anything we have faced in our years of working with GAWDA members, because everything was changing daily, and we were dealing with an epidemic that then became a pandemic. None

CONSULTANTS ROUNDTABLE

of us had ever dealt with that before. The laws changed, the government was trying to address this on a daily or weekly basis.

And every day we would wake up and have new inquiries from members and new issues to deal with and new requirements from the government in many cases. And those, often, would vary from state to state.

So, for the first several months it was a brave new world and we just had to figure out things as we went along. Going to the particular case that you mentioned from the SMC, Marilyn and I have worked on that together for several months now.

You had an employee who had family members who were sick from COVID, and then the employee got it. We had to advise on the mandatory two-week leave imposed by the government and the tax credit allowed to cover the paid leave. Then, we had to look at state laws to see if there were any additions or variations under state law. The employee had ongoing symptoms, so we had to consider when the short-term disability kicked in. And then, as the process went on, whether or not long-term disability would be appropriate. There was a question as to whether or not this was a worker’s comp claim. It turns out that it is not, because there is no proof that this was a work-related

illness, which is a condition for worker’s comp.

Then, there was the question of a return to duty policy.

Again, this was something that was unprecedented. Nobody had ever dealt with long-term COVID symptoms before. He had a VA doctor, who was making recommendations. We weren’t really convinced that those recommendations were reality-based. But, nevertheless, they were in writing, and it was something that the company had to consider. We also had to consider the long-term employment opportunities for this individual who wasn’t really able to work from home. They tried to accommodate him, but that wasn’t working out, so we looked at potential employment outcomes. And obviously, you want to avoid litigation as much as possible.

In essence, by having a set of consultants that knew the industry and knew the company and were willing and able to do the research on what was going on in the government, we saved them, at least until now, the possibility of being sued by a disgruntled employee and, more importantly, tens of thousands of dollars in attorney’s fees. And that’s assuming that you could find a set of attorneys who knew all of this and would be able to respond in a timely manner.

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Summer 2021 • 17

CONSULTANTS ROUNDTABLE

The savings from one incident can take care of your dues for the next 20 years.

WGT: I sat in on that presentation at the SMC. And you could tell that the presenter was frustrated by the entire situation. It seemed like you were not only able to provide your legal expertise but also having a dispassionate third party who

could view the situation through fresh eyes, it almost seemed like you were the better angels in the situation and were able to stop any impulsive decisions from being made.

RICK: That’s a very good point. And that’s a service that we provide to try to give members an objective third-party’s view of a situation. And also look at the longer-term implications of something. Something might seem like a good idea today, but what would happen if you took that approach?

MARILYN: This all developed before we even knew the term “Long COVID.” It really was dynamic as we were going through.

RICK: And we don’t have perfect answers on this. We readily admit that. We’re trying to come up with the best answers that we can, today.

WGT: Throughout the presentation, you discussed the possibility of litigation somewhere down the road and wanting to be as careful as you could to avoid that possibility. I’m guessing that none of this is settled law yet. Are there any cases to draw from, yet? That is probably something that, going forward, more members are going to come across and ask you about.

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18 • Summer 2021

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CONSULTANTS ROUNDTABLE

RICK: Exactly. There have been several reported cases where large companies have been sued by employees or others for their alleged lack of taking reasonable care to protect employees from COVID. But there aren’t any reported cases of jury decisions or court decisions. And it will take several years, probably, before this law is settled.

WGT: It doesn’t take a whole lot of digging to figure that a couple of calls on these important topics can save members potentially a lot of money. Any last thoughts or calls to action for GAWDA members who may be reading this who haven’t made use of your services in the past? It’s a benefit that is included in GAWDA dues.

MIKE: Where else can a member get access to the experience level focused on this business? It would cost them tens of thousands of dollars in consulting fees. And it’s included in the price of their membership. It’s as simple as that. We bring decades worth of experience. We added up our years of service between the four of us in last issue.

It’s more than 100 years of experience. We’ve been there, done that, and we’re a part of the membership, unlike an

outside consultant who might not really know this industry.

They get simple, concise, quick, easy to understand answers.

It’s really hard to describe all of the different topics that we can help members work through. Some are extremely simple, everyday things. And others are totally off the wall and different and we just work through it together. It’s sort of like COVID. None of us had any experience in that. But we’re smart enough to go find things and look things up and help the members in that area because they can’t be focusing on that. They have their businesses to take care of.

MARILYN: I think Mike hit on it. Our experience gives us the advantage of knowing where to look for the answers so that a member doesn’t have to. They can run their business.

TOM: And also, the really large companies, the majors, and even large GAWDA members, often have the expertise and the background in house. The medium size and smaller GAWDA members, they often do not have dedicated compliance personnel.

RICK: And the savings from one incident can take care of your dues for the next 20 years.

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Summer 2021 • 19

CONSULTANTS DOT & SAFETY

Qualifying a New Driver

BY MICHAEL DODD, GAWDA DOT CONSULTANT

The following is an excerpt from the GAWDA Safety Organizer, a monthly bulletin sent to GAWDA members. For more information on the GAWDA Safety Organizer, or to read past issues, visit the GAWDA.org Members-Only Section.

GAWDA DOT & Safety Consultant Michael Dodd is president of MLD Safety Associates in Poplar Bluff, MO. Members can reach him at 573-718-2887 and at MLDSafety@hotmail. com.

W

hat are the things that I need to do to hire a driver? How fast can I put a new driver on the road? What items do I need to have in my hands before letting a driver go out on the road? What should I look for on the motor violation records when deciding to hire a driver? What minimums should I have for hiring a driver? These are some of the questions that I get when someone is trying to put on a new driver. The following guidance assumes that you want a driver for loads requiring placards.

MUST HAVE ITEMS BEFORE LETTING A PERSON DRIVE 1. DOT employment application 2. CDL with hazmat endorsement (if you have a tank(s) bolted to the vehicle with more than 119 gals of capacity, then you need a cargo tank endorsement) 3. Current medical card certification (either a medical card or an MVR showing current medical certification) 4. Medical examiner certification where you have checked the National Registry of Medical Examiners to check that the driver used a certified examiner.)

5. A negative pre-employment drug test 6. Clearinghouse Full Query with no prohibitions 7. Road test form and certificate (391.31(g)), or CDL license or certificate accepted in lieu of road test (391.33), • A CDL is acceptable.

20 • Summer 2021

•

Doubles/triples or cargo tankers must have a road test certification for the specific vehicle within the previous 3 years.

ITEMS THAT YOU MUST HAVE WITHIN 30 DAYS 1. Motor vehicle record from states (391.23), • Must be obtained within 30 days of employment.

• Must be for the prior 3 years.

• Please note that the regulations require this within 30 days, but I suggest that you have this and review it prior to letting the driver drive your vehicles.

2. Previous employer information (391.23), • Must be obtained within 30 days of employment.

• Must be for the prior 3 years.

• The information must be verification of employment, any DOT accidents (or any other accidents that the previous employer may want to provide), and the drug and alcohol test results/violations. (The drug and alcohol inquiries from previous employers will be phased out by 1-6-2023. This is being replaced by the Clearinghouse Full Query as it adds 3 years of data to the database.)

ITEMS NEEDED LATER DOWN THE ROAD 1. Annual review of driving record (391.25), • Must be done at least annually.

• Must keep a copy of the state inquiry results in the file.

• The motor carrier must consider the driver’s accident record and any evidence that the driver has violated laws governing the operation of motor vehicles, and must give great weight to violations, such as speeding,

CONSULTANTS

DOT & SAFETY

reckless driving, and operating while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, that indicate that the driver has exhibited a disregard for the safety of the public.

2. List of violations (391.27) (part of the above annual review), • The driver shall provide a list of driving violations for the previous 12 months. The driver shall sign this list.

• If the driver has already provided this information as required by 383.31, then they do not have to repeat the information.

383.31 requires that drivers notify their carrier within 30 days of any vehicle violations, other than parking tickets, of which they have been convicted. The notification must be in writing and contain the 7 items listed in 383.31.

3. Medical examination kept current, or MVR as required kept current.

4. Medical Examiner’s Certification kept current.

5. Annual limited or full query from the Clearinghouse

COMMON QUESTION

“What do I do about an existing employee that I want to make a driver?”

The easiest and best thing to do is to treat the employee as a brand-new hire. Make sure you have used a DOT driver application form. If not, then have them fill out a new DOT employee application. You still must do the previous employer background checks for the previous 3 years, but you do get to count the time the employee was working for you in that 3-year time period. Be sure to do the pre-employment drug screen.

DRIVER ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS See the June 2021 GAWDA Safety Organizer for more suggestions to consider for driver eligibility requirements. The suggestions have some minimum requirements and some items that would possibly disqualify a driver from being considered for a driver position.

SUGGESTED ITEMS FOR THE DQ FILE •

Not required, but highly suggested is to have a copy of their current driver’s license in the file.

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Summer 2021 • 21

CONSULTANTS SAFETY

LPG Filling, Transportation and Storage

BY MARILYN R. DEMPSEY, GAWDA DHS/EPA/OSHA CONSULTANT

The following is an excerpt from the GAWDA Safety Organizer, a monthly bulletin sent to GAWDA members. For more information on the GAWDA Safety Organizer, or to read past issues, visit the GAWDA.org Members-Only Section

Marilyn R. Dempsey Safety Dragons Workplace Consultants, LLC 940-999-8466 marilyn@safetydragons. com.

22 • Summer 2021

down! CGA has published S-8 “Guideline for the Safe Handling of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Cylinders.”

A

s summer approaches and the use of BBQ grills increases, we need to be mindful of the dangers propane can introduce when not properly filled, transported, and stored. This article is an overview of propane filling, transportation and storage and in-depth training should be conducted for all three topics.

The greatest hazard of propane during the summer months is if liquid propane is vented into the atmosphere, it will vaporize into gas and expand to 270 times the volume. Propane gas is colorless, heavier than air and will pool in low places; if a source of ignition comes into contact with the propane gas (e.g., spark, cigarette butt, static electricity) it would ignite.

The most common cause for propane cylinder venting is from overfilled cylinders. The tank farm and fill assembly should be inspected daily or before use. Propane cylinders should be visually inspected prior to filling. If using a manual scale, the fill weight must be properly calculated; the fill assembly should be included in the final gross weight (cylinder tare weight + fill assembly + net product weight = final weight).

Propane cylinders should be transported secured, in open vehicles, NEVER in automobile trucks. GAWDA has safety posters for consumer transporting compressed cylinders available on the website/shop GAWDA products/safety poster.

Cylinders should be stored in dry areas, away from sources of ignition/heat and combustibles.

Cylinders must be stored with the safety relief device in contact with the gas vapor space, never in the liquid phase area...and NEVER upside

• •

Cylinder on the left = PRD in liquid phase space.

Cylinder on right= PRD in vapor phase space.

TRAINING OSHA requires employees to be trained in the jobs they perform. This is a good time to review your operating procedures (SOP) with your fillers to see if the procedures should be updated or the filler needs refresher training. If your company does not have pre-fill, fill and storage procedures, this is a good time to create them.

DOT requires employees filling cylinders to be trained, tested, and certified every 3 years.

This falls under the “Function Specific” training requirements in 172.704.

Training may be found: • Propane and Education Research Council • Propane training services, inc.

• CETP • Your bulk propane supplier If you have any questions on Propane safety or any other OSHA, EPA, DHS issue, please contact me.

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INDUSTRY EXPERIENCE. ?YGETARTS TIXE Four of our most involved board members bring decades of

diversified industry experience. We are focused on attracting more like-minded individuals L who will ultimately ED Obring M Svalue, UTIR EM EHT benefitting all Meritus stakeholders.

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Reach out to any Meritus representatives moc.sagsutirem@ordnasseladbor to hear more about our mission.

MEMBER BENEFIT

GAWDA Members Share Why They Participate in the CGA Subscription Program

BY RICH GOTTWALD, CGA PRESIDENT & CEO

CGA HELPS PROVIDE AN ESSENTIAL SAFETY FOUNDATION

Richard Gottwald is President and CEO of the Compressed Gas Association (CGA). He can be reached at 703-7882748 or rgottwald@ cganet.com.

First launched in 2011, the partnership between GAWDA and the Compressed Gas Association (CGA) provides participating GAWDA distributor members with complimentary access to CGA’s electronic safety publication library, enabling one employee per company location to gain free access to CGA’s library of over 350 electronic publications for a total value of more than $19,000 per user.

For Ben Polavin, Safety and Compliance Officer with GAWDA member Purity Cylinder Gases, that’s the most valuable benefit of the program. “I’m on the CGA website just about every week. Without their publications library, it would be difficult to access that kind of knowledge base, from such a trusted source of safety information for our industry.”

Monty Rucker, Director of Manufacturing with Gateway Cylinder Testing of CeeKay Supply – another GAWDA member – agrees. “We offer cylinder filling, as well as cylinder requalification.

Having access to CGA’s safety publications provides an important safety foundation for both operations, helping us stay up-to-date on any rules and regulations that have changed that we need to know about. All the hard work has already been done for us. It gives us vital information at our fingertips.”

ELEARNING MODULES OFFER ADDED RESOURCE FOR GAWDA MEMBERS “We’ve participated in the CGA publications subscription program for a long time now. We initially joined to get access to all the safety 26 • Summer 2021

standards,” Rucker explained. “But it was a good surprise when we realized all the other resources we’d get access to as a part of this program, like CGA’s eLearning training modules.”

“CGA’s training modules are some of the best in the industry,” Polavin added. “They all have really good content. I use them for myself as a refresher. We’ve also made them part of our new employee training. We have an acetylene plant, so CGA TM-2 on the safe handling of acetylene cylinders is especially helpful. And the multimedia format works great for more visual learners.”

Created with financial support from GAWDA, CGA’s training modules are designed to provide a helpful resource for employees who may need more coaching in how to safely handle and work with compressed gases. All participating GAWDA members gain free access to CGA’s eLearning modules for their employees.

Currently, CGA offers eight modules in our eLearning library: • CGA TM-1, eLearning: Safe Handling and Storage of Compressed Gases • CGA TM-2, eLearning: Safe Handling of Acetylene Cylinders • CGA TM-3, eLearning: Safe Handling of Cryogenic Liquids in Portable Containers • CGA TM-4, eLearning: Filling of Uninsulated Carbon Dioxide Cylinders • CGA TM-5, eLearning: Filling of HighPressure Medical Oxygen Cylinders • CGA TM-6, eLearning: Filling of HighPressure Industrial Gas Cylinders • CGA TM-7, eLearning: Introduction to Compressed Gas Cylinder Valves

MEMBER BENEFIT CGA TM-8, eLearning: Oxygen Safety CGA will continue adding new titles to this library in the coming months.

“We’ve historically had a great safety culture here,” Polavin observed. “But, with higher staff turnover than in the past, we have to have really strong safety training. It’s not as easy as it once was to find a 40-year industry veteran who can explain how things should be done, and why, from a safety perspective. CGA’s Training Modules help us meet that challenge.”

•

CGA’S SAFETY POSTERS OFFER AN ADDITIONAL FREE RESOURCE Rucker also sees a lot of value in the growing number of free safety posters that CGA provides. “They’re great information to have on hand, they’re updated, easy to understand, and not too complicated. These posters help to get important safety information out to people who would rather look at a picture than read a dense document.”

Each poster is provided as a scalable PDF file, so you can print the size you need. The posters are also designed for easy co-branding: GAWDA members can add their company information to the “supplied by” box at the bottom of each poster, before sharing this safety resource with customers.

“We’ve printed several of CGA’s free safety posters and handed them out to customers,” Polavin said. “It gives us one more value-added thing we can share with our customers. Dry ice is a good example. Before recently, some of our customers had never had to handle dry ice. Now, our dry ice specialist prints out copies of CGA’s dry ice poster and hands them out, or shares the poster electronically as a PDF.” CGA continues to expand our series of safety posters and related product information, all available for free from our public website. To date, we’ve published new end user safety posters and related online safety information on the topics of home oxygen safety; safe use of liquid nitrogen in food and beverage service environments; safe handling of dry ice; and medical oxygen safety and supply. New posters related to the safe use of compressed gases in the cannabis industry, and precautions for liquid nitrogen use in cryogenic therapies are also in development.

In addition, CGA offers an expanding set of industrial safety posters aimed at explaining basic safety concepts to anyone new to handling compressed gases and related equipment.

HOW TO GET ACCESS TO CGA’S RESOURCES FOR YOUR TEAM Want to give your employees access to these invaluable resources at no charge? Sign up to participate in the cooperative program between GAWDA and CGA.

For more information and to download CGA’s free safety posters, visit:

https://www.cganet.com/ resources/safety-posters/

To be eligible for this unique member benefit, your company: • Must be a GAWDA distributor member in good standing, and • Must participate in the CGA & GAWDA Distributor Reporting and Safety Awards Program (requires annual submission of OSHA 300A safety data to CGA – for all companies with 11 or more employees; companies with 10 or fewer employees can participate without providing safety performance data) “For us, it’s absolutely worth the effort to participate in this program and report the required safety data,” Polavin said. “For one thing, more of our clients and prospects are asking for the same safety data, so it helps that we’re already collecting the information. And the most important part of Purity are our people. We want them to be safe. Participating in this program helps us to do that.”

“The reporting requirements for this program can sometimes be a pretty big undertaking for us, in terms of time and recordkeeping,” Rucker admitted. “But we get a lot of benefits in return. Most importantly, we get to see where we stand in terms of safety – are we getting better? Are we progressing in the direction we need to go? Because we couldn’t run our business without having safety as the backbone for everything we do.”

To learn more about applying to have your company participate in this valuable program, see these links: • CGA Website: https://portal.cganet.com/GAWDA.aspx • GAWDA Website: https://www.gawda.org/resources/ cga-subscription-program/ We welcome your participation!

Summer 2021 • 27

NEWS FROM GAWDA

SPRING MANAGEMENT CONFERENCE

RECAP EYES UP: GAWDA’s 2021 Spring Management Conference Smashes Records!

T

his year's Spring Management Conference, taking place more than a year and a half after our last GAWDA event and delayed from March to May, was worth the wait and anticipation. GAWDA members from across the globe showed up in force for three days of networking, education and fun in Nashville, Tennessee. This year's Conference theme was "Eyes Up," as 2021 President Abydee Butler Moore said, "Post trauma, we're predisposed to be inwardly focused. I would caution us to beware of this internal focus. It's not what you know, it's what we do with what we know. Action is power. We need to keep our eyes up!"

This was GAWDA's first step in a return to normalcy in a post COVID-19 world, and the event was an absolute home run across the board. Thank you to all who attended and supported the SMC. We can't wait to build on this year's success at the Annual Convention in Colorado Springs!

28 • Summer 2021

2021 SMC Attendance by the Numbers • 702 attendees, a record for overall attendance this decade • 246 distributor attendees, a record for distributor attendance this decade • 344 supplier attendees • 109 Exhibitors at the Contact Booth Program

NEWS FROM GAWDA

GAWDA Committees Were Hard at Work Before SMC Officially Opened On Monday, May 24, before the SMC officially kicked off, the GAWDA Board of Directors and GAWDA Committees were hard at work, meeting to continue to grow and improve the member benefits that come with your membership in the association. The GAWDA Executive Committee and Board of Directors arrived early for a full day of planning meetings to ensure that you get the maximum value from your GAWDA membership, while the Industry Partnering, Insurance Trustee, Member Services, Safety and Government Affairs, Women of Gases and Welding and Young Professionals Committees all met in the afternoon to set their agenda and goals for the rest of the year.

Visit GAWDAMEDIA.COM to view all of the SMC photo galleries.

Summer 2021 • 29

NEWS FROM GAWDA

SMC Officially Kicks Off with 3-TWO-1 Reception and President’s Welcome Reception Following Monday’s meetings, the SMC kicked off in earnest with the 3-TWO-1, WEMCO, and President’s Welcome Reception on Monday evening.

All three events were held at the world-famous Wildhorse Saloon in downtown Nashville. The 3-TWO-1 was widely attended by many newcomers to the industry and the association, and was the perfect tone setter for the evening, as members came together to network, and newer members or new attendees got to meet seasoned GAWDA veterans.

The President’s Welcome Reception was hosted in the main room of the Wildhorse Saloon from 6:00 p.m. - 10:00 p.m. on Monday evening. The event was the perfect kickoff for the 2021 GAWDA SMC, as members who hadn’t met in person in over a year were able to meet, mingle, network and line dance the night away. Visit gawdamedia.com to see a full photo gallery from the President’s Welcome Reception!

30 • Summer 2021

NEWS FROM GAWDA

Tuesday Marked by Educational Sessions and Contact Booth Program Following an amazing night of networking and reminiscing, the business of the 2021 GAWDA Spring Management Conference officially kicked off on Tuesday morning. 2021 GAWDA President Abydee Butler Moore welcomed attendees to the conference after breakfast.

The morning commenced with an introduction from 2007 GAWDA President Bob Ames and a moving rendition of the national anthem by his incredibly talented granddaughter. Bob then led the room in the Pledge of Allegiance.

Following that, Abydee took the stage and aptly noted that, “The last time we met, we laid out our 2020 vision for the great year to come...We didn’t quite see this coming.”

Abydee then discussed how, at the onset of COVID, GAWDA and its con-

sultants immediately sprang into action by first putting together the GAWDA Continuity Plan which, “saved the day.”

And that work continued with the monthly member roundtables.

Finally, Abydee noted that this year’s Conference would be different than previous conferences. The Education Program presented attendees with diverse content and viewpoints and helped attendees get the most bang for their buck, which was a major theme of her presentation.

She then laid out her “challenge” to attendees, which was to identify “what ideas will you bring home that pay for this trip?”

The first opportunity attendees had to pay for the cost of the trip with take home value was with the newly implemented Educational Session Format.

Five Educational Tracks, on in-

dustry hot-button issues like Family Business, HR and Leadership, Safety and Operations, Sales and Marketing, and Technology took place simultaneously.

Attendees had their choice of attending three separate sessions across three time slots during this unique educational program.

“Abydee challenged us to find some take home value,” said 2018 GAWDA President Ned Lane, after the “Winning the Talent War” panel discussion. “I am confident that I have paid for my attendance just from having attended this session.”

Each session lasted 50 minutes, including a Q and A with the audience.

GAWDA member companies who brought multiple attendees were able to have attendees in multiple sessions during one time slot.

Summer 2021 • 31

NEWS FROM GAWDA FAMILY BUSINESS Outside In – Running a Family Business When You’re Not in the Family

SAFETY & OPERATIONS

HR & LEADERSHIP

TECHNOLOGY

The True Cost of an Accident

Winning the Talent War

Presented by Marilyn Dempsey, Safety Dragons

Presented by Bill Proctor, nexAir

Doing More with Less: Automating Administrative Functions

Ask Us Anything Roundtable

Our Story, Your Lesson: A COVID Employment Nightmare

Presented by Jack Butler, Butler Gas

Future Planning – Employee Ownership and Shifting Generations Presented by Nicole Kissler, Norco

Presented by Mike Dodd, Tom Badstubner, Rick Schweitzer and Marilyn Dempsey.

Moderated

by Gary Halter, Indiana Oxygen

We Now Get CRM! Presented by Colleen Kohler, Noble Gas Solutions

Presented by Will Roberts, Roberts Oxygen

Presented by Robert Anders, Holston Gases

Protecting the Golden Goose from Slaughter

SALES & MARKETING

Presented by Britt Lovin, Andy Oxy Co.

Keeping Score in Distribution

Getting Employees to Give a Damn

Presented by Craig Harris, RedBall Oxygen

Presented by Ryan Craven, General Air

Implementing Ecommerce: From Inception to Launch and the Roadmap to Get There Presented by Glenn Bliss and Amy Dardis, General Distributing Company

Building a Professional Sales Organization Presented by Ryan Diekow and Tracy McLellan, Oxygen Service Company

Changing Your ERP The Sales Playbook: Without Taking Developing Years Off Your Life and Training Presented by Dave Healzer, Cee Kay

Presented by Allison Earlbeck, Earlbeck Gases and Technologies

Following the Educational Sessions and a Networking Lunch, attendees had the opportunity to walk the Contact Booth Floor to see the more than 100 exhibiting companies.

It was clear from the outset that members had missed this opportunity to learn and network in-person and attendees took full advantage during the four-hour time period that the floor was open.

At the Contact Booth program, GAWDA announced the winners of its GAWDA Giveaway, a full delegate admission to GAWDA’s 2021 Annual Convention at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs. Congratulations to the following: • Janet Aparicio - Vern Lewis Welding Supply • Ryan Diekow - Oxygen Service Company • Ryan Craven - General Air • Stacey Budae - Flint Welding Supply • Stefanie Berg - Wright Brothers, Inc.

32 • Summer 2021

NEWS FROM GAWDA Contact Booth Program

Summer 2021 • 33

NEWS FROM GAWDA Keynote Presentations Conclude the Conference On the final day of the SMC, GAWDA members were treated to three keynote presentations, as well as the Business Session with remarks from Gary Halter and Abydee Butler Moore. Gary began the proceedings by announcing future meeting locations for SMCs. 2022 will be in Indianapolis, Indiana at the JW Marriot. The 2022 Annual Convention will be at the Marriot Marquis in San Diego, California. The 2023 SMC will be in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and the 2023 AC will see a return to Hawaii!

Following Gary’s presentation, 2021 President Abydee Butler Moore returned to the stage to address the crowd. She discussed GAWDA’s four strategic pillars for this year, placing a special emphasis on member engagement within GAWDA. “At GAWDA, we are setting out to achieve four strategic pillars this year,” she said.

“Driving content-centric meetings, running data-driven operations, maximizing volunteer talent, and evolving and growing membership.”

Attendees were then treated to three keynote presentations from Anthony Iannarino, Ben Glazer, and David Marquet.

Anthony Iannarino spoke to attendees about value creation and being indispensable for your customers, Ben Glazer discussed driving organizational change and industry trends, recalling lessons he learned during the Praxair/Linde merger, and Retired U.S. Navy Captain David Marquet laid out his new “Playbook for Leaders” based on lessons learned during his time working as a U.S. Navy Submarine Captain and seeing how intent-based leadership yielded better results than “permission-based” structures.

Thank you to all GAWDA members who attended this year’s Spring Management Conference in Nashville. We missed meeting with you face-to-face since our last time gathering in Washington, D.C. We couldn’t be prouder of this year’s record attendance, and we look forward to our next time getting to gather in person again!

34 • Summer 2021

NEWS FROM GAWDA

12 Scholarships Awarded At the 2021 GAWDA SMC, GAWDA also recognized this year’s GAWDA Scholarship Recipients. This year, GAWDA is awarding $30,000, $2,000 each to 15 students. Congratulations to all of those who received scholarships this year!

• Nate Ackerman, University of Akron • Noah Arndt, University of Pittsburgh • Elijah Fowler, Walters State Community College • Samuel Gage, University of Mississippi • Brennan Johnson, Montana State University • Clayton Mong, Ohio State University • Grant Douglas Morton, University of Akron • Gregory Phillips, Worcester Polytechnic Institute • David Rimes, Life University • Alayna Scheall, College of Saint Scholastica • Thomas Schadek, Miami University

Justin Schroeder, South Dakota School of Mines & Tech • Geoffrey Sonenson, Kansas State University • Thatcher Unfried, University of Maine • Alton West, Elizabethtown College •

THANK YOU

Scholarship Donors

Scholarship Donors Arc 3 Gases Inc. • AWISCO • Four Corners Welding & Gas Supply • General Air Service and Supply Co. Co. • Holston Gases, Inc. Inc. • Keen Compressed Gases, Inc. • Nexair LLC. • Total contributions $13,400 •

•

Summer 2021 • 35

NEWS FROM GAWDA

THANK YOU

to all of the Sponsors Who Made This SMC Possible!

36 • Summer 2021

NEWS FROM GAWDA

upcoming

industry events

Here are some of the events scheduled for 2021 and beyond. Check the EVENTS tab on the GAWDA website at www.gawda.org for more information.

AUGUST 2021 GAWDA East/Midwest Regional Meeting Seven Springs, PA AUGUST 24-26, 2021

SEPTEMBER 2021 FABTECH Chicago, IL SEPTEMBER 13-16, 2021

AIWD Convention Washington D.C. APRIL 22-25, 2022

MAY 2022 GAWDA Northeast Regional Meeting Galloway, NJ MAY 10-12, 2022

IWDC Sales & Purchasing Convention Minneapolis, MN MAY 24-26, 2022

JULY 2022 GAWDA Northwest Regional Meeting Stevenson, WA JULY 27-29, 2022

MDG Annual Membership Meeting Miami Beach, FL SEPTEMBER 19-21, 2021

OCTOBER 2021 GAWDA Annual Convention Colorado Springs, CO OCTOBER 6-9, 2021 IWDC Owners Meeting Greensboro, GA OCTOBER 26-29, 2021

NOVEMBER 2021 IOMA Annual Meeting Washington, D.C. NOVEMBER 3-7, 2021

APRIL 2022 GAWDA Spring Management Conference Indianapolis, IN APRIL 3-5, 2022

Summer 2021 • 37

MINNEAPOLIS OXYGEN

Helping Customers Grow for 75 Years As company celebrates 75-year anniversary, it keeps its eyes up for the future

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO

M

inneapolis Oxygen was founded in 1946 by Henry Sahley. Henry was a former salesperson for National Cylinder Gas who decided to venture out on his own with one location and three employees. At the same time that Henry was getting Minneapolis Oxygen off the ground, about 100 miles south, Sid Falconer was beginning his career at Huber Welding Supply in Iowa.

38 • Summer 2021

Eventually, Sid decided to move to Minneapolis, so, after a brief detour at a propane company in the Twin Cities, Sid eventually began to work with Henry Sahley and Minneapolis Oxygen. Three generations later, the Falconers are still involved with the company, as Sid’s grandson, Kevin Falconer, is the company’s current president.

After working in sales for Minneapolis Oxygen for some time, Sid approached a friend that he had met during World

War II about partnering to purchase the company from Henry.

“My grandfather had a hunting buddy named Marv Anderson, who owned a well-known construction company in Bloomington, Minnesota,” Kevin explains. “He borrowed some money from Marv to purchase the company from Henry.”

However, Henry didn’t simply take the money and ride off into the sunset.

He stayed with the company and he

MEMBER PROFILE and Sid simply flip-flopped roles. Sid moved from sales to ownership, while Henry moved from ownership to sales.

The transaction happened in 1961 and the Falconers have owned the business ever since.

GROWTH During Sid’s time as President of Minneapolis Oxygen, the company grew to include 12 employees.

“Growth certainly didn’t happen overnight,” says Kevin.

Eventually, Sid’s son, Mark Falconer, joined the company and served as President, before Kevin joined the company in 2001.

“I think most of our growth can be attributed to the natural, organic health of our customer base,” Kevin says.

The company has also completed several smaller acquisitions in its history.

When Sid initially purchased the business, the company bought out Minnesota Welding Supply.

“Minneapolis Oxygen moved around from building to building,” says Kevin.

“First in Bloomington, which was our main hub, and then on to locations in Minneapolis and beyond.”

In 1999, MO2 acquired a small reseller in Duluth, Minnesota, about 2.5 hours north of Minneapolis. And in 2016, the company acquired another two-person operation in Hibbing, Minnesota, bringing the company to its current five locations.

“That’s how we gained the Stoody and Hypertherm lines: Strictly through acquisitions,” Kevin says.

One of the company’s trademarks over three-quarters of a century has been its loyalty. Loyalty to its employees, to its customers, and even to its suppliers.

“We’ve been an Airco/BOC/Linde/ Messer distributor since the beginning,” Kevin notes. “When Henry owned the company, we were an Airco distributor.

And so, we’ve been a loyal Airco distributor throughout our history. They helped us put in our first spec gas fill line in 1985, an Airco fill system. And we’re still using one of those panels today in our fill plant.”

In 1983, Mark became President of the company and served in that position until 2020. Kevin took over as President in March of 2020.

REORGANIZATION Upon becoming President, Kevin saw the opportunity to reorganize the company to set it up for continued success over the next 75 years.

“We’ve always been a company focused on our employees and customers,” Kevin says. “Growth at all costs has never been a focus of Minneapolis Oxygen. It has always been about providing a prosperous working environment to advance and care for our employees and supply our customers with the best products we can in a timely manner.”

Within the past five years, Minneapolis Oxygen has seen three company mainstays retire. Company President Mark Falconer, VP of Operations Lou Ottosen, and VP of Sales Jim Warrick.

“Those three were kind of our triangle

of authority at Minneapolis Oxygen for more than 35 years, and they all left within five years of each other” Kevin says.

“This created a unique opportunity for us.

When a lot of collective experience walks out the door, it challenges us to assess where we are as an organization. And, from that reflection, to effect changes that can move us in new, essential, and exciting directions..”

To that end, Falconer has begun implementing an EOS Traction Model for the company to follow.

“We’ve never had a mission statement Summer 2021 • 39

MEMBER PROFILE

or posted company values,” he says.

“This process has been uncharted territory for us, but it’s yielded a newfound clarity and strong connection to our purpose: We exist to provide a thriving work environment and ease the load for our customers, working steadily in the background to provide technical support and practical solutions.””

CULTURE Though the company has never had official “values” before Kevin took over as president, the company noticed that its top-performing employees all had several traits in common. So, in coming up with the mission statement and values that would be implemented company-wide, they used those shared traits as a guidepost.

“When we reviewed our history as a company, we identified themes in the traits that many of our long-term, really high-performing employees embodied,” Kevin says. “These formed the basis for our core values, which we’ve begun implementing in key ways as a team.”

40 • Summer 2021

VALUE ONE – HELP FIRST “We help first, before we ask for anything in return,” Kevin says. “I think it goes back to our origin story. We’re there for the customer, focused on the customer.

We’re going to offer our help first, always.

Then, only when we’ve shown our value will we ask for something in return.”

VALUE TWO – HAVE A SENSE OF URGENCY “Our goal is a sense of urgency with clarity,” Kevin says. “You must be clear on your role, what you’re responsible for delivering, and what the vendor, coworker, or customer expects of you.”

VALUE THREE – DO THE RIGHT THING

“Doing the right thing often isn’t the easiest thing,” says Kevin. “Whether it’s a hard conversation with a customer or an employee, clear communication may not always be comfortable. But it’s the right thing. So, we’re working to foster a culture of leaning into hard conversations.”

REINVENTION A key focus of Minneapolis Oxygen’s reorganization has been adapting to meet the evolving needs of its customer base.

“Our customers are more informed today than ever before,” Kevin notes.

“Information is at their fingertips. This means changing the way we sell.”

He continues, “Rather than talking, it’s even more vital today that we listen and understand. Often, it’s not access to products that customers are missing, but rather how those products are delivered. So, it’s about looking for those intangible pieces we can bring to the customer. Things that don’t show up on a delivery ticket or rental invoice. As an industry, we’re all selling gas, we’re all selling welders, we’re all selling wire.

To prove our worth as a company, we now have to prove ourselves in some of those softer sciences like customer experience.”

And, once you’ve heard and understood what the problem is, the question becomes, can you do something to fix it?

MEMBER PROFILE “Are you a nimble enough company to make those changes?” Kevin asks. “Or are you set in your ways and unwilling to make any kind of shift in sales. ‘This is how we’ve always done it’ simply isn’t going to cut it any longer. As a small company, our nimbleness is an asset.

We can form genuine connections and leverage the expertise of our partners…, I think, more nimble and do the softer things better.”

Minneapolis Oxygen recently revamped its website. It’s a sleek repository of great information for the company’s customers to access.

“But what we didn’t do, which was purposeful, was focus the website on B2C business,” Kevin says. “Our goal, when we did the website, was to inform and to bring certain topics in our industry to light. But we are learning, through customer and non-customer feedback that they’d like the opportunity to buy from our website as well.”

GOING FORWARD “Since I took over as President, I’ve treated this as an opportunity to reinvent MO2 for the next 75 years,” says Kevin.

“We’re proud of our history as a company and we aim to ensure the next 75 years are more successful than ever.”

In 2018, Minneapolis Oxygen was involved in the formation of Absolute Air, which will be online at the end of 2021.

“This will create opportunities for us that we’ve never had,” Kevin says. “So, in the next five years, I see us growing in our offerings to customers. Whether it’s a more integrated automation offering, or increased bulk options.”

Another goal for the company is to implement a company internship program.

“I want to have an internship program in several areas of our company,” Kevin says. “We just hired our first HR person in

75 years. And one of the key attributes I hired for was experience implementing an internship program. We want the younger generation to experience a taste of this business, of the trades. I consider it our obligation-- on behalf of our customers, the trade schools we do business with, and our industry as a whole-- to show the next generation that these are viable career options.”

To commemorate the company’s 75th anniversary, MO2 is planning an open house customer appreciation event for the Fall. It also unveiled a new company logo in 2020. It is just one more example of a company that is celebrating its history with an eye firmly on the future.

Summer 2021 • 41

Commemorating Milestone Anniversaries GAWDA members keep their Eyes Up as they celebrate important milestones

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO

A

fter a difficult year in 2020, there has been much to celebrate in 2021. It appears that, at long last, the world is beginning to move on from COVID. Companies are rebounding to pre-pandemic levels and customer visits are finally beginning to happen in person again. For the following GAWDA members, 2021 is even more of a time to celebrate, as these companies are celebrating milestone anniversaries this year. We would like to congratulate all GAWDA members for making it through this difficult time and we hope that you take this opportunity to celebrate these impressive milestones to the fullest extent. As we have seen, the world can change in an instant. So, let’s keep our Eyes Up and celebrate our achievements!

= Distributor = Supplier 42 • Summer 2021

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

110 YEARS – Central Ohio Welding Company D

Central Ohio Welding Company was founded by J. Louis Richter in a small garage in Columbus in 1911.

The company was originally a welding equipment repair service. In 1918, the small company began distributing industrial gases and selling welding supplies and continued its growth through both World Wars, eventually moving to a much larger facility in downtown Columbus. Shortly after World War II, the company expanded into welding and fabrication and opened a new division of the company. In 1946, Mike Burns, Richter’s son-in-law, began running the company and later added a fill plant to the downtown facility.

“Those of us who live in Columbus like to say that it’s a big town that feels small,” says General Manager Brad Davis. “Relationships with local business and industry leaders have been the key to our growth historically. Many of the large industrial businesses in the area have been with us since they started.

As a company, we understand that our growth depends on theirs. This attitude has been a part of the company since the beginning. Our evolution has mainly been in response to the needs of our customers, whether it is our same-day or next-day delivery service or keeping a large amount of welding supplies in stock to serve our customer base quickly and efficiently.”

Today, 110 years after J. Louis Richter founded the company in a small garage, the company is a 100% Employee-Owned Company, with 13 employee-owners that work for Central Ohio Welding, Inc. and 32 employee-owners who work for the fabrication division. The company moved into a new location on the west side of

Columbus last year, after being downtown at larger publicly owned companies. The for nearly a century. The new location last two or three years, mainly because of features a much larger warehouse and a issues related to moving and upgrading state-of-the-art fill plant. The company is our company, have been some of the opening a second location in Northeast most challenging in our 110-year history.

Columbus in June.

We are now on the downhill side of the th To celebrate its 110 anniversary, slope and are doing quite well. We would the company plans an Anniversary not have been able to get there without Celebration that will also be a celebration the help of fellow GAWDA Members, of its two new locations. Central Ohio most notably Indiana Oxygen, Delille Welding also debuted a new logo with Oxygen, and Messer. We did not have its 110th anniversary commemorated on to ask more than once for help from our it and has a new truck arriving at the end fellow GAWDA members, and they were of the year that will be numbered “1911.” there to help early and often. When we Says Davis, “I started running the com- celebrate 110 years later this year, we pany about four years ago. My experience do it clearly knowing that we did not do in the industry prior to this had all been it on our own.”

Summer 2021 • 43

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

85 YEARS – Harris Industrial Gases D

Harold Harris established Harris Welding Works in 1936. Now named Harris Industrial Gases to better reflect the company’s current direction, the four-generation, family-owned business currently boasts four locations and 44 employees between California and Nevada, with corporate headquarters, delivery fleet, accounting department, fill plant and steel warehouse located where the original welding shop stood, on Auburn Boulevard, in Citrus Heights, California.

Shareholders and employees alike will celebrate 85 years in business this July. The Harris family has retained ownership and management the entire time, attributing the continuous success to its “longstanding tradition of providing exceptional personal customer service to companies both large and small.”

Auburn Boulevard’s original twolane road has transitioned to a busy, five-lane boulevard. Also gone are the original Harris Family homes, once

– Weldstar Company

sprinkled on the property adjacent to the welding shop. Now there are strip malls, office buildings, asphalt and cement surrounding the two-acre facility. The Harris family is extremely proud that “Grandpa Harold” had the wisdom to pass his business acumen on to his son, Kent, who shared it with the rest of the family, including five grandchildren who are also stockholders.

Harris Industrial Gases is now the largest independent provider of in-

D

Weldstar Company was originally formed in 1936 and then incorporated as the James F. Paterson Company in 1948.

In 1962, the company was purchased by James G. Shennan, who changed the name to Weldmaster Company. However, by the end of 1963, the company had rebranded to Weldstar Company, which it remains today.

When Weldstar was founded, the owners and employees have made the commitment to providing the very best customer service and most well-trained staff in the industry. From warehouse 44 • Summer 2021

“Our customers are

not dependent on us,”

says Joe Winkle, COO and Owner. “We are

dependent on them.”

workers, office staff, and drivers - all Weldstar employees learn the basics of welding as part of required new hire training. All technical reps have continuous training and are considered excellent welders. That philosophy has carried

dustrial gases and welding supplies in the Greater Sacramento Area and surrounding communities. It carries state-of-the-art welding equipment and top-of-the-line supplies, displayed in its retail showrooms, while also distributing industrial, medical and specialty gases to thousands of businesses throughout Northern California and Nevada.

President Kathleen Harris and her son, Aaron Haupt, who is Chief Operating Officer, are Harold’s only descendants still working in the business. Kathleen’s siblings are all active directors and shareholders, with family matriarch Norma Harris, seated as chairman of the board.

Harold ran the company until 1954, when he sold it to his son Kent and daughter-in-law Norma, who eventually incorporated with Kent at the helm until his untimely passing in1974. Norma then took over, with daughter Kathleen, now corporate president, working alongside.

“I’ve been coming in these doors since I was four years old,” Kathleen recalls.

“Keeping my grandfather’s tradition of friendly service and knowing our customers by first name alive and well, we plan on being around another 85 years.”

through 85 years and still remains a core tenet of Weldstar’s success to this day.

“Our customers are not dependent on us,” says Joe Winkle, COO and Owner.

“We are dependent on them. We continue to provide service that is unequaled in our industry. Our employee’s knowledge and customer service are supported by their experience in the industry. The average length of employment at Weldstar is 13.5 years. From our route drivers, certified weld inspectors, technical reps and office staff; our team is at the heart of our success.”

In 1969, John Winkle joined the company and eventually became president.

John’s sons, JB, Joe and Matt took over

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

the company in 2005 and have continued to grow the company ever since.

In 2018, Weldstar merged with Depke Gases and Welding Supplies combining Weldstar’s four locations with Depke’s three locations. In 2019, the company opened its newest location in Kenosha, Wisconsin - taking its current location count to 9. The combined workforce is currently 100 employees.

“Weldstar has the foresight to lead the way in the industry. We represent both the best, well-known manufacturers in the industry but also enhance our line card with the newest, cutting-edge products from unestablished or upcoming companies,” says Winkle. “With the addition of Depke Gases and Welding Supplies and our newest location in Kenosha, we can now offer our superior products and unparalleled service and

support to both new and existing customers in the central Illinois and Southern Wisconsin region. With our existing locations in Northern Illinois, Northern and Central Indiana and Southern Michigan, Weldstar has solidified its presence as

the largest independent distributor of welding, gas and safety products in the Midwest.”

Serving the Industry since 1991.

Grateful for 30 years of service to the gas industry, supporting distributors and partners like you... thank you!

• • • • •

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888-429-5832

www.cyl-tec.com

One Resource. Zero Headaches.®

Summer 2021 • 45

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

80 YEARS D

– Aero ALL-GAS

Nathan and Ida Pollack were Russian immigrants looking to start a new life in the United States. Nathan and his brother, Marvin, started a gas business in Brooklyn, New York, before Nathan and Ida moved to Hartford, Connecticut, to open a pharmacy in 1941. The fire department asked why they didn’t carry oxygen, and the Aero and Physicians Gas Company came soon after. They delivered gases in the family station wagon and lived above the showroom in the North End of Hartford. Once the business began to grow, they moved 46 • Summer 2021

operations across the street in 1969 to where The Aero ALL-GAS Company is still located today. The business progressed into medical gases, welding gases, and the associated accessories.

The Aero ALL-GAS Company had a large fire extinguisher business and, briefly, a scuba school and diving equipment business. However, the company’s specialty has always been to cater to its medical customers, developing mixture techniques, and analyzing their own gases on-site, which enables them to turn around complex medical mixtures with little notice. In the second and third generations of the business, led by son, Michael Pollack, and grandson, David Pollack, The Aero ALL-GAS

Company built a propane business.

They constructed a second facility in Bloomfield, Connecticut, in 1985, and now service 6,000 residential and commercial propane customers with 2.5 million gallons per year throughout Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Western Massachusetts. Both of ALL-GAS’ compressed gases and propane businesses have continued to grow with the help of their dedicated, long-term team, which totals 65 employees today. Now in the fourth generation, with the addition of the founders’ great-grandson, Jonathan Pollack, to its leadership, ALL-GAS has perfected cylinder maintenance. They have acquired the latest technology in ultrasonic testing, paint removal, and reapplication. They are also installing and developing dry ice production and distribution.

Additionally, the company has expanded its Hartford-based welding showroom by developing an online store featuring welding equipment at www.ALLGAS.store. ALL-GAS continues to focus on hiring great people to drive growth.

In the next ten years, ALL-GAS hopes to come into its stride, look for acquisitions, expand its footprint, and further develop its welding equipment business – hopefully even adding more showrooms. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, ALL-GAS has decided to celebrate its 81st anniversary as if it were the 80th. They plan on having an open house and showing some real customer appreciation!

“It means so much to us to be recognized,” says 4th Generation AVP Jon Pollack. “We work hard to make our business successful and also have to thank our phenomenal staff and loyal customer base. We strive to keep the small company service and mentality as opposed to the big box stores.”

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

D

– WELSCO, Inc.

WELSCO, Inc. was originally founded in 1941 as Welders Supply Company

by R.G. Harrison, with the backing of his father, when he returned from World War II. Eighty years later, the company remains in the Harrison family, with Angela E. Harrison serving as the company’s Chair and CEO, the fourth generation of the family to serve.

The company has enjoyed slow and steady growth over years, including strategic acquisitions when appropriate.

“We have also been willing to invest in services that benefit our customers, including specialists in automation, repair, bulk and lab gases,” says COO Adam Kohler. “In addition, our CWI is one of the absolute best in the industry.”

Today, WELSCO has 16 locations, including 14 retail stores, a cryogenic distribution hub and its corporate office. The company is comprised of 127 employees. Like many companies, WELSCO is hungry to expand its em-

D

ployee base and looks forward to the workforce returning to normal.

“We will continue to grow and expand into new markets, constantly looking for opportunities where they exist,” Kohler says. “While there is much more competition now, there has also been so much consolidation over the decades. We view all change as an opportunity for us to expand our customer base, particularly as it relates to mergers and acquisitions amongst our competitors.”

While COVID has put a damper on the company’s celebration plans, WELSCO is excited for its annual Arkansas Welding Expo event in December, where it hopes to be able to have a proper anniversary celebration.

“We appreciate the loyalty of our customers, employees, family and friends who have helped us have so much success over these last 80 years,” says Kohler.

“We look forward to what comes over the next 80 years.”

company would evolve into an industry giant. Today, nexAir serves over 35,000 customers through its vast network of 75 locations in 8 states with over 700 employees.

“Our mission statement: serve selflessly and assist eagerly to create customers for life, defines our culture,” says Kevin

McEniry, Chairman & CEO. Company training, which initially began as an informal process is now more formal and measured. nexAir’s Training Director conducts both in person and online training. All employees are enrolled in a training platform, nexAirU, and employees are required to complete

– nexAir

Describing an eight-decade company as “youthful” and “dynamic” might seem like an oxymoron. However, examining the progression of nexAir illustrates a whole different view of the word “old.”

The company has evolved and excelled in an industry that has seen significant changes in distribution roles.

Established in 1940, nexAir was formed to distribute packaged gases in a small geography where major gas producers needed service capability.

Originally named Standard Welders Supply, the company was initially highly dependent on its gas supplier for producing, packaging, and providing cylinder gases. Over the next 80 years, the whole industry landscape would markedly change, and that small

Summer 2021 • 47

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

courses on a regular basis.

“We are serious about recognizing employees that stand out in our objective,” Kevin says. “Employees from all areas of our company are nominated for the Spark Award, which honors employees that excel in our mission.”

These awards are announced in the quarterly employee newsletter, the airWave. The publication also outlines the company’s successes, achievements, changes, and related news.

Over the last 24 years, while continuing to grow its base business, nexAir completed nearly 50 acquisitions.

The most notable of these acquisitions

took place within the last decade. In 2008, nexAir entered the Georgia market with the acquisition of a specialized company. Praxair was nexAir’s principal gas supplier, but Praxair’s packaged gas arm, Praxair Distribution Inc. (PDI), also had a presence in the same area. With nexAir’s aggressive growth as a regional distributor, a logical progression was a joint venture to consolidate costs and eliminate duplication. PDI’s locations in Georgia, Alabama and Tennessee were included. The success of this venture led to another transaction. In late 2015, nexAir bought PDI’s position in Praxair Distribution Southeast (PDSE), a venture

that formed in Florida and southern Georgia. With the completion of these deals, nexAir’s market stretched from the western borders of Louisiana and Arkansas through the northern border of Kentucky and to the tip of Florida, including some business in the Caribbean.

Looking to the future, management is confident of continued growth but is constantly aware the business landscape is everchanging.

“After 80 years of history, we know that each decade is different. nexAir will evolve to meet whatever lies ahead,” Kevin McEniry says.

and became the corporate headquarters, adding a central, high pressure fill-plant facility. Over the years, the company would add an additional three locations, for a total of five. Today, the company is transitioning into its fourth generation of leadership and has 48 employees.

“At Andy Oxy, our goal is to maximize profitability and sustainable growth by ensuring our customers are supplied the highest quality products and services to fulfill their needs from a highly trained, customer-service oriented workforce,” says Vice President and General Manager Britt Lovin. “Adhering to this mission, allows other positive aspects to fall into place, such as ability to

provide valuable and essential benefits to our employees and contributing financially and through employment, to the communities in which we operate.”

In recent years, Andy Oxy has been focused on changes to the “pace” of work.

“In today’s quick, web-based answer world, we acknowledge a customer’s time is valuable and respond very quickly to their needs,” Lovin says. “We have adapted to the changing customer relationship by becoming service oriented. We work very hard on providing exceptional delivery times, answering questions quickly and providing value-based options.”

75 YEARS – Andy Oxy Company D

The Andy Oxy Company was founded in 1946 in Hendersonville, North Carolina, by W.S. Anderson. The company began as a welding and radiator repair shop called Hendersonville Welding Company with welding supplies sold, initially, to supplement the welding and radiator repair shop. However, by 1960, demand for welding supplies began to dominate the business and the company made the decision to close the radiator/welding shop and devote all its efforts to the welding supply segment.

In conjunction with this change, the company changed its name to Andy Oxy Co., Inc., which was derived from Anderson Oxygen.

In 1970, under the direction of Bill Anderson and Jim Anderson (now retired), the company opened its Asheville, North Carolina, branch, which quickly outpaced the original Hendersonville location in sales. In 1974, the Asheville branch moved to its current location 48 • Summer 2021

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

S

– Superior Products

Superior Products was founded in 1946 by Dale Gens as Superior Screw Products. Gens, who served as President of the company until 1984, when he transitioned to Chairman of the Board, founded the company to make a line of compressed gas fittings. In the 75 years since, Superior Products has grown its product lines to serve the alternate energy, welding, medical, beverage, and specialty gas industries worldwide.

We not only change and evolve with the

trends, but strive to

branch new innovative products for the

emerging markets

and evolve with the trends, but strive to branch new innovative products for the emerging markets and applications.”

To celebrate its 75th anniversary, Superior Products will be releasing articles, promotions, and handing out “Brass Tickets” with a Superior Products Chocolate Bar throughout the year at industry trade shows. The company has also developed a logo to commemorate

the milestone, “as well as some as some surprises through our email blasts and on our social media platforms. Looking forward to celebrating this year with the industry!”

Three-quarters of a century after its founding, Superior continues to find ways to improve the industry with innovation and ingenuity.

and applications.

In the early 2000s, Superior Products opened a state-of-the-art distribution center in Cleveland, OH to handle and ship some 15 million parts per year all over the world, including North America, Central America, South America, and Europe, and expanded into China and Southeast Asia in 2011.

In 2014, Superior Products and Rego Products were acquired by Engineered Controls International. Since that time, Superior and Rego have collaborated on projects to come up with solutions to service the industry. Through it all, Superior has continued on its year-onyear growth path.

Today, Superior Products has 65 employees in its Cleveland, Ohio, headquarters.

“The industries that we service continuously change and challenge us to become the best at what we do,” the company says. “We not only change

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Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

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– Welders Supply Company, a Raimy Corporation D

Welders Supply was founded in 1946

by Jack Raimy in Erie, Pennsylvania.

Initially, the company was a small, two-man operation. Three-quarters of a century later, the company has grown exponentially, now having two locations and 25 employees. The company is also in its third-generation leadership, as Jack’s sons, Bruce and Gary, joined Welders Supply out of college, and his grandson, Mark, joined the company in 2005, after 16 years in the world of finance.

Through the years, Welders Supply has become tightly intertwined with the Erie business and local communities.

“Erie is a pretty provincial place,” says CEO Mark Raimy. “We have focused on being connected to the business community and the community at large, because it is so close-knit. The overlaps between business and personal and family is pretty thick. So, by focusing on that, that allowed us to vertically plug in to customers at all sorts of levels. And that adds longevity and opportunity.”

The company is built on the twin pillars of safety and customer focus, and 50 • Summer 2021

those two aims inform everything that Welders Supply does.

“We always do what is in the customer’s best interest,” says Raimy. “We model our offering to combat commoditization and we’ve spent an enormous amount of capital and time on training to become experts in our field. And really focusing on providing productivity and competitive advantage vs. selling stuff.”

He continues, “We would have never made this without the people in the organization. The people are the most important thing. We really try to focus on having everybody with the same ideals, the same philosophy and going in the same direction. Once you do that, the power of that is exponential.”

As the company continues to grow, it will rely on those ideals to continue its success for the next 75 years.

“I think if we stick to the tenets of being the best at what we do, investing in technology, making our customers better and giving them a competitive advantage, everything else is going to unfold the right way,” Raimy says.

“We will continue to grow organically and we’re always looking at growing through acquisition.”

– Weldsale Company

In 1946, Joseph A. Cunningham founded J.A. Cunningham Equipment, Inc. to buy and sell new welding equipment and supplies. He had graduated from Villanova University with a degree in Electrical Engineering and had worked for a local Philadelphia Distributor known as Arcway Equipment. After quitting Arcway and starting Cunningham Equipment, he began buying and reconditioning used welding equipment as well as purchasing surplus welding wire from the U.S. Government after World War II ended.

He could buy “carloads” of welding electrodes, paying about 1/2 cent per pound and sometimes being able to sell it for 2 cents per pound. Not bad, considering a “carload” refers to a train carload (typically 80,000 lbs.).

He was also first in line buying all sorts of positioning equipment whenever any of the local shipyards ceased operations, or other large industrial concerns operating in Philadelphia (which at the time was a Manufacturing powerhouse) such as the Budd Company, Westinghouse, and General Electric to name just a few. He had followed the example of his father-in-law, a Greengrocer in upstate NY by advertising his equipment for sale on a national basis.

In approximately 1961, J.A. Cunningham happened to buy a few hundred used welding platens, reconditioned them and sold them. When he finished selling them all, and the phone kept ringing, he made his own design and continued selling them on a national basis. In 1962, he founded “Welding Wholesale Company,” later shortened to “Weldsale,” and ran that business as an adjunct to J. A. Cunningham Equipment.

He continued broadening the scope of both businesses, often private labeling welding electrodes, welding wire, and even welding machines which helped him establish a tight bond with Mr. and Mrs.

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

Miller of Miller Electric Manufacturing Inc. He developed exclusive Distribution rights to several major welding wire and machinery manufacturers, often securing - at least for some years - the East Coast distribution rights and occasionally distribution rights east of the Mississippi river.

When [Cunningham] finished selling them all, and the phone kept ringing, he made his own design and continued selling them on a national basis. In 1962, he founded “Welding Wholesale Company,” later shortened to “Weldsale.”

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Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

– Young Welding Supply D

When Van T. (Sam) Young returned home from World War II, he wanted to get into a similar business as his brother, VB Young, who ran a radiator repair business in Columbus, Mississippi. VB helped Sam get started in the radiator repair business in 1946, in Sheffield, Alabama. But, as Sam’s business increased, his customers started asking to buy the products he was using. And so, the welding supply business was born.

Sam’s son, Bobby Young, grew up around the business and, after serving in the U.S. Navy, he eventually worked his way through the company and became CEO. During his tenure as CEO, Young Welding Supply has experienced tremendous growth, adding on four additional locations in Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee. Today, Young Welding has five locations and 37 full-time employees.

“Our family is a family of faith,” says Robby Young, Vice President of Young Welding Supply. “We believe in loving God and loving others. And living this way means you treat employees, customers, and vendors with love and respect. This

is a business, and we have objectives to meet in order to sustain and grow, however, it also means we value relationships highly, both internal and external. And when you have that level of commitment to relationships from a team of people like we have, you are able to remain and flourish in business, even after 75 years.”

Young notes that the company has remained successful for three-quarters of a century by being able to listen and respond to customer needs.

“Change can be a difficult proposition when you have had success,” he notes. “But it’s something that we have done well. Being willing to learn about

60 YEARS D

– SOS Gases, Inc.

SOS Gases, Inc. (Kearny, New Jersey) was established on February 1, 1961, by John A. De Fillipps, Robert Saxon and Robert Stone. 60 Years later, the company still operates as a family business, as Steven C. De Fillipps and Carmen J. De Fillipps have owned and operated the company for the past 35 years.

“Our company has been able to grow and thrive for the past 60 years by having good employees, who have been dedicated to the company for many years,” says Steven De Fillipps.

Today, the company operates out of its Kearny, New Jersey headquarters and has 21 employees.

“SOS Gases, Inc. is known for our services and loyalty to our customers,” De Fillipps says. “Since the beginning, we 52 • Summer 2021

new applications of products and the commitment to educate our team in our product lines enables us to communicate new trends in the industry that enable our customers to be more efficient and profitable, which helps to sustain us.”

He continues, “As an independent distributor, we wouldn’t be around today if it wasn’t for the other independent distributors in our surrounding area. I would like to thank each one for answering the phone when we needed help. I can’t think of a single independent around us that hasn’t significantly helped us at one time or another. From my family to yours, thank you!”

“Our company has been able to grow and thrive for the past 60 years by having good employees, who have been dedicated to the company for many years,” says Steven De Fillipps. have had two suppliers. The first was Liquid Carbonic. Then, Liquid Carbonic sold to Praxair in 1995. Since 1995, we have been with Praxair. We are not only loyal to our customers, but our suppliers, too.”

As the company embarks on the next 60 years, De Fillipps hopes to keep SOS Gases, Inc. a family business by passing the company to their sons, Steven C. De Fillipps, Jr. and John A. De Fillipps.

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

– WESCO Gas & Welding Supply, Inc. D

WESCO Gas & Welding Supply, Inc. started in 1961 in Prichard, Alabama.

Five years later, Ron Pierce joined the company as a registered Professional Engineer. In 1974, with the support of his family, he bought out his partner and became President and CEO. For the next four decades the company grew from one location to eleven providing quality welding, industrial, and safety supplies, as well as medical, industrial, and specialty gases.

Ron Pierce passed away in 2021, at the age of 87. His legacy lives on at WESCO, as the entire Pierce family works in the family business. Jenny McCall is President, Judy Miller is Director of Marketing, Jeff Pierce is Director of Safety, and Greg Pierce is Shipyard Specialist.

WESCO’s mission is to be the primary provider of quality products and services in the welding related industry.

Even the company’s name is a nod to that mission.

A Willing, Experience, Successful, Competitive Organization.

“Our focus is to give our customers the best service before and after the sale,” says Director of Marketing Judy Miller. “Don’t take any shortcuts. You’ll never win, if you do and you will lose the customer.”

Today, WESCO has 11 locations in four states and 105 employees. In the 60 years since the company was founded, it has seen an evolution in the business that it has had to adapt to in order to continue to thrive.

“It’s not just about product and price anymore. Today’s challenges require innovative, profitable, solutions to our customers,” says Miller. “We hire top talent; provide on-going training, and invest in technology to better service our customers. We study the trends and

see what makes sense for our business.

The right trends can help you reach new customers and make more sales. For example, this summer we are investing in new state-of-art Cylinder Fill Plant.

We have seen significant growth in our gas business and our existing equipment could not keep up with the supply and demand. This new state-of-art facility

will be ready in June.”

The company also purchased a new ERP system that it plans to have up and running early next year. And it doesn’t plan on slowing down any time soon.

“We continue to diversity into new business opportunities and expand so we can be competitive in the marketplace,” Miller concludes.

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Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

55 YEARS S

– MK Products

In 1966 a driven welding salesman named Mike Kensrue saw the need to make aluminum welding better and easier.

Starting in a garage at the back of his house, the first PushPull system was invented, and the family-owned MK Products was born. Production of the “Cobramatic” wire feeder and the “Cobra” MIG Push-Pull gun were on the way. Shortly

– Roberts Oxygen Company D

Roberts Oxygen Company, Inc. was founded on July 1, 1966, by Bill Roberts and his wife, Peg Roberts. Bill began his career following in the footsteps of his father, who had worked for National Cylinder Gas and Air Reduction while Bill was growing up. Bill worked in sales for Air Reduction for a few years until World War II. Serving in the Army Corps of Engineers, Bill rose to the rank of Major before leaving the Army after WWII from his last posting in Washington, D.C. Bill then went to work in sales for Southern Oxygen, a regional gas manufacturer in Bladensburg, MD, rising to VP of Government Sales before Southern 54 • Summer 2021

after, the company established production in a small building located in Santa Ana, California, before breaking ground and moving into its current Irvine, California location in 1972.

Today, Mike’s legacy continues with the fourth generation providing vision toward the overall success of the company.

MK Products has become a leading manufacturer of a variety of Push-Pull welding guns, power sources, feeding systems, positioners, and Orbital welding equipment.

“While always staying true to our roots of manufacturing in house, we continue to grow and change our production areas to stay on top of technology. Manufacturing the products in our facility gives us the ultimate control over the quality of our products through continued improvement of our processes and quality standards.” says Senior Vice President Rick Dietz, who has 45 years of service with the company.

The company plans to grow with many new advancements to the production areas in the form of automation, with a continued focus on customer service and customer experience.

Every day brings new challenges to navigate and a seasoned group of employees ready to take them on. MK Products will continue to innovate new products within all its product lines over the next few years and looks forward to supplying these new products to our industry partners.

Chris Westlake, CEO and third generation, states, “We believe that the future is great for our company and our industry.

All we have to do is continue to EVOLVE.” MK Products “Building The World, Made In America.”

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

was purchased by Air Products in 1961.

Within two years, he was moved to Dallas, TX, as the Southwest Regional Manager.

Wishing to return to the Washington, D.C. area and start his own business, he resigned in 1966 and started Roberts Oxygen in Rockville, MD, as a distributor for Air Products. Bill handled sales while Peg did the office work.

Immediately, Bill Roberts hired two people he worked with at Southern Oxygen who were instrumental in the company’s early success during the 1960s and 1970s, Dick Owings, Sales, and Mike Pinto, General Manager. Additionally, Bill’s son Bob Roberts worked summers with the company while attending college.

After getting an MBA from University of Texas at Austin and working in California and Colorado for three years, Bob joined full time in 1973 as Controller.

The 1970s were a time of transition for Roberts Oxygen, and also saw the hiring of employees who became keys for Roberts’ future success. To start the transition to the second-generation leadership, Bob Roberts became Vice President in 1976. And then, in 1977, when Bill decided to retire, Bob was promoted to President. The hiring of Mike Kitzinger in 1975, and Dave Mason and Jim Davis in 1977, at the beginning of their working careers was fortuitous for Roberts. Their career advancement and success pushed Roberts’ expansion and success. In 1987, Mike and Jim became Vice President of Sales, North and South Regions respectively, and Dave Mason became Vice President of Operations. Jim Davis retired in 2013 after 33 years, while Mike and Dave continue today with 46 and 44 years respectively. In transiting to the family’s third generation, Will Roberts, who started in 2012, became President in February 2019 while Bob Roberts continues as Chairman and CEO. “While for this story, we can only

identify a few people by name, there are hundreds of employees throughout the company who are equally responsible for our success over 55 years,” Bob Roberts says. “Many of those employees have 25 to 35 years of service and, unfortunately for us, are beginning to retire and enjoy the benefits of their profit sharing accounts.”

Today, Roberts Oxygen employs 390 people in 54 locations across eight states.

But, even as the company has grown, it remains grounded in the tenets that Bill and Peg set forth 55 years ago.

“Bill Roberts recognized that the most important aspect of running a successful company is to have good employees and provide them with the tools and incentives to do their best work,” says Bob. “He developed our philosophy of good pay to attract good employees, buying anything necessary to enable them to provide great customer service, and paying quarterly bonuses and Annual Profit Sharing to reward their results. Among the tools given to employees for success is the authority and responsibility to give good customer service. We expect all employees to do whatever is necessary to get the job done for the customer.”

Going forward, Roberts expects to continue expanding into new markets where it sees opportunities. Both in new geographies and filling gaps in its existing footprint. In addition, Roberts intends to continue to expand its capabilities in specialty gas labs, and look for innovative ways to meet customer needs.

Technology will continue to be a focus on innovative ways to improve business processes and provide customer service.

Roberts will also continue to commit more time and money on employee training and development.

Says Roberts, “The first 55 years have been great, and we are looking forward to the next 55 years being even better.”

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Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

50 YEARS S

– The Horton Group

So, a guy walks into a bar…It’s not the start of a bad joke, it’s the start of an insurance that has grown and thrived for half a century.

The Horton Group started in 1971, when one of the company’s partners met a health insurance agent at a bar. The agent mentioned that he had a client that sells gases that was running bare on insurance, because, at the time, there weren’t any carriers that would write coverage for the industry. The partner was introduced to the practice’s first welding distributor and was able to find a carrier to cover the

S

business. The Horton Group was born.

The company’s chairman, Glenn Horton, bought the business from his uncle in the early 1980s, when the business had eight employees and did about $500,000 in revenue, located in a strip mall. Over the years, under Glenn’s leadership, the company grew to almost 400 employees, with nine locations in six states and about $80M in revenue, with business all across the country. In addition to welding & gas, Horton has specialties in manufacturing, construction, medical malpractice, transportation and many other industries.

“The key is being intimately involved in the industries that we serve,” Vice President Tony Hopkins says. “We’ve

- Weldship Corporation

Weldship was initially formed in 1946 by John Evans, Jr. to build barges that were used to transport petroleum products up and down the Hudson River. As the business grew, the consumption of industrial gases that were used in the manufacturing process increased substantially. At that point, Evans decided to partner with Liquid Carbonic and became a distributor of industrial gases. After selling his industrial gas distributorship in the 1970’s, John Evans acquired Airco’s Hellertown, Pennsylvania, tube trailer retest facility and Weldship was reinvented. Upon graduating from college in 1982, John’s grandson, Bill Angus, managed Weldship for several years before Bob Arcieri and Bill Angus acquired Weldship in 1990.

Since that time, Weldship has grown significantly, expanded 56 • Summer 2021

been extremely active in GAWDA’s Safety and Membership committees, while also attending as many key conferences as possible. By being present, we’re able to listen to what our customers want, while also looking out for ways we can help that our customers don’t even know to ask for.”

As the trend toward consolidation has continued, The Horton Group has been relied on more than ever to provide guidance and expertise.

“As the industry has progressed, we’ve seen a great need to become experts and ensure we are specialists in the industries we serve. The brokers that are staying a mile wide and an inch deep are missing the mark on coverages, carriers, and they’re inevitably putting their clients in a less than desirable situation,” Hopkins says.

He concludes, “When employees describe Horton, one of their top comments is, ‘It feels like a family.’ We are a business started by the Horton family, owned by employees, and driven to serve our communities and clients both today and tomorrow. Although we’ve grown tremendously throughout these past 50 years, it’s so rewarding to hear that our employees are still able to create a warm, family environment.”

its facilities, added experienced and dedicated personnel, and is focused on new opportunities and markets to serve a growing base of customers on a global basis. Today, Weldship has two locations, in Bethlehem, PA, and Gainesville, TX, which are home to 120 employees.

“We monitor the marketplace while staying in close touch with our customers, which allows us to proactively manufacture the equipment that we feel will be needed in the upcoming months,” says Vice President of Sales Michael Arcieri. “Demand for certain gases come and go in trends and we like to stay ahead of this and ensure that our fleet of trailers and ISO containers are available for the gases that are in high demand.

Weldship is built on the pillars of a commitment to quality; having the most up-to-date knowledge of safety and design

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

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Bill Angus (Left) and Bob Arcieri (Right) standing with John Evans (Middle) the day they purchased Weldship Corporation from John.

regulations; an outstanding service profile; flexibility; customer-driven options; and, of course, its more than 50 years of experience.

“We will continue to invest in our fleet of tube trailers and ISO containers in order to keep up with increased demands within the industrial, chemical, and specialty gas industries,” Arcieri says. “We will also stay well versed in any industry changes that call for evolving product design. We actively look for tack on acquisitions and partnership opportunities which would bring synergies to all participants. We plan to open additional service facilities in areas of the world that can benefit from our products and services.”

Through it all, one thing will remain unchanged. Weldship will always serve its customers with the highest level of honesty and integrity. The company will continue to build on these pillars as it embarks on the next 50 years of its journey.

“We are proud to have been able to partner with so many gas distributors over the years, both large and small,” says Arcieri. “We have formed many great relationships and look forward to the many more to come. It is an honor to have been able to grow our company within such a wonderful industry filled with great people.”

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Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

45 YEARS S

– ABICOR BINZEL

ABICOR BINZEL can trace its roots back to 1945, when the Alexander Binzel Schweisstechnik GmbH & Co. KG. Since that time many patented developments characterize the world of welding and cutting and work to establish an international standard.

This year, the company is celebrating the 45th Anniversary of the opening of the ABICOR BINZEL USA factory and office in Frederick, Maryland.

ABICOR BINZEL’s Frederick office and factory feature complete MIG, TIG and Robotic welding torch manufacturing, assembly, and repair.

“Our strategy to bring innovation and cutting edge technology through R&D, partnerships and acquisitions will allow long-term growth and service to our distribution and end customers,” says John Kaylor, President North America.

“We take immense pride in our product quality and make them available worldwide, with a network of over 50 countries that spans five continents.”

With more than 38 subsidiaries, more than 20 exclusive sales partners and over 1,200 employees worldwide the ABICOR BINZEL Group is represented in more than 50 countries. In 1997 the company brand “ABICOR” was established as the

58 • Summer 2021

We take immense pride in our

product quality and make them available worldwide, with a

network of over 50 countries that spans five continents.

expression of a company strategy depending on innovation and globalization following a clear brand policy.

With over 75 years worldwide and 45 years in the United States, ABICOR BINZEL is well-positioned to continue its growth and evolution for the long-term future.

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

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– All Safe Global

All Safe Global began 45 years ago as a small cylinder requalification business called All Fire Test that was focused on recertifying SCUBA tanks.

The company’s original founders have been retired for more than 20 years. The company’s current management team has been with the company since 2009 and acquired the business in 2013 in a management buyout headed by CEO Matt Boettner.

“Our customers and employees make up the vital core of our business,” Boettner says. “Through a focus on safety, quality and adding value for our customers, we have continued to grow. We source the best products from around the world to provide our customers multiple high value options for gas control equipment. And we pride ourselves in providing top tier cylinder requalification and recycling services giving our customers a one-stop shop for all their gas cylinder needs. With the early success of our company, we reinvested in the business to expand our product distribution offerings, enhance cylinder service offerings, and eventually acquire our Phoenix location.”

That Phoenix location is the company’s second location. Its headquarters, primary distribution center and a service center is in Minneapolis, while the Phoenix location offers cylinder requalification and product sales. The company currently has more than 70 employees and continues to grow.

“Our evolution is thanks to our experienced staff, long-time and new customers, along with associations like GAWDA to stay on top of safety, trends and best practices,” Boettner says. “The only thing constant is change, so to take that in stride and encourage our teams to keep safety and quality at the forefront we’ve been able to exceed expectations when faced with challenges and new

ways of doing business.”

In five years, Boettner sees the company with, “At least 5 locations, offering service and product sales throughout North America. We plan to continue our growth to better serve our customers growing needs, allowing everyone to save on transit and turnaround times.”

To celebrate 45 years, All Safe Global added a 45th anniversary ribbon to its logo, which will be featured on the company’s website and email signatures.

He concludes, “A huge thank you to our customers, GAWDA, vendors, ASG employees and the entire Compressed Gas Industry!”

Summer 2021 • 59

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

40 YEARS S

– Datacor

In 1981, Dr. David Rosenthal, in conjunction with a friend that owned a chemical manufacturing and distribution company, began Datacor, Inc. and released the first version of the Datacor ERP product, dubbed “Chempax.” Chempax ran on an IBM midrange computer called a System 36.

In the early 1990’s, Dr. Rosenthal passed the running of the organization to Sean O’Donnell. Shortly thereafter, the company ported its ERP product to a PC network. In the early 2000’s, Datacor launched its CRM product on the web.

And, in 2019, the company acquired TrackAbout, a mobile and web-based application for tracking gas cylinders and containers. Datacor also just com-

S

pleted the acquisition of Chemstations, a business that develops and sells chemical process simulation software.

“This was the perfect relationship because it allowed Datacor to offer a completely integrated ERP and container tracking solution for the gas and welding distribution industry,” says O’Donnell.

“Our ERP, CRM and TrackAbout solutions were created by developers who understand the unique challenges and idiosyncrasies of industries we have served for more than 40 years.”

After 40 years, Datacor continues to be true to its roots as a dynamic, independent software company where creativity, intelligence and dedication are highly valued.

“Our focus and specialization, along with the ability to transfer this domain expertise to evolving technologies has been the driving force of our growth

– Flange Wizard

Bob Doan, nicknamed “The Wizard,” had spent more than 25 years as a pipe welding entrepreneur before founding Flange Wizard in 1981. He used that experience to create tools based upon his practical daily experience in the field.

The tools were so well received by the journeyman welders and fitters, that Bob decided to close his general engineering firm and open a new business designing and manufacturing tools for the welding industry.

“We have been able to grow by manufacturing the best ‘Made in the USA’ tools that pipe welders, fitters, welders, and 60 • Summer 2021

throughout the years,” O’Donnell says.

“While we may be a software company, we deliver operational and financial consulting expertise. Datacor takes pride in providing complete solutions through our in-house team of development, hardware and networking specialists and our experts in implementation and support.

Our dedicated staff makes working with Datacor personal because we take the time to get to know you and your business. We offer a superior level of service because we’re committed to your success, and our commitment is evident” Today, Datacor has more than 120 employees and three offices. In 2016, Tom Jackson joined Datacor as its president while Sean O’Donnell moved to Chairman.

“Our goal is to be the number one provider of technology to the process manufacturing, gas, and chemical distribution industries,” O’Donnell says. “I can’t predict what technology will look like in 10 years, but I do know that if it will help our customers then we will have industry specific solutions for them.”

He concludes, “Given the fact that the software industry hasn’t been around that long, yet many companies have come and gone, I am very proud of the talent, loyalty and work ethic of my co-workers that they have been able to excel in a constantly changing environment.”

fabricators need and want,” Doan says. “Through continuous innovation of existing tools and the creation of new tools, Flange Wizard remains the ‘Welder’s Choice for Quality’ in welding tools.”

The company has been able to maintain its perch as the Welder’s Choice for Quality by constantly engaging and listening to the needs of welders. Flange Wizard has expanded and met the needs communicated by users. It also studies the industries, trends, and processes ahead to create the tools to meet the needs of the market.

“Everything is critical to Flange Wizard, from the manu-

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

facturing processes, the quality of materials, and even the packaging,” says Doan. “No detail is overlooked in maintaining the excellence that Flange Wizard has stood for since 1981.”

Today, the company has 15 employees. In early 2021, the company promoted Rob Doan to President, with Bob staying on in the role of CEO and Special Accounts.

“With my son, Rob, as the new President, Angel Zarate heading up the manufacturing end and shipping department, and Jenny Miller managing the office functions and customer service, we have a great nucleus of younger minds to keep up with the ever-changing world of welding,” Doan says. “We will grow ever year in the next ten years!”

He adds, “Since I am 3 years older than ‘Bugs Bunny,’ I would like to be able to thank all my peers, distributors, and fellow welders for all their help during the early tough years.”

The company is starting to plan a 40+ year anniversary party, which will be held in 2022 at the Flange Wizard plant.

30 YEARS – Complete Welders Supply D

Complete Welders Supply was founded in Sonoma in 1991 by Mike and Melissa Kowaleski with Carl Watkins and a few dedicated employees. Together, the group built the company and expanded it services and expanded to the company’s Napa location that today serves as Complete Welders Supply’s headquarters.

“It was the focus on building relationships and meeting the customers’ needs that propelled us to our future success,” says President and Owner Mike Kowaleski. “We have been able to grow by developing quality relationships and providing the services that our customers need to be successful in their business.

We focus our efforts at perfecting our part of our customers’ success. So, as they succeed, we succeed.”

Today, Complete Welders Supply has three locations, all in California: its Napa headquarters as well as a Rohnert Park branch and a Stockton branch.

The company notes that its early

Learn More About Complete Welders Supply

by Scanning the QR code above.

adoption of modern filling processes, efficient software solutions and business analytics has allowed the company to thrive and continue to efficiently meet the needs of its customers.

“Being an independent distributor is integral to our philosophy,” says CEO Benjamin Bisconer. “Positioning our company to be able to maintain our independence while meeting our customers needs in the regions we service is where we continue to see ourselves going forward. Evolving and adapting

to our customers we feel will give us many years of future growth and stability.”

While the COVID-19 pandemic put a hold on the company’s ability to promote its 30th anniversary as much as it might have liked, it does have plans to hold events throughout the year to celebrate its milestone anniversary with the communities it serves.

For more information about Complete Welders Supply, scan the QR Code accompanying this story.

Summer 2021 • 61

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

S

– Cyl-Tec

When people think of “legacy,” they commonly see it through the lens of family heritage, teamwork, overcoming adversity, steadfast support, and laying a foundation of solid value.

Over the past three decades, CylTec has strived to reflect that positive perspective and grown into that type of company.

This family-owned business was founded in early 1991 by Jim Bennett, with help from his father, George. Jim’s brother, John, came on board later that year and Tom (another brother) joined the company in 1997. Jim and George have both since retired; however, Tom and John still operate and lead the company today.

In the early 1950s, the Bennett family began work in the industrial gas industry on the gas and welding supply 62 • Summer 2021

side when Clarence Bennett started a company called Benster Welding Supply in Chicago. Eventually, his sons, Dick and George, took over that operation and added another gas and welding supply company called Fox River Welding Supply, plus a metal fabrication company named Welding Company of America.

In 1980, Dick and George split up the businesses – with Dick taking over the fabrication side (which he re-named Weldcoa) and George taking over the gas and welding supply side (calling it Bennett Welding Supply). Then, in 1991, after George sold the gas and welding supply business, he, Jim, and John started Cyl-Tec as a cylinder re-test and cryogenic cylinder repair company.

Tom joined the company in 1997 and began offering gas distributors new products starting with gas cylinders.

Vacuum-jacketed cryogenic cylinders

and bulk tanks were eventually added, along with telemetry systems, valves, and related parts and supplies.

In hindsight, experiencing all the daily elements of running a multi-location and multi-diverse operation from the gas distributor-side greatly contributed to the company’s DNA. This fundamental insight of what the gas distributors want and need helped develop a much stronger perspective and culture at Cyl-Tec that built a foundation rooted on what mattered most – providing customers with top quality products and personalized customer service.

Today, Cyl-Tec’s production plant and warehouse/corporate office – located in Aurora, Illinois – spans 170,000 sq. ft. over 8 acres and employs 60 people. They also have additional warehouse locations in other U.S. cities and Canada to help support customers internationally.

“We have a great team of very talented people here at Cyl-Tec who understand that we exist to serve this unique industry,” said Tom Bennett, President of Cyl-Tec. “The industry is always evolving, and a key difference from when the family founded Cyl-Tec to today is the number of independent gas distributors. Back then, there were thousands of smaller independents. Today, there has been significant consolidation, which has resulted in fewer independent gas distributors, but they are stronger and more diversified than ever before. As a company, we have worked hard to continuously add new product lines and services to meet the needs of the gas distributors in this ever evolving and unique industry.”

Cyl-Tec’s primary goal and mission as a company has been and continues to be providing the best overall value for their line of products and services while offering unparalleled support for their customers.

And that’s the lifelong legacy they want to leave over the next thirty years.

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

D

– Torco Supply Co., Inc.

In 1990, Tim Robb, President of Torco Supply Co., Inc. was attending Shippensburg University and serving in the Navy Seabees as a reservist. His unit was set to be activated for Desert Storm, so Robb took a leave of absence from school for the fall semester, when his deployment was canceled. However, Tim’s father, Tom Robb, who was working as a Certainium Alloys representative and was a Navy Corpsman Chief in the Reserves, was activated to go to Norway to take the place of a unit that was heading to Desert Storm.

“My father was going to be gone for several months, so he asked if I would be able to help maintain his customers while he was away,” says Robb. “I took another leave of absence from school, and he trained me for the Certainium calls, and we talked a little about some other things that I could pursue.

While he was away, I started doing some cold calling, and selling some other power tools and welding supplies. When he came back, we sat down and created Torco Supply Co., Inc.” That was in 1991, and this year, Torco is celebrating its 30th Anniversary. The company has grown considerably since then.

“Our kitchen was our warehouse, and my first S-10 pickup truck and my dad’s Caravan were our delivery trucks,” Robb recalls. “My mother, Lynette, helped with the billing on the weekends.”

Over time, the business, which was helmed by Tim, Tom and Lynette, began to grow.

D

“We had two different approaches,” says Robb. “I was a ‘Let’s grow fast’ (too fast) and my father was a ‘Let’s take our time’ (too slow). We had to debate every penny, and the balance of not going too fast or too slow really paid off for us. We built from profits, not loans, and grew steadily, not rapidly. I, admittedly, hated the slow growth, but seeing many of our competitors go by the wayside because of large debt during the recession in 2001, and again in 2007, our financial stability was a huge strength. We know our target market, and don’t try to fight with the giants of our industry.”

Today, Torco Supply operates out of its Lehighton, Pennsylvania, location and has nine employees.

“We sell service, and we keep our billing as simple as possible,” Robb says. “We have found that many of our customers have come to us over what I call ‘creative billing’ (additional fees, and very hard to decipher bills) of the major suppliers in the industry.”

Robb also notes that over 30 years he has seen many other independents get bought out by larger companies.

“We have embraced selling and catering to the smaller companies and corporations that the larger companies under service,” he says. “We love to deal with the hobbyists and the weekend warriors!”

To celebrate this milestone, Torco Supply will have a tent sale with product demos. Due to COVID, the company has held off on holding any other major events.

– Weld Plus

Weld Plus was founded in 1991 by Jack Schroeder and Paul Rensing in the basement of Jack’s home. The company set out as a welding gas and consumable supplier offering “same day delivery” to their customer base. This meant hand delivering day or night to keep their promise and win the loyalty of their customers, most of whom are still with the company today!

Throughout the years Weld Plus has Summer 2021 • 63

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

adapted to sell, rent, service and refurbish new and used welding equipment. In 2001, after 10 years in business and three locations later, a new 44,000 square foot warehouse and office building was built along the banks of the Ohio River where the company continues to serve customers throughout the United States as well as internationally. Its continued success can be attributed to the loyalty of its customers as well as its dedicated staff.

“We pride ourselves on thoroughly training our employees and giving them the opportunity to advance within the company,” says Paul Rensing, President.

“And by working with a large group of welding vendors, we can provide the perfect solution to our customer base.”

That customer base initially comprised Ohio, Kentucky and Indiana, but has expanded to cover all of North America from its Cincinnati, Ohio, headquarters. Today, the company has 20 employees.

“At Weld Plus, we use our experience and expertise to simplify the welding process,” Rensing says. “We have a knowledgeable sales team dedicated to providing our customers with practical welding solutions and are capable of automating

a variety of welding processes, including MIG, TIG, Submerged Arc and Plasma.”

As the company has continued to grow, it has put a greater emphasis on efficiency, a process which will set the stage for continued growth over the next 30 years.

“We continue to adapt to the ever-changing world,” Rensing says. “We expect greater emphasis on welding automation especially in the aerospace sector. With an established core of young but experienced employees, this next generation is prepared to take us to the next level.”

25 YEARS S

– Eleet Cryogenics

Eleet Cryogenics was founded by Garry and Tenia Sears in 1996. Garry had spent 20 years working in the industry for two major gas companies before venturing out on his own.

“The decision came after 10 years in the making, learning as much as we could about the industry as well as what it took to get a business of the ground,” says Garry Sears, President.

“We also understood the impact it would have on our family and wanted to be sure that our children would not be negatively impacted, so timing was important. Tenia told me the year that I turned 39 that I wasn’t getting any younger, so I either needed to start the company or stop talking about it.”

So, Garry took option A and made the decision to open Eleet Cryogenics. From the beginning, the company has been focused on customer station rehab and associated equipment, and, from that, the company’s philosophy was born – “Give our customers quality service and products at a fair price and treat each customer with the same importance.”

“We didn’t set out to be the largest rehab company in the country,” says Sears. “We just wanted to be the best.”

Today, the company has two locations, one in Bolivar, Ohio, and the other in Conroe, Texas, that are home to 68 employees.

As the industry-wide trend toward consolidation continues unabated, Eleet has seen distributors growing their bulk business.

“We are getting more requests from our customers to assist with sizing equipment, so now we have a very qualified engineering department.”

64 • Summer 2021

That engineering department contributes to the company’s biggest difference making asset, it’s people.

“We have been blessed with the employees we have the privilege to work with,” Sears says. “As we go forward, we will continue to offer the same quality service that we’re known for.

We have an ‘ELEET,’ well-trained and experienced workforce that is second to none, and one of the main reasons why we are leading the industry.”

Eleet plans on celebrating this milestone internally throughout the year and will also be doing something at GAWDA’s Annual Convention to show their appreciation for all of the support it has received over the last 25 years.

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

D

– O2 Plus, Inc.

O2 Plus was started in 1996 by two brothers. Rodger Miles was a pharmacist who began the company with his brother, Harold Miles, who owned a heavy equipment rental company at the time. Company President Shane Miles, Rodger’s grandson, joined the company in 1998 while he was attending college.

“I joined the company by accident,” Shane says. “I was in college, and I had a

S

CDL from having worked for my uncle.”

Eight years after joining the company by accident, Shane became President of O2 Plus in 2006. The company has since grown by adding a second branch in 2011 and expanding its original retail space. It has also added to its outside sales force.

“Our best growth mechanism has simply been, ‘Be better than the competition,’” Miles says. “We are very service oriented.”

Today, O2 Plus has 14 employees across its two retail locations and its fill plant. Miles is looking to add at least one more branch to the company in the coming years. O2 Plus provides welding products, tools and hardware, gases and gas equipment, safety products and welding repair and serves some of the most well-known brands in the industry.

– Select-Arc, Inc.

Select-Arc, Inc. commenced operations in 1996 with one specific goal in mind: to set the welding industry standard by providing the highest quality products, the best service and the most value-added to its customers. Electrode specifiers, who recognized the outstanding reputations of Select-Arc’s management team, were the first to make the switch to Select-Arc. In a few short years, the company’s prestige and exceptional product offerings expanded the customer base tremendously and necessitated that the company’s facilities follow suit. To date, Select-Arc has expanded its design, research, manufacturing and support capabilities six times in the company’s 25 years.

“At Select-Arc, we achieve excellence

every day by employing the latest in manufacturing equipment and technology,” the company says. “Our rigorous engineering and manufacturing standards ensure maximum quality in feedability, weldability and weld performance. This means that once you discover SelectArc’s commitment to quality and service, you will appreciate what so many other welding professionals have come to know.

That Select-Arc is ‘The standard of excellence in tubular welding electrodes.’”

“At Select-Arc, we achieve excellence every day by employing the latest in manufacturing equipment and technology,”

Summer 2021 • 65

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

20 YEARS D

– Specgas

Alfred Boehm began his career in 1976 as a research chemist for Messer Griesheim Industries in Germany. In 1991, Boehm was relocated to the United States to continue his research and development in various areas of specialty gas, including internal cylinder treatment for reactive gases.

“After spending 25 years with Messer Griesheim, it was time to move and explore a new chapter of the American dream,” Boehm says. “Specgas, Inc. was opened in 2001 by me and my son, Marco Boehm.

Given the economic hardships of that year, it was a bold move to start a small specialty gas company. Through hard work, deter-

15 YEARS S

– Weldcote Metals

Weldcote Metals was founded by Bill Roland and John Pandorf in 2006.

Today, Pandorf remains as the company’s CFO. In 2018, the company announced that ZWC Holdings, Inc., would be added to its ownership group and that Joe O’Mera would serve as 66 • Summer 2021

mination, and resilience, Specgas grew over the last two decades from a two-man operation to a successful family-owned business. Specgas employees have years of experience and knowledge making us a competitor in the specialty gas industry.”

For the past 20 years, Specgas Inc. has been producing precision gas blends, custom calibration gases for testing equipment and monitoring devices. Its unique blending procedures and techniques enable Specgas to produce NIST Traceable Gas Standards which are widely used in various sectors of the industry. One of the key factors of its success is a quality product and short lead times which are appreciated by long-term customers. Specgas has been able to grow the company by these simple principles over time. Quality and

Customer Service were and will continue to be the key to ongoing success.

Boehm notes that the industry is demanding more and more difficult gas mixtures in recent years.

“That is where our expertise is,” he explains. “Using our proprietary cylinder treatment and blending techniques to provide long shelf lives for gas mixtures with reactive and corrosive components.

Specgas, Inc. is updating its equipment and developing new analytical methods to provide accurate trace measurements.”

He concludes, “We would like to thank all our customers for their continued truth and loyalty for the last 20 years. We appreciate and value all of them. Specgas, Inc. is looking forward to serving you with the same quality and excellence in the coming years.”

CEO of Weldcote and as part of the ownership group.

Today, Weldcote is a global wholesaler and manufacturer of welding supplies and abrasives, selling not only to welding distributors locally in the United States,

but also throughout various parts of the World. The company has offices in Kings Mountain, North Carolina; Ontario, California; Houston, Texas; Braintree; Massachusetts; and Niles, Illinois.

But, as the company has grown and

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

evolved over the past 15 years, it has stayed resolute in its mission “to add value to our customers, industry, and community.”

According to Weldcote’s website, the company strives to achieve that mission by: • A t t e n t i o n t o o u r c u s t o m ers: Understanding their requirements and satisfying them through a variety of products that stand out for their quality and reliability.

• F l ex i b i l i t y a n d a d a p t a b i l i ty: Processing the capability of reacting within a short time and responding immediately to sudden changes and events.

• Determination: To have goals that are clear and doing everything to achieve them.

• Ongoing improvement: By using the know-how of our products to achieve our goals and to pursue excellence.

• Responsibility: Trying to achieve our goals with the priority of safeguarding our planet and respecting the ecosystem in which we operate.

“At Weldcote, our number one priority is our customers and our partners,” the company says. “Our goal is to provide excellent customer service, while offering high quality, industry changing products that offer tremendous value to welding professionals everywhere. Everything we do at Weldcote centers around providing our customers the best service at the best prices, day in and day out.”

To view more milestone anniversary pictures, check out the Anniversary Story on GAWDAMedia.com

10 YEARS D

– Tulsa Gas & Gear

Tulsa Gas & Gear was founded ten years ago, “with the idea of providing customers with high quality products and outstanding service at a competitive price.” The company’s founders, Steve Stobaugh, Lloyd Hyle, Johnny Stamps, Don Stobaugh, John Scott, Scott Row, and John Wallace had worked in the welding supply business and decided to stake out on their own.

“We started with an empty building and no guarantee of any vendors or customers following us,” says Managing Member Steve Stobaugh. “Over time, TGG has earned a reputation for being the premier full-service welding supplier in the Tulsa area. Our service

reputation was earned from our large inventory of welding supplies, state of the art welding gas fill station, full-service welding equipment repair, readily available welding rental equipment, and by providing the best customer service.

Over the course of our history, we’ve also added microbulk delivery for argon, oxygen, nitrogen, and CO2. And, most recently, we’ve added dry ice production to our capabilities.”

The Tulsa, Oklahoma, distributor has grown to 35 employees in the decade since it was founded. In 2015, the company expanded its ability to service customers by joining the LDA Buying Group, and in 2017, Tulsa Gas & Gear opened a gas cylinder filling plant and continued to expand gas service and capabilities throughout 2018 and 2019, including with the introduction of the

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Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

company’s first nitrogen tube trailer and hydrogen cylinder filling capabilities.

In 2019, TGG expanded its gas filling

delivery capabilities with the addition of an argon micro bulk delivery truck, the addition of a helium filling station

and the addition CO2 microbulk delivery.

“Since our formation, we’ve continued to grow each year,” Stobaugh says. “In another ten years, I expect we will have multiple locations throughout the state.”

While the company has grown and evolved in the ten years since it was founded, it remains true to its mission statement, “To serve and satisfy our customers by improving the cost effectiveness and quality of our products and services. Tulsa Gas & Gear continues to build a team of people who will develop and maintain a quality and service-oriented attitude that leads the industry.”

a definitive system to know who exactly is clocking in/out, is in training or needs training, performing the job or approving the work. By using electronic records and eliminating human error, this program saved the team more than 18% on our payroll.

After seven years of mastering this robust program, CE is now offering CErtifi Suite to businesses in need of a better compliance solution. CErtifi Suite will improve and strengthen its customers bottom lines and increase the ability to compete in today’s marketplace. Customers will have more time

and money to focus on business growth.

“I look forward to continuing to grow Controlled Efficiencies and expand on the gases that we do offer,” Graves says. “Anything that we can do to help support somebody’s growth or make their compliance simpler, we would love to hear from them and grow with them. Our philosophy has always been in business that it’s customer service and we want to grow with your company and the only way to grow with your company is to help your company grow.

And that’s the way we feel about all of our customers.”

5 YEARS – Controlled Efficiencies S

David Graves had spent 19 years as the owner of a medical gas company before being inspired to establish Controlled Efficiencies in August of 2016. The company was founded to provide innovative solutions that simplify the intricacies of compliance. Its products are specifically designed for government-regulated industries, including the production of raw materials, tracking goods and services, training and compliance metrics and reviews.

Graves and his staff collectively bring more than 50 years of experience dealing with the FDA, DOT and Board of Pharmacies for many states. In addition to the medical gas manufacturing company, the founders also owned a cylinder recertification company, prior to starting CE. Compliance was one of the largest liabilities and stresses for this company.

In 2009, Graves began developing and testing a technology program to resolve these concerns.

Through biometrics and paperless methodologies, this program provided 68 • Summer 2021

Keeping Your Eyes Up GAWDA MEMBER ANNIVERSARIES

Other Member

Anniversaries

115 YEARS ` Eutectic Corporation 85 YEARS ` Baker’s Gas & Welding 80 YEARS ` Greco Gas 75 YEARS ` JF Martin ` Lampton Welding Supply Company

` Miller Welding Supply Company

` Noel’s Inc. ` Pandjiris, Inc. 70 YEARS ` Beckley Welding Supply 65 YEARS ` CGW Abrasives ` James Oxygen & Supply 60 YEARS ` C&O Distributors ` Medical-Technical Gases ` Modern Supply Company ` Winfield Iron and Metal

55 YEARS ` Gem State Welders ` CryoStar 50 YEARS ` Industrial Welding Supply

35 YEARS ` Catalina Cylinders ` Diversco ` Geer Gas Corporation ` Liberty Supply ` NLR Welding Supply ` S.F.E. Group

Company

` Ivey Industries

30 YEARS ` Hexagon Digital Wave LLC

45 YEARS ` California Tool & Welding

25 YEARS ` Leaders, LLC

Supply

` Conroe Welding Supply Company

` Cosen Saws International 40 YEARS

20 YEARS ` Empreseas De Soldaduras ` Precise Equipment ` US Cryogenics, Inc. ` Spectrum Gas Products ` California Cylinder

` Advanced Welding & Industrial

15 YEARS

Supply

` Cross Texas Supply ` Dixie Welding Supply

` ICS Industries, Inc. ` Venator Sales Group 10 YEARS

Company

` Gas and Supply

` IMC Marks

` ProRack Gas Control Products ` Southern Welders Supply

5 YEARS ` Distributor Data Solutions (DDS)

` WeldNow To view more milestone anniversary pictures, check out the full anniversary story on GAWDAMedia.com Summer 2021 • 69

2021 AC PREVIEW

EYES UP

2021 ANNUAL CONVENTION A

OCTOBER 6 – 9, 2021 Held at the

1 Lake Avenue Colorado Springs, CO 80906

Photo: The Broadmoor

For more information and registration, visit www.gawda.org

70 • Summer 2021

The average high temperature in Colorado Springs in October is 63 degrees and the average low is 34 degrees. Attire for the Annual Convention is business casual.

2021 AC PREVIEW

EYES UP

Tentative 2021 Annual Convention Schedule TIME

MEETING

Photo: The Broadmoor

T U E S D AY, O C TO B E R 5 , 2 0 2 1 12:00 p.m.

– 6:00 p.m.

Early Badge Pickup

W E D N E S D AY, O C TO B E R 6 , 2 0 2 1 7:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Convention Registration

8:00 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.

Executive Committee Meeting

9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

Board of Directors Meeting: Part 1

11:00 a.m.

– 1:00 p.m.

Strategic Planning Meeting with Committee Chairs

1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.

Committee Meetings

2:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.

Board of Directors Meeting: Part 2

For the GAWDA Executive Committee only For the GAWDA Board of Directors only

For Committee members only

For the GAWDA Board of Directors only

TIME

MEETING

F R I D AY, O C TO B E R 8 , 2 0 2 1 6:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.

Exhibitor Move – In

7:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Convention Registration

4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

3-TWO-1 Reception

7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.

Networking Breakfast

5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.

President’s Welcome Reception

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Contact Booth Program

7:30 p.m.

Industry Hospitalities

10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Spouse and Family Brunch

1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Young Professionals Event (TBD)

1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Industry Hospitalities

6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

President’s Farewell Gala

T H U R S D AY, O C TO B E R 7 , 2 0 2 1 7:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

Convention Registration

7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.

Networking Breakfast

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Opening General Business Session

12:00 p.m.

– 1:30 p.m.

Past Presidents Luncheon

12:30 p.m.

– 3:30 p.m.

Women of Gases and Welding Event

1:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.

Exhibitor Move – In

1:00 p.m.

Industry Hospitalities

For GAWDA Past Presidents only

S AT U R D AY, O C TO B E R 9 , 2 0 2 1 7:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Convention Registration

7:00 a.m. – 8:00 a.m.

Networking Breakfast

8:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Closing General Business Session

Summer 2021 • 71

MEMBER BENEFIT

Biggest Benefits of GAWDA Membership

Members of GAWDA’s Member Services Committee Discuss the Biggest Member Benefits of GAWDA

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO

The following is an excerpt from the June 1 episode of GAWDA TV. To view the full episode, visit the GAWDA TV YouTube Channel.

F

or the June 1 Episode of GAWDA TV, we had the opportunity to speak with members of GAWDA’s Member Services Committee to discuss the biggest benefits that come with GAWDA membership. Aside from the networking and education that take place at the SMC, Annual Convention, and Regional Meetings, membership in GAWDA comes with a whole host of other benefits. So, whether you are looking to take more advantage of your GAWDA membership, or looking to recruit a new member to the association, read below to see all of the great things that GAWDA has to offer to its members.

72 • Summer 2021

passionate about in this industry. Going to the events, getting to see the presentations and the trends in the industry. The content is very valuable.

Rafael Arvelo, Co-Chair of the GAWDA Member Services Committee and General Manager of EQUIGAS WGT: For you personally, and for EQUIGAS, what has been the biggest benefit of your GAWDA Membership?

RAFAEL: I know everybody is going to say the same thing, but to me, as a vendor, it is definitely the networking.

However, there are many things that I am

WGT: You are the co-chair of the Member Services Committee.

What compelled you to join that committee and what kinds of things do you discuss during those meetings?

RAFAEL: The vision and mission of the MSC is to find out how we can give the membership the most value of being part of the association. We are always trying to find new members, especially distributors. We developed a new “test drive” program that is going to be relaunched this year. And we just developed a new video showing mem-

MEMBER BENEFIT bers all the benefits that GAWDA has.

To be honest, I believe that most of the members are not getting the most out of GAWDA. That’s what we’re trying to spotlight with this new video. We want to let them know every single benefit that the association has to offer. And, as the MSC Committee, we want to take them by the hand and guide them and coach them on what steps they should be following to get the most out of the community.

Brad Peterson, 2019 GAWDA President and Chairman and Chief Acquisition Officer of Mississippi Welders Supply Company

®

WGT: For companies who are in the industry but might be on the fence about joining GAWDA, what would you say to them about the benefits of joining the association?

RAFAEL: If you take the benefits that GAWDA offers, especially to the distributors, and add them up, you end up saving about $12,000. You have access to the consultants. Especially for the small and mid-sized companies who might not have the resources of a big company, like a big HR department, the consultants are an amazing resource.

They provide insight into OSHA and safety regulations. Everybody wants to be safe. And with all of the uncertainty we had this year, the consultants helped guide us along the way. They provide so much information.

You also have the Connection newsletter and Welding & Gases Today magazine as part of your membership, with all of the amazing articles that they offer.

You also get CGA access, as a distributor. To get all that information separately would cost more than $2,000. So why not do it if you’re already a GAWDA distributor?

And then, like I said, you have the most amazing annual events. You can’t miss them. And there are other things too.

Access to GAWDA University for employee training, distributors have access to the GAWDA scholarship. There’s a life insurance program. I bet not everybody knew that. And, along with all of that, there’s the greatest networking in the industry, hands down.

WGT: From your perspective, what has been the biggest benefit of your GAWDA membership?

BRAD: The biggest benefit for our company, by far, is the consultants.

Their expertise on what’s going on in the industry and the regulations is so incredibly valuable. For me, personally, it’s the networking. It’s getting to know other businesses and business owners and managers and what they are doing and then being able to compare notes.

And then also getting to know them on a personal level.

Other things that jump to mind are the training, the partnership with the CGA, and a host of other resources. And the meetings are usually in very nice locations, which doesn’t hurt. There’s

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Summer 2021 • 73

MEMBER BENEFIT just a ton of benefits. So, when I look at somebody that’s in the welding supply business, if they’re not a member of GAWDA, my brow just furrows. It’s like, “Why? Why aren’t you?” Anybody that’s running a good operation should aspire to be a member of GAWDA and help us uphold the high standards as an industry and enjoy all these great benefits of the organization.

WGT: What would you say to those companies who aren’t members about whether or not they should join?

BRAD: I would say they should be a member of GAWDA because of the consultant expertise. If you have a DOT stop and you have questions, or a DOT audit, you can call on Mike Dodd or Marilyn Dempsey. If you have an FDA or Medical Gas issue or a Board of Pharmacy question, you can talk to Tom Badstubner. If you have legal questions, you can talk to Rick Schweitzer. It’s just a host of available expertise that’s going to help make your business better.

The value that you get for your dues is a really good investment. It’s absolutely a worthwhile investment.

W GT: What do you feel that GAWDA has meant to the gases and welding industry?

BRAD: GAWDA has brought the industry forward continually over the years and just raised our level of professionalism and expertise. We just keep raising the bar higher and higher. And that’s part of life. You want to stand on the shoulders of your predecessors and reach higher and keep things moving forward. And I think GAWDA brings that to our industry.

74 • Summer 2021

We’ve found that some people don’t realize that we’ve got a life insurance policy that they can participate in. That you can reach out to all the consultants as part of our dues. There’s a lot of value that we provide, aside from the networking and relationship piece.

Colleen Kohler, Member of GAWDA’s Member Services Committee and Noble Gas Solutions Executive Vice President WGT: How do you feel that your association with GAWDA has benefited your company?

COLLEEN: I feel that our membership is really invaluable to us. I’ve basically grown-up having friendships with GAWDA. Abydee is a close friend of mine. Nicole Kissler too. And having those relationships growing up and then going into the family businesses have been invaluable. I would say that the networking within GAWDA is a very important, crucial part of it. But, I feel like it’s another level of networking when you’re growing up with future presidents and future owners and you have a really good relationship with them. We love it.

WGT: What compelled you to join the member services committee and give back to GAWDA? COLLEEN: I feel that the member services committee was a great place to start getting involved within GAWDA because it really highlights all of the benefits of why we’re members. We work very collaboratively together. Everybody’s voice is heard. And we really want to get the message out of why GAWDA is so great and how we’ve benefited from joining and make sure that all incoming members understand. And even existing members need to understand all the benefits that they can take advantage of by being a member.

WGT: What would you say is the single biggest benefit of being a GAWDA member?

COLLEEN: I would say the relationships that you make. My father is a past president and all of his best friends are past presidents and members of GAWDA. They become like your second family. They are tight relationships, even outside of the association. Another big benefit, aside from the networking, is the consultants.

I work very closely, for example, with Mike Dodd. He’s so knowledgeable and well-versed in what he knows and helps prepare us for a lot of the DOT regulations and he’s always readily available to answer any questions. That’s a benefit that we’ve definitely taken advantage of for many years.

WGT: What would you say to an industry company who is on the fence about joining GAWDA? COLLEEN: I would say that you can only gain by being a member of GAWDA. You’re going to gain relationships, gain knowledge and be able to discuss best practices. You’ll get access to our great industry meetings, learn about different products that are available and meet with vendors. The list goes on and on. And it’s actually very easy to be part of the member services committee, because the sales pitch of joining GAWDA is very easy. Very rarely do we speak to someone who is on the fence and have them not join.

So, I would say, “Just jump in. It’s fun, you’ll love it, and you’ll make relationships, and you’ll learn a lot along the way.”

MEMBER BENEFIT the industry that maybe didn’t attend the national meetings or the SMC. So, all of a sudden, our group of folks that we grew our relationship with was now deep and wide.

Bill Visintainer, GAWDA Member Services Committee Member and President and CEO of Atlas Welding Supply, and James Cain, Vice President and CFO of Atlas Welding Supply WGT: What would you say is the biggest impact that your GAWDA membership has had on your company?

JAMES: We’ve really enjoyed our membership through the years with GAWDA. I think the things that being a member of GAWDA has brought to our company is a better focus on the things that our customers are looking for. We hear these things at the meetings, and we discuss them with our friends within GAWDA, so it brings us a wider view of what’s going on in the industry and we’re able to bring that to a local level and focus on it and introduce new things to our customers and bring about continuous improvement. We’re able to consult with our friends in the industry and see how they’re attacking some of the processes and issues that we see.

BILL: GAWDA, and NWSA before GAWDA, basically raised us up in this industry. It’s how we learned. We learned a lot about the industry through our association. Going to those meetings.

Regional meetings and national conferences. And we made relationships that we would have otherwise never had a chance to make and meet people in dif-

ferent parts of the country. And not only could we walk out of there with a whole lot of great information to go home and implement, but we had a rolodex full of phone numbers of industry experts that we could call on, that wouldn’t cost us a dime.

W G T: B i l l , y o u ’ r e a f o r m e r president of the association and now a volunteer on the MSC. And James, you’ve been deeply involved in the association as well. What has compelled you both to remain so involved with GAWDA? BILL: It truly is a give back situation.

It has done so much for me. My father was in this industry, and he passed away very early, at the age of 53. And I’ll tell you, I ended up having literally dozens of surrogates for him, many of whom were business owners and members of NWSA and GAWDA. JAMES: To echo what Bill said, we really were brought up in this industry by being members of the association. My family has been involved in the welding and fabrication industry for many years.

And I was outside of the industry when I started my career. So, when I came back to the industry, it gave me a wealth of experience to consult through the relationships we built by being members.

And then, through my involvement with the regional meetings, we were able to meet an even wider range of folks in

WGT: What would you say is the single biggest benefit of GAWDA membership?

BILL: I’d say it’s the unselfish sharing of information in support of our individual companies and our industry.

We’re getting competitors, a lot of times, getting together. But that doesn’t matter.

It kind of goes away, and we are able to say, “What’s best for our industry? And what’s best for our company?” And we go from there. I’d say there’s a heck of a lot of additional value, as well, but if I had to name one, it would be that one.

JAMES: This goes hand-in-hand with what Bill said, but the single most beneficial thing that I’ve gotten from our membership is our access to the consultants. You know, Mike Dodd, Tom Badstubner, Marilyn Dempsey, and Rick Schweitzer. They all do a fantastic job and are eager to help you and to coordinate their help to make sure that they give you the best, most accurate assistance in the quickest time possible. Mike Dodd was just here at our facility. And he helps us make sure that we’re both safe and compliant.

BILL: And trained.

JAMES: And trained, that’s right.

And he gives us best practices to do in many situations.

BILL: And I would add one more. We haven’t generally called them consultants but that’s really what they are. And that’s ITR Economics. Their quarterly report is something that we really look forward to and it helps us take a look at what’s going on in the marketplace and helps us make decisions based on what we expect to happen based on the information that ITR has compiled.

Summer 2021 • 75

MEMBER BENEFIT

GAWDA’s Group Life Insurance Program

By Brian McLaughlin

A

The GAWDA Life Insurance Program is administered by Brian McLaughlin, Senior Vice President, at My Benefit Advisor. Responsible for Associations, he has over 20 years of experience in the industry.

My Benefit Advisor is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

76 • Summer 2021

GAWDA Group Life Insurance Program

s a GAWDA Member, you have access to the GAWDA Group Life Insurance program through MetLife and can take advantage Helps you protect you r most important asse t… your employees and thei r families of an offering that has averaged over a 10% dividend for more than 50 years! This dividend eligibility is not available with the typical single employer plan.

History indicates that many employees have no other life insurance. The employer paid Group Plan may be their only family security.

The enhanced GAWDA Life Insurance Program offers: • Triple Indemnity for Occupational Death & Dismemberment • No Charge for $10,000 spouse insurance, and $5,000 child insurance • Eligibility for “good claim expe• Accelerated life insurance benefits rience” dividends, membership in the large GAWDA Association Plan (up to 50%) available to terminally ill Reasons why you should consider (Gases employees • Supplemental occupational accidental death And Welding Distributors Association’s)Group Life Insurance Program: and dismemberment benefits included with • A successful time-tested program (more basic accidental death and dismemberment • More than 5,000 employees of 70 welding than 50 years) underwritten by a financially strong insurance company with over 150 supply employers and associate memyears of experience bers are currently insured for more than • Flexibility of three plan choices $200,000,000 of insurance inforce under • $250,000 maximum benefit this plan. During the more than 50 years the • Dependent life insurance coverage — for program has been in force, over $30,000,000 all employees with a spouse, or dependent has been paid to beneficiaries. child(ren) under age 26 — included at no For more information, visit gawda.org/resourcadditional cost to you (funded by GAWDA) es/consultant-directory/group-life-insurance .

MEMBER BENEFIT

2021 Young & Emerging Professionals Summit

Sharing best practices and valued experience with our industry’s future leaders

T

he Compressed Gas Association (CGA) and the Gases and Welding Distributors Association (GAWDA) are excited to announce the return of the Young & Emerging Professionals Summit. This year’s event will run from August 3 to August 26, with a total of 8 online sessions on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Registration is complimentary for all qualifying participants.

The 2021 Summit will feature one industry topic per week.

The topics will include acetylene, liquefied petroleum gas, inert gases, hydrogen, and oxygen. The first session of each week will provide a high-level overview followed by a panel discussion, and the second session will feature a technical deep dive reviewing an incident or technical issue and the resulting effect on industry best practices. This format will accommodate attendees at all experience levels, allowing them to select the level of technical content that best meets their needs.

Our presenters and panelists are leading subject matter experts in their fields who will share their experiences, industry history, and more. They come from a wide range of industry backgrounds including gas producers, distributors, equipment suppliers, and industry association representatives in order to bring varied perspectives to the discussion.

Most valuable takeaway from this session: “Listening to other people in the industry who are just as passionate about doing things correctly.

Most things were reminders, but vital that we hear them more often.” – 2020 Survey Results This event is a unique opportunity for young and emerging professionals to expand their industry knowledge, learn from

subject matter experts, and see practical examples of how safety standards are applied in the industry. Last year’s event attracted more than 2,000 attendees with varying experience.

Each session received an average rating of 4.3/5 or above, and attendees shared overwhelmingly positive comments noting the high quality of the content presented, the expertise of the presenters and panelists, the insights gained from the live discussions, and the practical tie ins to today’s best practices.

“[This session] was by far the most detailed oxygen safety presentation I have had the privilege of watching. It was extremely helpful to see the videos and photos shared. By actually showing and explaining industry specific examples of where the hazards and mistakes are occurring, young and emerging professionals like myself, can learn and be, hopefully, safer moving forward.” – 2020 Survey Results REGISTRATION DETAILS Summit attendance is limited to young and emerging professionals who work for member companies in good standing with CGA or GAWDA (in order to register through GAWDA, your company must participate in the CGA publications subscription program). “Young and emerging professionals” are defined as those aged 45 years or younger, OR someone who is new to their area of industry operations. This online series is available at no charge thanks to generous support from our event sponsor, Weldcoa. continued on next page

Summer 2021 • 77

MEMBER BENEFIT

E V E NT PROGR AM WEEK 1 – ACETYLENE & LIQUEFIED PETROLEUM GAS Acetylene Compressor Incident

Welcome & Opening Remarks

` Daniel Tregear, Air Products & Chemicals, Inc.

Acetylene: Propertiess, Production, Filling, Transport & Safe Use

St. Louis Fire

` Rob Stauder, Linde PLC

Tuesday August 3, 2021 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM (EDT)

Liquefied Petroleum Gas: Properties, Production, Filling, Transport & Safe Use

` Jason Bombard, Western International Gas & Cylinders, Inc.

Panel Discussion

Thursday, August 5, 2021 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (EDT)

Liquefied Petroleum Gas: Properties, Production, Filling, Transport & Safe Use ` Jason Bombard, Western International Gas & Cylinders, Inc.

Panel Discussion

` Sally Mitchell, Norris Cylinder Company

` Brock Miller, Indiana Oxygen Company ` Sally Mitchell, Norris Cylinder Company

` Jim Robertson, Oxarc Inc.

` Jim Robertson, Oxarc Inc.

` Travis Strebig, Rexarc International Inc.

` Travis Strebig, Rexarc International Inc.

` Brock Miller, Indiana Oxygen Company

78 • Summer 2021

` Shaun LaGrange, Linde PLC

MEMBER BENEFIT WEEK 2 – INERT GASES Inert Gases: Properties, Production & Applications ` Bernard Malnarick, Airgas, Inc., an Air Liquide company

Tuesday, August 10, 2021 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (EDT)

Inert Gas Cylinder Filling

WEEK 3 – HYDROGEN Metal Dusting in HYCO Facilities

Thursday, August 19, 2021 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (EDT)

` Kevin Klotz, Weldcoa

Inert Gases: Cryogenic Safety

WEEK 4 – OXYGEN

` John P. Smith, Messer North America Inc.

Oxygen: Properties, Production & Applications

` John Bernard, CGA Consultant

` Alan Burton, Messer North America Inc.

` Barry Brown, CTR Inc.

Filling Medical and Industrial Oxygen

` Markus Graf, Matheson ` Brad Peterson, Absolute Air

August 12, 2021 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (EDT)

Case Studies: Oil Fires in Compressors

` Patrick J. Smith, Air Products & Chemicals, Inc.

Roofs Over Hydrogen Storage, Siting, and Area Classifications

` Rob Early, CGA

Panel Discussion

Thursday,

` Jason Faulkner, American Air Liquide Holdings, Inc.

` Kevin Klotz, Weldcoa

Tuesday, August 24, 2021 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (EDT)

Asphyxiation Fatalities

Oxygen Safety Considerations

` Kate O’Handly, Matheson

Panel Discussion ` Greg Eytchison, Western Enterprises

` Greg Herrera, Linde PLC

` Zachary Fowler, Linde PLC ` Ron Kirby, Roberts Oxygen Company, Inc.

WEEK 3 – HYDROGEN

` Dino Sciullo, Sherwood Valve LLC

Hydrogen: Properties, Production & Applications ` Bill Lindberg, CGA Consultant

Bulk Liquid and Gaseous Storage of Hydrogen

` Pablo Guzman, Airgas, Inc., an Air Liquide company

Tuesday, August 17, 2021 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM (EDT)

Hydrogen Used in Vehicles – Past, Present, and Future

` Jennifer Hamilton, California Fuel Cell Partnership

Panel Discussion ` Tom Drube, Chart Industries, Inc. ` Elias Margonis, Norco Inc. ` Alessandra Martin, Messer North America Inc. ` Josh Weinmann, DeLille Oxygen Company

Safe ASU Reboiler Operations

Thursday, August 26, 2021 | 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM (EDT)

` Dr. John Somavarapu, American Air Liquide Holdings, Inc.

LOX Bulk Storage Tank Incident

` Sid Phakey, Linde PLC

Closing Remarks

Registration for all sessions closes 11:59PM Friday, July 30, 2021.

Learn More & Register at bit.ly/2021CGA-GAWDAYPSummit Summer 2021 • 79

SALES & MARKETING

Choosing

a Mentor

BY ART WASKEY

I Art Waskey has over 45 years’ experience in the welding and industrial gas industry. He travels across the country consulting and giving seminars on business skills and has published 3 books of sales skills stories. He holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering, a Master of Ministry in Leadership Development, and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry. You can subscribe to Art’s weekly sales tips and monthly articles on his website. Also, check out his Posts on LinkedIn. For services, contact Art at 720-341-9405, artwaskey@ispeakd.com, impactspeakingdynamics. com

80 • Summer 2021

have had the honor of mentoring several highly talented executives, all of whom share certain characteristics. They tend to be open to teaching, have a passion for learning, and ask a lot of good questions. Their other attributes include humility and a willingness to make sacrifices in order to succeed. Those characteristics enable a good coach to do his job.

Likewise, the mentee must also look for characteristics in an advisor that fits his personality and outlook. When choosing your mentor, be sure to seek someone that suits your needs.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR Here are some qualities I suggest you look for in a mentor.

Chemistry The first consideration when looking for a mentor is personality fit. Do you have shared interests with this person? Is he or she suited to your approach to learning? Are your values and passions in alignment? Do you look forward to being in the presence of this person? What attributes does he/she have that will help you meet your goals?

A person with a very dominant attitude recently sought my help as a mentor. I almost had to get hostile, something I do not like to do, in order for my point to be heard. I realized a mentor relationship with this individual would be too emotionally draining for me. I kindly suggested that he find someone who was more of a polemist and could engage with him in a manner more suited to his personality.

You want a mentor who has the kind of chemistry that encourages and challenges you to make changes in areas that often are difficult to navigate.

Competency Choose mentors that are the most competent people you can find and invite them to pour their knowledge into you. Don’t worry about finding everything you need in one person. Successful people tend to have multiple mentors who offer different competencies. Currently, I have mentors for four areas of my life — professional, educational, spiritual, and physical.

My professional guide is Ken Thompson, an industry senior statesman. We meet weekly to discuss the strategic changes in the welding and gas distribution business, where we have both enjoyed long careers.

My spiritual mentor is a Doctor of Divinity. He guided me through a Master of Ministry degree in my 60s. An excellent counselor and teacher, this advisor stimulates my passion for religious study, which has propelled growth in my spiritual life.

Humility Choose a coach who is humble and willing to share his/her failures. Vulnerabilities provide valuable lessons and illustrate how new paths can be forged. The right mentor will want you to learn from his/her failures.

A good mentor can help you avoid mistakes you may not be aware you are making. For example, I recently learned that a former colleague was

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hurt by prejudice I did not know I harbored. I was put in touch with this individual through my outreach efforts on LinkedIn. He is a successful executive today but expressed surprise that I would contact him. He related that I never offered him an opportunity to succeed when we worked together 20 years ago and that I had acted with prejudice towards him as a minority.

I had no idea that I had offended this gentleman. I apologized and asked him to forgive me.

A humble advisor is consistently learning from his failures and will care enough to share his life stories.

Discernment Look for specific characteristics when choosing a mentor.

In Multipliers (thewisemangroup.com/books/multipliers), Liz Wiseman offers several insights on the makings of a discerning leader: “The right counselor is considered to possess wisdom and be of good judgement; especially so with regard to subject matter often overlooked by others. The right coach will extend a clear and concrete challenge. He will ask the hard questions that need to be answered to achieve the challenge and require the pupil to give the answers.”

Asking the right questions is important. When a young engineer approached me with his career doubts despite his rapid advancement in a major aerospace company, I listened carefully.

He said he felt the promotions were taking him further away from the type of work he really enjoyed. From our discussion it was obvious that he had a congenial personality and needed a career that put him more in touch with people. His excitement was palpable when I suggested he pursue technical sales. In fact, he knew right away the product that he wanted to sell.

A discerning mentor will help you make difficult decisions that set you on the right path.

• Trust – The right mentor will be a confidant, willing to listen, and able to be trusted with what they hear. A good

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SALES & MARKETING advisor understands that confidentiality is paramount in his role as a teacher and coach. You will want to share both your ups and downs with your mentor. You should have confidence that in sharing your deepest emotions with this person, the information will stay between the two of you.

• Mutual benefit – Seeing someone prosper from my life’s experiences has been incredibly rewarding. Helping others brings unexpected mutual benefits, like joy and motivation. The late Zig Ziglar (ziglar.com) said it well, “You can get anything out of life if you just help enough others get what they want out of life.” Mentoring requires putting someone else’s well-being, growth, and happiness on par with your own.

Both the mentor and mentee should grow and benefit from their relationship. Through my mentoring, I have enjoyed many unexpected, pleasant surprises. For example, when I was advising the director of group strategy for one of the best hotel and resort companies in the world, I told him I was going to be staying in one of his company’s properties. He contacted the property manager and upgraded my lodging — a welcome surprise.

Availability Be flexible with your time. Work within your mentor’s schedule, not yours. Be clear on what you would like to see as the final outcome from the mentor experience. Know the direction you hope to be taking, including your goals for the next twelve months. When you meet, be prepared with your questions.

When someone asks me if I would be willing to be their mentor, the first thing I do is suggest that they contact me with a time they would like to meet. If they follow through with a request, I ask them to send me five questions they would like to ask.

The most successful people are always looking for someone who can make them even better. When considering a mentor look for someone who is enthusiastic, a good personality fit, considerate of others, and a respected expert in their field.

Follow my tips above and find a good mentor. It’s a relationship that can make the arduous task of finding the right career and path for you much easier.

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82 • Summer 2021

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Great Mentoring Relationships

B

ehind some of the most successful people in history, there’s a mentor who has helped them along the way. From Top 25 Mentoring Relationships in History by Jennifer Merrill (September 13, 2015), here are few great examples: • Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg – Steve Jobs often met with Zuckerberg to discuss the best business and management practices for Facebook. When Jobs passed away in 2011, Zuckerberg posted on his Facebook page, “Steve, thank you for being a mentor and a friend.

Thanks for showing that what you build can change the world. I will miss you.”

• Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates – Gates first met American business magnate Warren Buffett at a dinner organized by Gates’ mother. There he began a discussion with Buffett about business and philanthropy that

has lasted for years. Gates has said he has turned to Buffett for advice on various subjects and often refers to him as “one of a kind.”

• Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi – “If I hadn’t had mentors, I wouldn’t be here today. I’m a product of great mentoring, great coaching… Coaches or mentors are very important.”

• Actor and director Clint Eastwood – Now 90 and still directing, Eastwood was mentored by many including his grandmother who encouraged the Dirty Harry star to always work hard and pursue his dreams. “I’ve had many mentors in my life… my grandmother was always encouraging. She always thought I was going to be something when nobody else, including myself, thought I was going to amount to anything.”

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Summer 2021 • 83

SALES & MARKETING

Every Game is an Away Game Lessons on understanding resistance to change

BY JOHN TAPLEY

H John Tapley is a Business Development Manager at Chart Industries with expertise in new business startup, innovative business growth and marketing strategies and digital/social media marketing. He has significant experience in all facets of the industrial gas industry, both domestic and global and can be reached at john. tapley@chartindustries. com and 470-332-4686.

84 • Summer 2021

ave you ever found yourself isolated as a leader of a cross-functional team and sensing that many of the gatekeepers around you have different perspectives and are not onboard with your ideas?

Ever developed and led a new business idea that involves cultural change and an entirely new business model against the grain of the existing business?

And what about the daunting task of unseating the incumbent in a large, multi-site account who has been with your competitor for years?

For me, I can count all the above and the many lessons on navigating though the barriers and inertia of change to drive a new business model, idea, or win a large account. It can be overwhelming, but anything worth doing is never easy. This all came to me while in a prior role and in a moment after a big update presentation didn’t go so well. One of my co-workers, who had been through the same experience, made the comment, “It feels like every game is an away game.” We connected on that point instantly.

There are a number of reasons why it may seem that many around you are running contrary to your point of view: • Different motives around resistance to change and legacy business investments are hard to breakup.

• They, in fact, do understand the business model better than you and you haven’t figured that out yet.

• Internal competition within a cross-functional organization

• Not really a disagreement with your position but just a misread on your part.

• You’ve yet to establish yourself as a credible influencer.

Whatever the reason, it’s on you to move the chains. And, quite frankly, the experience builds character (don’t you love that) and elevates you into a more complete team player. If you approach it the right way, with eyes and mind wide open, the lessons are invaluable. And there should be checks and balances beyond what you’ve considered in your limited perspective.

So, going forward, here are a few key lessons I’ve gained over the years that have helped me understand what it takes to bring the visitors crowd over to your side: • Challenge the status quo, but know your boundaries. ` Understand the degree of assertiveness to apply based on who is impacted and strength of your reputation. ` Have solutions that support opinions contrary to the status quo, don’t just challenge without offering ideas to improve.

• Fully understand your challenge ` Don’t try to be an expert at all functions, but do try to understand how it all fits together. ` When systems and processes are a roadblock, study and find ways you could navigate around or through it. But again, be careful not to infringe on someone else’s responsibility, be respectful.

• Make friends and network constantly

Spread out beyond your organizational boundaries. ` If this past year has taught us anything, we can connect much easier and work together virtually in order to understand all perspectives. ` Of course, expand your LinkedIn connections with co-workers.

• Get out of your zone and stay curious ` Show interest in what others do, it all fits together at some point. ` Build relationships and explore all functions of an organization. ` Consider a trading places exercise, sit in on a work session with a co-worker to observe and have them do the same with you.

• Be a continuous learner ` Do you understand pivot tables? ` Are you proficient on the current version of PowerPoint and Word? ` Do you know how to build a business plan? Hint, there’s an excellent resource by Palo Alto, Business Plan Pro and the same for Sales and Marketing Plans. ` Learn or become familiar with a new language, easy as Duolingo.

• Be genuine, be respectful and be kind!

I need not remind you that after the year we’ve been through, there could be more dynamics of organizational change that haven’t surfaced yet. But, thank goodness, we are starting to see some “normal” again. Example in kind, the record breaking and awe inspiring GAWDA SMC we just experienced in Nashville. A testament to finding a way back bigger and better than ever.

In summary, take action, be resourceful, welcome change and embrace the challenge. And rest assured, as Marie Forleo stated in the title of her book by the same name, “Everything is figureoutable!” `

Summer 2021 • 85

SALES & MARKETING

The Lawyer Effect

BY JAY SPIELVOGEL, VENATOR SALES GROUP, LLC

“M Jay Spielvogel is CEO of Venator Sales Group (GAWDA member), a sales consulting and training firm specializing in boosting Welding and Gas distribution sales performance.

Contact him at: Jay@ venatorsalesgroup.com

y boss asked me to join this meeting, but I am not really sure what the purpose is.”

Sound familiar?

Your salesperson receives an inbound lead or secures a referral with a high-level decision-maker, and the prospect asks their team members to join the first call. In an environment where top decision-makers are looking to mitigate risk and drive consensus on buying decisions, quite often they will either ask to include or will simply invite one or more of their team members to early-stage meetings. In most cases, if asked, the higher-level stakeholder will say that the reason for including the others is based on efficiency since they will be part of the decision-making process. He or she may say something like, “Your timing is good. In fact, I would like to speak further and include a few of my people to join us.” Most salespeople and their managers see this as an extremely positive move that will shorten the sales cycle.

“My prospect invited their entire team to the first meeting; we are in great shape!”

GREAT SHAPE, UNTIL WE GET ONSITE FOR THE MEETING Let’s think about the subconscious, but entirely rational reason the higher-level person is inviting the others: He or she wants to offset their own subjective interest-level and bring objectivity and balance to the situation. I call this type of thinking the “lawyer effect.”

For example, consider what happens when you ask a lawyer to review a contract. The lawyer’s responsibility is to redline the contract, simply as a function of his or her role in the transaction.

I am not implying that the requested changes 86 • Summer 2021

made by a lawyer in contract situations are not critical, but imagine paying a lawyer thousands of dollars to review a contract and the lawyer has no changes to the document; in fact, he or she says everything looks perfect. This rarely happens, as the lawyer must find challenges or their role in the process becomes irrelevant.

Now, imagine a person being invited to a meeting by their boss. Quite often, there is a need to justify his or her presence at the meeting in the same way a lawyer does, by playing the part of the “devil’s advocate” and asking the tough questions. Most salespeople become so overwhelmed with enthusiasm that they fail to notice that the higher-level person becomes the silent one in the room, abdicating most of the due diligence questions to their team members.

To illustrate this point, I was recently involved in a second meeting with a CEO and her regional manager. The regional manager contradicted and challenged everything the CEO shared with me in the first meeting regarding revenue-related issues and initiatives. Luckily, the CEO was resolute in her belief that they needed help and was willing to challenge him during the call. Unfortunately, this is not always the case. In many circumstances, the deal falls apart due to a lower-level stakeholder who maintains the dominant and outspoken role in the meeting with a salesperson.

“Complex selling is less about titles and more about politics, influence and power.”

It’s not what happens in these meetings that matters, it is what does not happen. At some point in every complex sale there will be a need to meet lower-level stakeholders who validate the solution. Some refer to these people as the stakeholders that can say no but can’t say yes. The

SALES & MARKETING problem with including these individuals in the first or even second meeting is the lost opportunity to have a truly authentic and transparent dialogue with the decision-maker. Consider how nearly impossible it is to get deeper issues, concerns and vision, or an honest need-state from a decision-maker in front of their people. Even worse, ever try asking a person to share their departmental issues in front of their boss?

The response you will hear most often is, “Everything is working well but we can always improve and are open to see what you have to present to us.”

THE COUNTER-INTUITIVE SOLUTION Coach your reps to get out in front of the issue by taking control of the process early in the cycle. Most high-level stakeholders will appreciate and respect a salesperson that is willing to negotiate the process steps. Teach them to challenge the notion that it is efficient to bring in lower-level people to the initial meeting or call. The following sample scripting can help them create more alignment with their key decision-makers: “I appreciate the opportunity to speak with you and your

managers. Would it be okay if the next call is between you and me? Even though I would be more than happy to speak with the other members of your team on a subsequent call, I have found it most effective to have a conversation with the leader first, which allows for an open dialogue focused on your individual perspective. If, after our conversation, we both decide there is reason to continue, we can schedule follow-up calls with whomever would be part of the decision process.”

“But the more decision influencers that attend the first meeting the better off we are.”

This approach may seem counterintuitive to conventional (more is better) thinking – until you consider how often early-stage meetings with multiple stakeholders are monopolized by contradictions in perspective, vision, and hidden agendas.

If you subscribe to the belief that the most critical perspective is the person who signs off on the budget, then consider the importance of getting that perspective one-on-one. The alternative is “the Lawyer Effect,” where the subordinates will see the meeting as an opportunity to “represent their boss’ interests, needs and opinions.”

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The Six Attributes of Super-Profit Companies Laser focus is the key to your goals RANDY MACLEAN, PRESIDENT OF WAYPOINT ANALYTICS

F Randy MacLean is the founder of WayPoint Analytics, the inventor of LIPA, and best-selling author of a series of profit practices books.

For more than a decade he’s been analyzing company results, thinking about, writing about and advising on profit issues in distribution and manufacturing. WayPoint software is used by hundreds of companies to control their profits, and their destinies.

or more than a decade, I have been working with distributors of all sizes and all profit levels in many different industries. We noticed a cadre of companies with profit rates far above those of their peers and started looking for the common attributes that were driving rates of 15%, 20%, and even 25%.

We found these six attributes were the common markers of the high-profit companies: • core competency: moving product.

• absolute minimum of inventory locations • mastery of delivery alternatives • focus on customer experience.

• specialized sales force • numbers-driven

CORE COMPETENCE: MOVING PRODUCT

The top companies are really, really good at moving product. That is, they move more product value for less expense than their peers.

This has been achieved through a relentless focus on efficiency and productivity in their operations. Implementing incentive-driving efficiency measures like OpCash Ratios and ROX metrics and supporting productivity metrics at each stage of your logistics chain will result in continuously improving efficiency that increases this kind of competence.

ABSOLUTE MINIMUM OF INVENTORY LOCATIONS Every location that holds inventory increases the quantity and value of duplicated stock, and also duplicates the personnel needed to handle it.

Top companies have one single distribution center 88 • Summer 2021

and substitute the most modern and creative delivery processes for proximity, providing on-time delivery matched to customer needs.

Most companies have grown by duplicating existing locations into new geographies and have done little rationalization. This makes them vulnerable to competitors that are a step beyond, because they can’t meet the price advantage available from comparatively lower handling costs, so their profits erode over time.

Optimizing product handling everywhere it is done drives up OpCash ratios and ROX. Warehouse organization and zone picking have big impacts. Certain systems improvements, and even rudimentary automation can change these numbers significantly.

Where volume and pick frequency warrant it, flooring inventory at a customer location can provide a ROX gain. Although it goes against the stated objective, having customers pick their own inventory from a stock you replenish can be a game-changer for some accounts.

MASTERY OF DELIVERY ALTERNATIVES Most companies already offer a de facto range of delivery options. They will send an emergency truck, or have a sales rep deliver the order. However, these are profit-eating exceptions that disrupt the orderly flow of business and cause a cascade of other expensive exceptions that magnify losses.

(Nobody can find paperwork from a sales rep delivery, so the customer won’t pay.)

Top players have formalized the range of delivery options so timescales can be chosen by the customer to meet the individual needs of each order. The customer can get more-expensive

SALES & MARKETING OpCash ratios and ROX metrics are used to quantify efficiencies at each step of the internal logistics chain (sales, order entry, assembly, warehouse, delivery, administration, etc.) at each location. They are used both to determine improvements over time, and comparisons between locations to support incentives and personnel choices.

Efficiency measures can’t be directly controlled, but productivity measures that influence them can. For this reason, you will want to train managers on the creation and use of productivity measures, and provide the support needed for these vital tools.

same-day or next-day where it matters, near-premium delivery in a couple of days, or batched next-week delivery where lowest cost is desired. The company gets a serious reduction in screw-ups and expensive corrections.

Formalizing an expanded set of delivery options gives you a competitive advantage, facilitates increase in delivery revenue, reduces expenses, and shifts more of your expense base into a variable cost that scales with your needs, and nearly eliminates profit-eating exceptions.

FOCUS ON CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE What is it like to do business with your company? Really?

For a super-performing company, the experience is smooth and trouble-free, and the causal relationship driving that result is not what you would first expect.

The relentless focus on efficiency and productivity (plus the organizational elements that support them) means that customers get their product faster, with fewer errors, and probably at the best price. High efficiency means profit rates that fund specialized expertise, concierge customer service, and customer programs designed to make the customers more successful.

The customer experience delivered by the best companies isn’t based on donuts and small-talk, rather it’s doing everything they can to make customers more successful. They are focused on delivering the things customer want and are efficient enough to provide price advantages other companies can’t.

SPECIALIZED SALES FORCE It’s not fair to say that our sales force organization is out of the Dark Ages. It’s not even as good as that. At least in the dark ages, people had begun to specialize to do specific tasks.

Yet, in sales, we routinely expect reps to generate leads, prospect for new accounts, set appointments, conduct sales calls, provide follow-up service, and even do collections. Nobody, and I mean nobody, is good at all these things, resulting in our reps doing a bad job of some of the critical things in their sales process.

Top companies have recognized these deficiencies and are now creating specialized sales organizations. Salaried specialists do lead generation, prospecting and appointment setting. A very small high-powered sales team makes calls, almost solely dedicated to winning accounts, and then a concierge team does account maintenance, while collections specialists work receivables.

This delivers consistent and effective action into the sales preparation phase, assigns the most persuasive and capable reps to presentation and the actual selling, and puts a team the customers love in charge of keeping them happy. It also reduces costs in one of the costliest areas of the company.

NUMBERS-DRIVEN Increases in market share are very difficult to obtain unless a rise in customer loyalty is driven by improvements in customer experience. Customer experience improves when the company raises its level of operational efficiency. The product gets to where it needs to be, on time, and with no errors.

Performance gains are most accessible with uniform and consistent measures that reflect both the opportunity, and the actual performance, in each area of the company. (That means using both OpCash ratios and ROX metrics.)

Significant efficiency gains are driven by using productivity metrics to manage the contributory activities and resources throughout the organization. Widespread use of these measures will have most people actively working on improvements in each of their own areas. Sustainability of the improvements comes from making the new practices habitual.

For all measures you will use them to compare performance between similar operations (branches), and also see how they change over time.

WHAT’S THE TAKE-AWAY? These six attributes drive superior cash-flow, profit rates and market share. With very few exceptions, the attributes are available to every company – including yours.

Implementing the OpCash ratios and ROX metrics throughout the company, supported by the productivity measures that drive and support them, will immediately put you on track for market leadership.

Gather your team and get to work on these six items to begin your advance to new records in cash-flow, profits and market share.

This article is adapted from a section in Profit-Driven Analysis & Practices: The CEO’s Guide to Record Profits by Randy MacLean (ISBN: 979-8589295375). The book explains the field of LIPA (Line-Item Profit Analytics), and how you can use its unique metrics and strategies to out-perform everyone else in cash-flow, profits, and market share. (Get it on Amazon at https://amzn.to/3tjr2VM)

Summer 2021 • 89

SALES & MARKETING

How to Reduce the Cost of Sales to Thrive in a Post-Pandemic Market

BY MIKE MARKS, INDIAN RIVER CONSULTING GROUP

T Mike Marks is co-founder and managing partner of Indian River Consulting Group, a consulting firm to distributors and manufacturers.

He specializes in helping distributors and manufacturers accurately diagnose problems and identify risk-bound alternatives. Contact him at mmarks@ircg.com or visit ircg.com.

he world of distribution has proud roots dating back to the end of WWII. But making historical assumptions on the journey of transforming sales models can result in costly pitfalls, especially in a post-pandemic world. The market is changing too quickly.

Now, more than ever, is the time for leaders to evaluate selling costs. Distributors must ask the following questions: • What is the difference between a sale and a transaction?

• Is our current sales system reflecting how customers are actually buying product?

• Are costly resources being wasted with outside field reps ultimately performing customer service tasks instead of initiating new business?

It may be uncomfortable at first to challenge long-held beliefs. For instance, some distributors worry that if a field sales rep is removed from a territory, that volume will disappear. But our research shows that around 90% of sales to existing customers are repurchases rather than new sales. Data-driven insights like these can lead to thoughtful cost-cutting redesigns like replacing generalist sales reps with positions more suited to what the customer really values to save big money down the road – while maintaining or even improving customer service.

LEADERSHIP DRIVES TRANSFORMATION Remember, academic research runs about five to 10 years behind what you are currently doing. The pandemic has incited five years of 90 • Summer 2021

digital transformation in a matter of months, only widening the gap between the leaders who have been innovating and those who haven’t. The most successful distributors in this moment are able to: • Analyze big data: Detail-oriented leadership actively fights for clean data to make sure it’s usable for guiding transformation processes to cut sales costs. For instance, segmenting customer data can help reveal customers who do not need the economic investment of a field sales rep, leading to a more productive territory design.

• Effectively implement change: Leaders who have been using project management tools in transforming business process design for years are well positioned to face the kinds of exponential changes happening today. Those who have responded by hoping that those market changes are linear are facing a severe uphill battle of playing catch up.

Lifestyle leaders often choose to take the path later while professional managers know the journey to building these skills is long, but that it’s well worth the payoff.

4 WAYS TO REDUCE SALES COSTS Ultimately, earning a higher financial return than your competitors comes down to two things: price advantage or cost advantage or both. While the wholesale distribution market rarely has control of setting prices, the landscape is wide open for building a strong competitive advantage by reducing selling costs without sacrificing service. Here are four strategic levers successful distributors use to lower sales costs:

SALES & MARKETING ROLE SPECIALIZATION Customers are never going to confess their problems to a website, just as field sales reps should not spend valuable hours tracking orders and writing quotes. That’s why it’s important for distributors to break down existing sales jobs into their component pieces and determine if the right people are doing the right activities.

Role specialization ensures that the most specialized professionals only work on high-value tasks. Nuanced work with the highest return, like developing new business, is assigned to the highest-paid team members like sales reps. Specialization groups lower-value activities like managing quotes with appropriately trained staff who are positioned to fulfill those tasks quickly. Redesigning for specialization is a process, but it’s the first and most impactful change distributors can make to increase sales efficiency and reduce costs.

DIGITIZE ARTISAN PROCESSES Unique imperfections are great for artists handcrafting pottery, but not for sales processes. Gone are the days of transcribing customer orders from a fax or a phone call. With so

The pandemic has incited five years of digital transformation in a matter of months, only widening the gap between the leaders who have been innovating and those who haven’t. many automated tools available, sales labor costs can be greatly reduced by investing in inexpensive digital solutions. Digital sales tools are also more responsive, consistent and reliable.

SEPARATE MARKET-MAKING ACTIVITIES FROM MARKET-SERVING ACTIVITIES Providing excellent service to current customers should not interfere with creating new ones. Market-serving activities protect revenue streams with customers by managing a frictionless customer service experience. These involve a predictable flow of less-specialized tasks like managing

Summer 2021 • 91

SALES & MARKETING returns or providing information. This allows distributors to pull these activities out and group them together with less costly resources like an outbound telemarketing group, digital customer service tools, or even creating a hybrid inside/ outside team of salespeople.

Market-making activities require specialization to effectively displace competitors or increase distributors’ share of customers’ wallets. Keeping market-making activities separate frees up more expensive workers like field sales reps to initiate, build and expand relationships with customers. Too often, field salespeople become involved in managing recurring transactions instead of passing these market-serving activities off to inside salespeople.

CREATE A CLEAR VALUE PROPOSITION Traditional value propositions are changing. In the past, salespeople have been the value proposition, relying on the “sell myself first” angle. But analyzing the gap between what distributors think they’re selling and what customers are actually buying reveals opportunities to pull customers

into a stronger relationship with their distributor, not just their salesperson.

For example, arming salespeople with unique support tools like services or subscriptions can strengthen a customer’s connection to their distributor. This lets salespeople get out of transactional activities and into helping customers solve problems and creating recurring revenue streams. Salespeople are still critical. But in shifting the value proposition off salespeople’s shoulders, those reps can work on expanding the number of relationships between the customer and the distributor, eventually becoming a secondary contact as the business itself becomes the draw.

Increasing sales efficiency does not happen overnight; it often involves turnover and learning curves for new systems and digitized processes. It means relearning customer segmentation and making tough choices to create stickier value propositions. But effective distributors know how to wield their data to guide cost-cutting transformations. And great leaders can clarify the benefits by leading their teams toward maximizing profits in an exponentially changing market.

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TRENDS & TECHNOLOGY

Too Many Anonymous Website Visitors. Now What?

BY BRIAN BLUFF, SITE-SEEKER, INC.

I Brian Bluff is the president and cofounder of Site-Seeker, Inc., an Internet marketing firm specializing in SEO, SEM, social media and web development, with a strong focus on the B2B manufacturing and distribution arena.

Together with his brother, Eddie Bluff, vice president of key accounts, Brian has grown the company into a successful source of search engine and social media marketing solutions.

n this article, I will focus on solutions to these two problems.

1. On average, prospects are 57% of the way through the buyer’s journey before they engage with you or your sales reps? 1 2. 97% of website visitors leave your website before contacting you, even if your product or service can solve their problem. 2 Put simply, prospects don’t want to talk to you. Why should they? For the most part, they can gather information and make decisions about which products and services are best for them just by searching online.

Your job as a marketer is to change that.

Here’s how.

and answers to important questions.

• How they prefer to consume information mobile devices, laptops, tablets.

• What type of content they prefer - articles, case studies, tables, infographics, video, etc.

• What information you want them to know about your company or offering at each stage of the buying process.

We develop B2B buyer personas utilizing surveys and interview-style meetings. Participants in the process normally include your customer-facing staff, channel partners, and actual customers, if available. The interviewer will pose a series of questions to the group and document and organize answers to tell a story about that particular buyer persona.

INCREASE CONVERSION RATE - ALIGN WEBSITE CONTENT WITH AUDIENCE NEEDS

WHY ARE BUYER PERSONAS IMPORTANT?

To keep your company in contention for new business opportunities, you need to convince prospects to engage with you while or after they consume your website content; and the earlier in their buying process, the better off you are.

To do this, it is critical to understand the needs of potential buyers.

The marketing tool that documents these needs is called a buyer persona. Buyer personas are fictitious archetypes representing the most common characteristics of the people that buy from you.

In the B2B world, they are typically described by job title – Purchasing Agents, Operations Manager, Welders, etc.

Buyer personas document your understanding of these groups of buyers including: • Their goals as they consume your website content including the information they need

Buyer personas provide you a competitive advantage by maturing your content approach to include input from those people most knowledgeable about your customers and prospects. They make the difference between a poor conversion rate (i.e., the percentage of website visitors filling out a form, initiating a chat session, or calling you) and a website that performs as a lead-generating machine.

Beyond the direct impact on your website’s performance, buyer personas can positively impact all aspects of your marketing program including: • SEO - by anticipating important content subjects and providing you the opportunity to add this content to your website.

• Landing pages to support digital advertising (including Google search ads where great content means a higher quality score and Summer 2021 • 93

TRENDS & TECHNOLOGY

a lower cost per click) and email marketing efforts.

• Printed material content and messaging.

• Video content and messaging.

• Trade show booth design.

LEVERAGE TECHNOLOGY TO IDENTIFY ANONYMOUS WEBSITE VISITORS One positive result of the pandemic is that many companies were forced to rethink their new business/marketing approach. In general, that’s meant doing things differently through the use of technology to achieve a competitive edge.

The second statistic above - 97% of visitors leave a website without converting - is a painful reality, especially when you think of all the time and money you spend building your website and driving traffic to it.

I bet your website attracts enough qualified visitors in one month; to meet your new business goal for the year, if only you could identify those visitors and engage them in your sales process.

The good news is that now we can identify a significant portion of those previously anonymous visitors by company name. These solutions function by breaking backward the IP address of website visitors and associating that IP address with a specific company.

The best solutions can also automate the consumption of data by establishing filters to identify companies matching your defined target audience (size, location, industry, etc.), automatically pushing the hottest leads to sales based 94 • Summer 2021

on your criteria (visits to important pages, number of visits, a specific company visiting your website, etc.), retrieving contact information including email addresses and phone numbers of your buyer personas and automatically beginning email drip marketing campaigns to these individuals.

HOW TO CHOOSE A WEBSITE VISITOR IDENTIFICATION SOLUTION? Here is what we look for in a solution: • Match Rate. The pandemic has caused more people to work from home, which has lowered the match rate of these solutions. According to our contacts at Lead Forensics - the leader in this space, even at the height of the pandemic, they were still able to identify 18% of visitors on average. Match rate will increase as people begin working from the office again.

• Error Rate. The secret sauce to this technology is the accuracy of the IP database and its ability to filter out IP addresses of Internet Service Providers. In a recent headto-head comparison, we analyzed the results from two providers and found that one of the providers had a 45% error rate with most of those errors related to an ISP mistakenly being identified as the visiting company.

• Data Capture Capability.

Browsing activity, location of visitors, telephone numbers, and email addresses of key people are

important aspects of the solution and allow it to be actionable.

• Robust Integrations. Many B2B companies use a CRM and a Marketing Automation platform (email marketing) to consolidate data and automate processes.

Integration with these tools is important, although they can be used in a standalone configuration too.

• Automatic Distribution of Information. Push marketing qualified leads into Marketing Automation platform (email marketing) and sales qualified leads into CRM. • Available Support. Look for support setting up your solution and the ability to secure ongoing support as needed.

WHO SHOULD USE THIS SOLUTION? At Site-Seeker, we have partnered with several technology providers and built our offering, Site-Insights, to include strategies for data consumption by sales and marketing, digital ad campaigns to both retarget qualified visitors and attract more of the best-qualified visitors, custom integrations, and creation and monitoring of KPIs. This solution is best suited for companies generating a good amount of traffic (30K+ visitors per year), with a high average order value, that use a CRM, and/or that are involved in email marketing and/or have an e-commerce website.

TRENDS & TECHNOLOGY 6 TOP USE CASES

1. Land New Customers. If your Sales Reps are skilled hunters, they will turn this information into gold. Imagine knowing that the manufacturer right down the road was on your website and looking at a specific product. This type of information turns a cold call into a hot call and increases your likelihood of starting a conversation.

2. Returning Sales Pipeline. Upload a list of active prospects and inform the assigned Salesperson when a prospect visits your website.

3. Cross-Selling. Does your sales model require that Sales Reps call on multiple people in different departments within the same organization?

If so, I would assume cross-selling is a key driver of increased revenue.

With this solution, we can upload a list of current customers and automate the process of informing Sales Reps when a customer lands on a web page describing a product or service they currently don’t buy from you.

4. Lapsed Customers. Do you suffer from high customer churn or long periods between customer orders?

If so, upload a list of past customers and notify your Sales Rep when these customers engage with your website.

5. Cold/Lost Sales Pipeline. How many times have you had a hot prospect go radio silent overnight? One day you are talking delivery dates, and the next you’re not talking to anyone. With this technology, you can lie in wait for their return, and when they do we will notify your Sales Rep who will spring into action and restart the conversation at the time that coincides with their rekindled interest.

6. Better Marketing Insights. As a marketer, data is everything. Imagine knowing that your campaigns are targeting the right prospects and driving them to your website. This information will allow you to make informed decisions about where you should cut back your spending and where to double down.

SUMMARY In this bright new digital world, power is in the hands of the prospect. They control when to engage and when to creep about silently collecting information about a potential purchase.

As marketers, we can either accept this or take steps to change it.

This article addressed the use of buyer personas to improve conversion rates and

thereby cause more visitors to contact you about their situation.

I also described a new technology solution with the ability to identify these otherwise anonymous website visitors and several ways to automatically activate this data to the benefit of your bottom line.

Caution - These are complex subjects and the way they are implemented will determine your ROI. I urge you to reach out if you have questions or just want to walk through your situation. I can be reached at brianbluff@site-seeker.com or 315.732.9281x 211.

Best of luck!

Sources: 1 - Gartner 2018 2 - Site-Seeker customer experience

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TRENDS & TECHNOLOGY

SEARCH ENGINE TRENDS

P

art of developing a comprehensive digital marketing campaign is understanding how customers and potential customers are using the Internet to find your products and your website. The graphs and information below all come from Google Trends, which analyzes the popularity of search queries in Google Search across various regions and languages. The graphs scale “Interest Over Time” which represent search interest relative to the highest point in the chart for the given region and time-period. So, a value of 100 is the peak popularity for the term.

for the Gases & Welding Industry

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Another alternative is “Google Keyword Planner.” To use this tool, you must have a Google Ads account. The Keyword Planner lets you search keywords and suggests other words or phrases related to your products and services. It lets you research the trend information for how often certain words are searched and how those searches have changed over time and also gives you suggested bid estimates for each keyword so you can determine your advertising budget.

In today’s digital environment, we strongly encourage members to capitalize on this growing trend and ensure that your company is visible in the place where people search the most.

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TOP RELATED SEARCH QUERIES • Average Search Volume has increased 75.4% YoY • Average Search Volume has increased 37% over the past 5 years

96 • Summer 2021

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DRIVER SHORTAGE

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Truck Driver Shortage Truck Driver Shortage 2021 Is There a Truck Driver Shortage?

Tank Truck Commercial Driver’s License Summer 2021 • 97

TRENDS & TECHNOLOGY

Digitization Making Progress in the Gases and Welding Industry

BY J.R. (BUZZ) CAMPBELL, KEN THOMPSON, MAURA GARVEY OF INTELLIGAS CONSULTING

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ver 700 GAWDA members have returned from May 2021’s Nashville SMC meeting highly motivated and charged with enthusiasm from an extremely successful reunion. This, after a challenging year of individual work and Zoom meetings. Over 240 distributors, 340 suppliers and more than 105 Contact Booths, all willing to face some continuing risk from COVID to bring normalcy back to GAWDA. In addition to handshakes and face-to-face exchanges, GAWDA delivered on its promise of content and a rich program. Utilizing the enormous amount of inside industry talent, the GAWDA Management Team offered 15 separate Learning Tracks, each choreographed by experienced and talented volunteers from our membership.

Attendees were able to select three tracks, covering topics relating to family ownership succession plans and options, cultural growth, team building, and a cross section of managing disruptions of many varieties and descriptions. Fully a third of the offerings focused on the digitization of many aspects of our businesses. This article will be on those segments.

All gases and welding (G&W) distribution verticals are under intense pressure to adjust to an increasingly automated economy that seamlessly manages all interactions from marketing and from production of goods and services, through delivery, administration & control, and financing through the supply chain to the end-customer. We have chosen the five Learning Track presentations demonstrating the digitization of our business to briefly summarize below.

Will Roberts, President of Roberts Oxygen Company, presented “Make Your Computers & Machines Do the Work.”

Will walked his audience through the Roberts journey to remove as much paper as possible from every transactional point and function. When automated internally as well as with those functions facing the customer and trading partners - hours saved, costs reduced, and efficiencies gained can all 98 • Summer 2021

be measured. Will convincingly showed that automating the wide range of processes in the supply chain improves every aspect of performance from order-taking, product delivery, invoicing, and payment.

Red Ball Oxygen’s Craig Harris, Senior Vice President of Operations, presented “Keeping Score in Distribution” discussing the role of digital technology in successful filling, mixing, delivering, and recording complex elements of gases operations. Fill room operations, specialty gases formulations and recipes, blending and incubating data are all integrated into the new Red Ball ERP Platform. That includes telemetry at the user site tied to perpetual or vendor managed inventories, cylinder and asset tracking, as well as distribution software managing delivery driver/truck routing and a service disruption occurrence. Craig showed some experiences from a trucking safety view and some interesting software tracked examples of distracted driving that led to improved distribution management.

Colleen Kohler, President of Noble Gas Solutions said, “We Now Get CRM!” and described a litany of benefits gained through implementing a sophisticated CRM (Customer Relations Management) platform. She stressed the fact that data is key to any successful business understanding and operation; and that recording the information regarding customer preferences, responses, and actions and then displaying it across our company’s organization permits the entire team to better focus on quality customer service and often reducing costs. It also creates more effective market intelligence and keeps the sales team geared up for retention of existing business and the creation of new profitable accounts.

Dave Healzer, Cee Kay Supply’s Director of Procurement, addressed the daunting task of “Changing Your ERP Without Taking Years Off Your Life.” Selecting and implementing a new ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) Platform is never a pleasant experience even under the best of circumstances. However, Cee Kay management recognized that their business model

TRENDS & TECHNOLOGY had changed significantly from a predominately hardgoods and equipment business to gas production and distribution/ services with big differences between bulk and packaged gases. Recognizing those big changes, it was apparent that their ERP was not designed to manage the new combinations of complex product and functional tasks. They also understood that migration of their existing and potential clients into a world of B2B exchanges required a new systems platform that would seamlessly handle the new and emerging complexities of the new portfolio of products, applications, and delivery and service requirements. In addition, they recognized the new complexities of automating the supply side of hardgoods and the expansion of their delivery and service side of gases and interacting digitally with both suppliers and customers. Yes, not an easy task, but it has been accomplished with the entire Cee Kay team accepting the challenge of planning and executing with a goal of excellence as the driving factor. In addition to taking his audience through the “why, what, and how” of the strategy and implementation of the change, he dwelled on the key factors of pitfalls, risk assessment, and mitigation as well as the “what to expect” when changing such an important part of Cee Kay’s business, one that just could not fail.

In their presentation on “Implementing Ecommerce - From Inception to Launch & The Roadmap to Get There,” Glenn Bliss, President, and Amy Dardis, Director of Marketing and Business Development, outlined General Distribution Company’s strategy, implementation pathway, and key success factors considered in their strategy, implementation, and performance in the new area of B2B (and B2C) positioning their G&W distribution channel and businesses. Of note, General Distributing serves a diverse market, including the presence of sophisticated clients preferring a B2B pathway for the conduct of business. The management decision to move forward with the Omnichannel approach required a collaborative effort of many digital specialties providers who previously may have been unknown to each other. The General Distributing ‘story’ describes the process they embarked upon to bring together supporting suppliers and coordinate a degree of cooperation that has been remarkedly successful.

These and many of the other 15 presentations are on the GAWDA website. Back to the meeting itself, Abydee Butler Moore’s challenge at the Opening Session was, “Take Home Enough from the Content offered to unquestionably have paid for your trip here,” and “Enjoy our REUNION as a bonus.”

Abydee, GAWDA volunteers, and staff - Well Done! We will see you at some GAWDA Regional meetings this summer and in Colorado Springs in October.

AN ANNIVERSARY As J. R. Campbell Associates, Inc. (JRCI) celebrate its 40th Anniversary, we congratulate others among our colleagues recognizing their own Anniversaries. We are all part of a remarkable industry, full of talent, experience, and eager to help each other provide products and services of excellence.

JRCI had its beginning in 1981 when J. R. (Buzz) Campbell concluded 19 years with Air Products and AGA Burdox (now part of Linde) and began providing independent marketing, operations, and analysis services to many of the international and US gas and technology players. CryoGas International was started in 1989 and sold to Gasworld in 2013. In addition, JRCI started a gas industry M&A firm with Leaders LLC in 2000. Intelligas Consulting emerged in 2013 following the sale of CryoGas to emphasize the firms focus on consulting. Today, Intelligas Consulting is one of the lead gas industry consulting firms with Maura Garvey and Ken Thompson important parts of that management partnership. Maura has been working with Buzz for 25 years and provides over 40 years of experience, offering in-depth analytics of industrial, medical and specialty gases including developing proprietary models on industrial gases including company financial, market share, and market segment data. She has also written over 100 articles on the industrial gas industry. Ken brings 60 plus years forward with a background in gases manufacturing, distribution and wholesale industry ownership, and best practices coordination and mentoring to some of the industry’s larger regional packaged gases companies. Ken is also transitioning from 25 years of mentoring BIG, the select group of G&W distributors who concentrate on improving business excellence and best practices. Together, the Intelligas group represents over 160 years of industry specific experience.

Today, a primary focus of Intelligas is on the digitalization of the specific performance factors of the U.S. G&W distributors’ supply chain – for both gases and hard goods. It is clear to all that generational progress requires an omnichannel approach to rapidly changing marketing and supply chain strategies. While we have been moving in the direction of increased automation, our experiences and that of the world generating from the huge disruptions from Covid, have greatly accelerated the development of automation and digitization in our industry. For Intelligas Consulting, we firmly believe the combination of technology improvement and experience is a winning formula and are endorsing the advancement of digitization and will assist that those developments.

The GAWDA SMC in Nashville was both timely and especially important.

Summer 2021 • 99

BUSINESS FORECAST ITR ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

The Looming Depression ITR’s Alan Beaulieu discusses the company’s short and long-term economic projections

BY STEVE GUGLIELMO AND ALAN BEAULIEU

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TR Economics is one of the most trusted and respected economic firms in the world. GAWDA members have seen first-hand how accurate the firm is at projecting economic activity and have been able to position themselves and their businesses accordingly. For several years now, ITR has warned of a coming Depression in the 2030s. We had the opportunity to speak with ITR President Alan Beaulieu about the looming Depression and if the recent COVID pandemic has impacted the company’s short, medium or long-term projections in any way.

The following is a lightly edited transcript of the conversation.

W E LD I N G & G ASES TODAY: I T R h a s b e e n consistent in its projection of a depression in the 2030s. Have you seen anything either during or because of COVID, that would change your projection in any way?

ALAN BEAULIEU: No. Actually, what we have seen reinforces that opinion, more than anything. This is not calling out President Biden or the Democrats, both parties spend an extraordinary amount of money. And both are upset at each other when the other does it, but the reality is that the deficit goes up, and up, and up no matter who is in office and when we have now unofficially adopted modern monetary theories, this just feeds into our opinion on what the whole latter part of this decade is going to look like, and we feel it’s an unsustainable trend that is leading to problems.

WGT: So, is that the biggest factor in this projection?

That the bill is going to come due on all this spending that we have been doing over the past three decades?

ALAN: That’s the safest answer. I could give you. This is a longer-term problem. What we have just done is established

100 • Summer 2021

that in times of extreme distress, the government will come riding in and spend money like there is no tomorrow and make everything as better as they can. And the amount of money has been incredible. And it has made a phenomenal difference. But that has become an expectation. And talking about spending and improving benefits and increasing refunds and making life better and easier, it all sounds very noble. And we don’t want to get into the moral value of it. But when the bottom falls out, and the government can’t go on printing useless currency, what have we done except set up the culture for a safety net that just won’t be there? I worry about setting up an expectation that would be difficult to meet again in ten years.

WGT: Are there any fundamental changes that can be made at this point in the game that can stave off this depression? Or is it, more or less, inevitable?

ALAN: I believe it’s more or less inevitable. It’s a question of degree, not whether there will be a significant downturn.

You can take a depression and make it into a heck of a recession, and it is still a big difference. A lot of this is driven by the Baby Boomers around the world and the cost of taking care of us and the extension of our lives. Between healthcare, prescription drugs, and what we call Social Security, there’s an incredible financial pressure that is building. And that means either more borrowing or higher taxes. Noticeably higher taxes on people who have been promised that their taxes won’t go up. Then you create a situation where we will be raising taxes on the Millennials, on Gen Y, Gen X, Gen Z. They’re all going to be paying more. And as they’re having to pay down deficits or at least exorbitant interest payments as part of the federal budget, while defending the nation and developing new technologies, making us all green, you can tax the nation into a situation where you’re really diminishing

BUSINESS FORECAST ITR ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

economic growth. And that’s possible. I’m not saying it’s probable, but it’s certainly a possible outcome.

with the Recession in 2007 and 2008, businesses learned some hard lessons that would, at least, theoretically, make them better prepared in the eventuality that an event like that happened again.

Do you think there will be similar lessons that came out of this COVID pandemic that can be applied going forward?

ALAN: There are lessons. One of them is a negative lesson that we already discussed, which is the feeling that if it happens again, the government will fix it again and so we’ll be just fine. I think that’s a mistake to think that way. I think there needs to be a financial preparedness that perhaps wasn’t there. That means watching the balance sheet very carefully, watching your reserves very carefully. How quick are you to react? Those are some of the lessons that can come out of this. How quick are you to lay people off? How quick do you respond to that negative pressure? If the government is not there with PPP next time, everyday counts, if you want your business to survive.

Those are kind of negative lessons. I think the positive lessons that came out of this were equally amazing. And they just made me proud. The resiliency and resolve that were shown were good lessons. And also, the ability to change was a phenomenal thing to see. How quickly businesses threw off the cloak of yesterday and said, “Alright, what does it look like now? Let’s get to it.” GAWDA members who survived are certainly part of that. And GAWDA members who changed and shifted and sold differently and acted differently are to be commended. They are going to be the survivors of this decade and the people who will make it through what is to come. It’s when you get set in your ways. That’s when you’re going to break.

before. And that looks like it’s brewing and will be coming.

All the fiat currency certainly speaks to that. Along with the creation of fiat currency can come a weakening of the dollar, and a weakening of the dollar creates inflationary pressures.

And the lack of labor in key segments of the economy, if not all of it, certainly would drive up labor prices, which also drives inflation.

So, that’s all intact. And, if nothing else, it kind of bolsters the outlook. And the fact that interest rate rise also goes with inflation was part of our thinking. We had in our thinking that we would see governments with massive amounts of debt in the second half of the decade. Well, here we are. The train arrived in the station a little early, but I don’t think we’re going to do anything about it. And I think we’ll see politicians who want to grapple with the unintended consequences. And sometimes that’s what people forget, not just politicians, but there are always unintended consequences to these actions.

This all came to my mind recently. This new infrastructure bill, which is going to be just under $1 trillion, they said that it’s paid for without raising taxes. And I thought it was truly amazing to say that sort of thing. They’re saying that the economy will grow and that, as the economy grows, we will see revenue go up for companies, profits go along with that and individuals are making more money and all that means more taxes into the federal government, and that tax money will be used to pay for the infrastructure bill. And some of it will come from private sources. And that’s normal. Both parties do that. But that’s where the hokum comes in. How many times does that actually happen? Future Congresses take that increased revenue and say, “Oh, we need to...” and then the reduction of the deficit is long forgotten. It’s a selling point, not a reality. So, it’s not paid for. So, I’m wondering how they’re going to pull that one off, especially considering all the other plans that have been discussed around emissions reduction and transportation. Those are expensive.

WGT: You said that the black swan events of last

WGT: You mentioned printing of fiat currency, what

year didn’t impact your projections for 2030. How about in the short and medium term?

ALAN: No, actually not there either, which is interesting. But we were always calling for the second half of this decade to see more inflationary pressures than we have seen in a while.

Not like the late 70s or early 80s, not that type of inflation.

But certainly, more than a generation and a half have ever seen

do you make of crypto currency as a possible alternative or a major factor?

ALAN: I can tell you that inside ITR, there is a large, friendly debate about how viable this is. It has its pluses but also it brings up the question of why would governments allow it?

Why would they give monetary controls like that and not be able to control their money supply and the value of the cur-

WGT: It seems like after everything that happened

Summer 2021 • 101

BUSINESS FORECAST ITR ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

rency? That’s a lot of power that people seem to be thinking that Central Banks are going to be willing to relinquish. And most people are also confusing China’s digital currency with crypto currency like Bitcoin. There is a world of difference between the two. The digital currency is firmly in China’s control. Turkey has the same thing. If we do it, I think it will be the same thing. It’s not a crypto currency, it’s digital currency.

And I think a lot of people miss the distinction between the two. And at my age, this isn’t something that I would call an “investment.” I’m not Elon Musk. If I lose $1 billion, it hurts.

So, to put my future in the hands of something with the price changes that occur in crypto currency, from my perspective, whoever calls it an investment has a different definition than I do, at my age. Maybe at 25, it counts as an investment. At my age, man the downdrafts make the stock market look as safe as tomorrow. That’s part of the debate. Is it gambling or is it truly an investment?

you can make every part more efficient so that you can run with less cash, less labor so you’re not dealing with the hiring crunch, and when there is price movement, you’re not nearly as impacted as others are. You’re a tougher nut. And when you do that, now you’re getting ready for what’s coming.

WGT: In terms of scale, what you’re anticipating is closer to 1929 than it is to 2007, correct?

ALAN: Yes, but I think that in many ways, this will be easier than 1930, because we have FDIC. We’re going to keep banks from collapsing. We have unemployment insurance now, which we did not have back then. But you also get the aspects of a lot of unemployment. There’s discouragement and dismay.

Automobile sales are not going to be robust by any means. And you’re going to find that there is a mental malaise that descends upon the nation. And, as gloomy as the Great Recession was, it’s really best thought of as the band warming up, because that was a pretty easy fix compared to what is coming.

WGT: For businesses that are reading this, what can they do to prepare themselves now? Even talking about things that you’re anticipating in the back half of the decade or even next decade?

ALAN: That’s where our focus generally is. What can you do to protect your family and protect your company? You can make a lot of money along the way. And even make a lot of money in a depression while doing some good. That’s a positive part of it. What GAWDA members should do is ask themselves, “If I know, with a high degree of confidence, that there is going to be another 2007, with an unforeseen dropping off of the world underneath their feet, what would they have done differently?”

Begin with that question, and that will answer it for a lot of them. I should have had more cash; I should have not gotten so caught up in the optimism of the moment that I forgot that there is always a downside to a business cycle. I should have made sure I was in markets that were less subject to cyclical change, because there are some for GAWDA members that are not going to see the same change that others will. What markets don’t see that variation? What should I have done in terms of efficiency control? That is going to be key.

If you want a major takeaway, it’s going to be that every GAWDA member needs to be thinking about efficiency in every part of their operation. You’ve heard me talk about the Bassett Hound before. This is the Bassett Hound on steroids.

You need to go through one part of your business and don’t stop until you’re out the back door. And ask yourself how

102 • Summer 2021

WGT: This has been packed with takeaways, but if you had to boil it down to the biggest takeaway, what is it that you want GAWDA members to leave with regarding COVID and with regards to what is coming?

ALAN: What we just went through, it’s simple. It’s just to remain agile. Be ever vigilant. And the longer-term takeaway is to make sure that you prepare yourself. And we’ve discussed what that means, because if I’m wrong, you haven’t hurt yourself in any way. And if I’m right, you just saved your family, and your business. There is no harm in preparing with good investments, optimism and growth-mindedness. You have to be charging up that hill. You must be aware of the curves in the road, that’s what we do every year with GAWDA. But you have to keep that horizon in mind and that will color a lot of decisions along the way.

WGT: Any last thoughts you wanted to leave GAWDA members with?

ALAN: Not really. I don’t think GAWDA members are in particular danger from foreign activity. I think, if nothing else, I would pass along to them encouragement that with more and more reshoring going on and a continued strong move in foreign direct investment, the world is saying, “Go U.S.!” and the U.S. environment is saying, “We’re coming home.”

And that will mean good things for GAWDA members.

Keeping the Gas & Welding Distributors Association connected, one video at a time.

New videos expected to be released the 1st and 15th of every month.

JUST SEARCH “GAWDA TV” ON YOUTUBE EPISODE GUIDE Episode 1 – COVID19 Episode 2 – DIGITAL STRATEGY Episode 3 – CANNABIS Episode 4 – CONSULTANTS Episode 5 – FAMILY BUSINESS Episode 6 – ITR Episode 7 – SMC PREVIEW Episode 8 – GAWDA PRESIDENTS Episode 9 – BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP Episode 10 – SMC RECAP Episode 11 – MADE IN THE USA 22 INFORMATION PACKED

EPISODES SCHEDULED FOR 2021!

Have an interesting story to tell?

Contact Steve Guglielmo about being interviewed for an upcoming episode.

Interested in Advertising on GAWDA TV? Contact Tim Hudson to find out about...

2 MINUTE SUPPLIER INTERVIEWS | COMMERICALS 315-445-2347 | WWW.GAWDAMEDIA.COM Summer 2021 • 103

THE GAWDA INDUSTRY ANALYSIS REPORT Provided by ITR Economics™

ITR THIRD QUARTER OUTLOOK

Durability of Ascent: 3 Reasons Why It Matters

BY BRIAN BEAULIEU

1. How much you are willing to invest in your company via capital equipment and people is often a function of how long the upward run will be.

2. How much credit you are willing to extend to customers and potential customers will be limited if you think the rising trend will soon end.

3. This could be a great time to make an acquisition, assuming the economy supports the risk – which a longer rising trend tends to do.

Below are three trends that empirically indicate that the rising trend for the U.S. economy is going to endure. Our forecast has GDP and U.S. Total Industrial Production rising through 2023. These trends support that outlook; however, there is another fifth element. Market societies, such as ours, left to their own devices, will rise until either a) distortions and imbalances build up, which inhibit growth, or b) some externality circumvents the normal propensity for rise (as COVID did). We do not see any looming distortions or imbalances developing within the next three years that would end the current ascent. That includes our analysis of tax and spending changes; however, that doesn’t mean the rate of rise can’t be changed by these factors.

TREND #1: PERSONAL SAVINGS A sign of just how much money has been created and put in the hands of consumers is illustrated by the chart on this 104 • Summer 2021

page. Consumers have not been able and/or did not desire to spend all the money that came their way during the past year. The influx of cash created a situation wherein the consumer is holding $4.842 trillion in excess savings relative to right before the pandemic. Note that the pre-pandemic level itself was elevated relative to prior to the Great Recession. We see an economy that is poised to benefit from roughly 5.1 times the level of savings compared to pre-COVID. That is a lot of latent economic purchasing power waiting to be deployed; the excess amount alone equates to 25.4% of GDP! It is sitting there. Already in the hands of the consumer. It is hard to not be upbeat about our consumer-driven economy over the next several years with that stockpile of cash in hand.

TREND #2: CAPITAL GOODS NEW ORDERS The chart on the next page showed that the consumer is poised to keep Retail Sales on an upward trek. The next trend shows that business-to-business activity is in line with the lead provided by the consumer.

The Nondefense Capital Goods New Orders trend is in ascent. Capital Goods New Orders for the last 12 months are up 4.3% from one year ago. Year-over-year comparisons can be skewed by the weaknesses of 1Q and 2Q20, so it is noteworthy that not only are the percentages rising, but the dollars are at record highs. More ascent is coming. One indication of that probability is the ascending trend for Business Confidence, which leads New Orders by 12 months. The Business Confidence Index 1/12 status is similar to that of the New

U.S. Personal Personal Savings U.S. Savings Billions, USD

7000

7000

$6,036.3

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ITR FOR GAWDA

U.S. Nondefense GoodsNew NewOrders Orders U.S. NondefenseCapital Capital Goods (excluding aircraft) to U.S. Business Confidence Index (excluding aircraft) to U.S. Business Confidence Index

New Orders 60

Index 20

Rates-of-Change

10 20 0 -20 -10 New Orders - 12/12 Index - 1/12

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U.S. Business Bankruptcies Bankruptcies totoU.S. Nonfinancial U.S. Business U.S. Nonfinancial CorporateBusiness Business Liquid Corporate LiquidAssets Assets

Bankruptcies 120

-20

Assets -60

Rates-of-Change

80

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0

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20

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40

Bankruptcies - 12/12

Assets - 3/12

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Orders 12/12, exaggerated by what was going on a year ago, but the actual data is nonetheless running at a) a level higher than pre-COVID, and b) the highest level since December 1983.

The lead time on capital goods ordered TM ITRthe Economics through rest of this year will likely be stretching out based on these trends. Have

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the confidence to make your move and maximize your company’s upside potential in the current period of rise.

TREND #3: BUSINESS BANKRUPTCIES The third chart shows that the incidence of Business Bankruptcies is trending below

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year-earlier levels. We initially wondered if this was owing to some distortion in normal processes. Indeed, this seems to be partially the case. However, the chart shows that normal economic pressures are in place and are keeping the bankruptcies EVP PlusTMThis trend heading in a downward direction. does not mean that we are free of poor Summer 2021 • 105

THE GAWDA INDUSTRY ANALYSIS REPORT Provided by ITR Economics™

credit risks in the economy; there always some. The relationship to the level of U.S. Nonfinancial Corporate Business Liquid Assets (improving strongly) means there is a lowered systemic risk of bankruptcies in the marketplace.

Go ahead and extend credit to potential or current customers, assuming you have

done your usual due diligence on their microeconomic creditworthiness.

CONCLUSION: The U.S. economy is poised to grow, with no obvious barriers to enduring ascent coming from the consumer status or the business-to-business side of the economy.

This is clearly a time in the cycle when calculated risks are warranted. To be sure, we have not forgotten about inflation, deficits, higher interest rates, and an overvalued stock market. But those are future problems that are not expected to stand in the way of rise through 2023.

CORE DASHBOARD 12/12

12MMT/A

CURRENT 12/12

2021

2022

2023

HIGHLIGHTS

U.S. INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION

-6.8

5.9

3.1

1.6

Production transitioned to Phase A, Recovery. Production will reach record highs in the second half of next year.

U.S. NONDEFENSE CAPITAL GOODS NEW ORDERS

4.3

9.9

1.6

0.3

New Orders will generally rise through at least the end of 2023.

1.5

Employment will likely transition to Phase A, Recovery, with April data. The 12MMA will rise through at least 2023.

U.S. PRIVATE SECTOR EMPLOYMENT

-7.9

2.9

2.8

U.S. TOTAL RETAIL SALES

3.3

18.1

4.3

2.8

We revised the Retail Sales forecast upward through 2023.

Growth rates for 2022 and 2023 are largely unchanged.

U.S. WHOLESALE TRADE OF DURABLE GOODS

-1.3

9.2

2.9

2.2

Wholesale Trade will surpass the April 2019 peak in the second quarter of this year.

2.2

The 12MMT will rise through at least 2023, reaching record levels by the second half of this year.

1.7

We revised the forecast upward through 2023.

Anticipate a completed recovery and new record levels by later this year.

U.S. WHOLESALE TRADE OF NONDURABLE GOODS

U.S. REAL GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT (3/12)

-6.9

0.4

10.7

3.4

Note: Forecast color represents what Phase the market will be in at the end of the year.

106 • Summer 2021

3.2

1.8

ITR FOR GAWDA LEADING INDICATORS ITR Leading Indicator™

ITR LEADING INDICATOR™ INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION ENTERS RECOVERY TREND, AS FORETOLD BY INDICATOR The ITR Leading Indicator™ rising trend persevered in April. U.S. Industrial Production transitioned to a recovery trend with the most recent data, in line with prior Indicator trends. The Industrial Production recovery will persist; ongoing rise in the Indicator bodes well for Production 12/12 rise extending into at least late 2021.

Production

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U.S. TOTAL INDUSTRY CAPACITY UTILIZATION RATE RISING 1/12 IS GOOD NEWS FOR INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION The U.S. Total Industry Capacity Utilization Rate 1/12 rose in March, a good signal for the recovery in industrial activity. Rise in the Rate 1/12 signals that the nascent rising trend in the U.S. Industrial Production 12/12 will persist into at least the last quarter of 2021.

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Rate

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U.S. Industrial Production - 12/12 U.S. Total Capacity Utilization Rate - 1/12

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Summer 2021 • 107

THE GAWDA INDUSTRY ANALYSIS REPORT Provided by ITR Economics™

THE CONFERENCE BOARD’S U.S. LEADING INDICATOR

U.S. Conference Board Leading Indicator Production

INDICATOR 1/12 RISES SHARPLY, SIGNALS STRENGTHENING INDUSTRIAL SECTOR INTO 2H21

15

The 1/12 rate-of-change for The Conference Board’s U.S. Leading Indicator rose sharply with March data. The overall trend suggests the nascent rise in the U.S. Industrial Production 12/12 will extend into at least late 2021.

5

Rise in the U.S. ISM PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) 1/12 persisted in April, marking 12 months of general rise. PMI 1/12 rise suggests the nascent cyclical rising trend in U.S. Industrial Production is sustainable and will extend into early next year, in line with our expectations for the industrial sector.

30 20

7.8

0

10 0

-5

-15

PMI 1/12 RISE PORTENDS INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION 12/12 RISE INTO 2022

Leading Indicator

10

-6.8

-10

U.S. ISM PMI (PURCHASING MANAGERS INDEX)

Rates-of-Change

U.S. Industrial Production - 12/12 U.S. Leading Indicator - 1/12

'09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22

-10 -20 -30

U.S. ISM PMI (Purchasing Managers Index) Production

Rates-of-Change

Index

15 10

75

45.6

50

5

25

0

0

-5 -10

-6.8 U.S. Industrial Production - 12/12

-25 -50

U.S. Purchasing Managers Index - 1/12

-15

108 • Summer 2021

'09 '10 '11 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22

-75

ITR FOR GAWDA GAWDA EXECUTIVE SUMMARY/DASHBOARD: GAWDA INDUSTRY INDICATORS

INDICATORS

HIGHLIGHTS

CURRENT GROWTH PHASE RATE (12/12)

U.S. INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION INDEX

Rising domestic and global demand for manufactured goods, energy, and mined commodities, such as oil and metals, will boost U.S. Industrial Production this year.

-6.8%

A

U.S. PROCESSED GOODS FOR INTERMEDIATE DEMAND PRODUCER PRICE INDEX

Rising labor, transportation, and commodities prices will likely put upward pressure on prices for intermediate goods in the coming quarters.

1.7%

C

U.S. CRUDE OIL FUTURES PRICES

Demand is outstripping supply as the global economy heats back up, pushing up on Prices. Further rise likely in the coming four quarters.

-9.4%

A

Leading Indicators unanimously point to further Phase B, Accelerating Growth, in the coming quarters.

4.3%

B

Robust activity in the U.S. residential construction and industrial sectors will contribute to rising demand for New Orders this year.

-13.1%

D

Industrial sector expansion will increase demand for New Orders this year; rising commodities prices will likely contribute to rise in dollar-denominated New Orders.

-1.2%

A

Low interest rates and labor shortages will likely encourage businesses to invest in new durable equipment. Stimulus will contribute to consumer demand for durables.

0.0%

A

8.3 (Monthly)

B

U.S. NONDEFENSE CAPITAL GOODS NEW ORDERS WITHOUT AIRCRAFT U.S. ELECTRICAL EQUIPMENT NEW ORDERS

U.S. FABRICATED METAL PRODUCTS NEW ORDERS

U.S. DURABLE GOODS NEW ORDERS WITHOUT AIRCRAFT

ITR LEADING INDICATOR (MONTHLY)

Ongoing rise in the ITR Leading Indicator™ portends rising activity for the U.S. industrial sector through at least 2021.

The uncertainty around economic recovery is fading as leading indicators – consumer and industrial – signal the worst is behind us and robust rise is head. U.S. Industrial Production, our benchmark for the industrial sector, has transitioned to a recovery trend.

Supply chain and capacity issues may be dampening activity, but New Orders trends bode well for increasing Production this year.

Nondefense Capital Goods New Orders (excluding aircraft) were up 10.5% in the last three months compared to one year ago.

Bolstered by the most recent stimulus package, the U.S. consumer

is in a strong position to continue the U.S. recovery. However, supply-chain bottlenecks are hindering some of the strength of the recovery. Some of these problems have led to steep increases in commodities prices, with steel, aluminum, copper, and lumber all rising significantly from first-half-of-2020 lows. With the U.S. industrial sector expected to grow at an accelerating pace into 2022, GAWDA members can expect rising activity throughout the year, but that will come with the “positive problems” associated with business cycle rise.

Summer 2021 • 109

THE GAWDA INDUSTRY ANALYSIS REPORT Provided by ITR Economics™

U.S. INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION

U.S. Industrial Production Index Data Trend

A

Index 120

Index 120

12MMA Forecast 12MMA 3MMA

RECOVERY

2021 2022

5.9% 3.1%

107.9* 111.3*

2023

1.6%

113.0*

* Index based to 2012 = 100.

110

110

101.4

100

100

HIGHLIGHTS ◼ Production transitioned to Phase A, Recovery ◼ We revised the forecast through 2023 upward by 1.5–2.9%

90

90

'12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 '24

◼ Recovery will occur faster than after the Great Recession U.S. Industrial Production for the 12 months through March 2021 came in 6.8% below the prior year. Production transitioned to Phase A, Recovery, with the most recent data. We revised the forecast upward by 2.3% for 2021, 2.9% for 2022, and 1.5% for 2023 to reflect the outperformance and the strength of the leading indicator evidence. We expect the nascent 12MMA rising trend will extend through at least the end of 2023.

The Production 12MMA troughed at 7.6% below the August 2019 record high; this is about half the decline seen in the Great Recession. Coming out of the Great Recession, it took Production nearly five years to return to the pre-recession level.

This recovery will be swifter, primarily because the 2020 recession was more akin to a natural disaster-induced downturn. Since the economy was not fundamentally broken, as it was prior to the Great Recession, it will be flexing its might that much faster.

As such, Production will reach a new re-

110 • Summer 2021

U.S. Industrial Production Index Rate-of-Change 15

15

10

10

5

5

0

0

-5 -10

12/12 Forecast Range

-6.8

12/12

-5 -10

3/12 -15

'12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 '24

-15

cord-high level in the second quarter of 2022. Be prepared for successive record highs through at least the end of 2023.

Management Note: Eliminate bottlenecks in your business in order to prepare for record levels of Production in 2022 and 2023.

ITR FOR GAWDA U.S. NONDEFENSE CAPITAL GOODS NEW ORDERS (EXCLUDING AIRCRAFT)

B

ACCELERATING GROWTH

2021 2022 2023

9.9% 1.6% 0.3%

$888.0 billion $902.2 billion $904.9 billion

HIGHLIGHTS ◼ First-quarter New Orders were 10.5% above last year ◼ 2023 New Orders will be roughly 12% above the 2020 total

Bils of $

Bils of $

300

250

1200 12MMT Forecast 12MMT 3MMT

1000

828.9

200

800

150

600

100

◼ Weakness in the U.S. dollar is helping New Orders U.S. Nondefense Capital Goods New Orders (excluding aircraft) in the first quarter reached a record-high $219.6 billion, coming in 10.5% above the first quarter of 2020.

The forecast has been lifted to account for the latest leading indicator evidence, including a recent surge in commodities prices. General rise in New Orders will extend through at least 2023, though there will be a brief flat period in the first half of 2022 and another in the middle of 2023.

New Orders for 2023 as a whole will come in roughly 12.0% above the 2020 total.

Total U.S. Exports of Goods to the rest of the world during the first quarter were 1.9% above the year-ago level. Recovering global trade will continue to bolster New Orders this year. The weaker U.S. dollar this year is helping support the Exports trend, as U.S. goods are relatively less expensive on the foreign market when the U.S. dollar weakens. U.S. exchange rate trends support our outlook that New Orders will persist in Phase B, Accelerating Growth, into late this year.

U.S. Nondefense Capital Goods New Orders (excluding aircraft) Data Trend

'12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 '24

400

U.S. Nondefense Capital Goods New Orders (excluding aircraft) Rate-of-Change 20

20

10

10 4.3

0

0

-10

-10 12/12 Forecast Range

-20

-20

12/12 3/12

-30

'12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 '24

-30

Management Note: Use other companies’ supply chain issues to your benefit and look to capture market share.

Summer 2021 • 111

THE GAWDA INDUSTRY ANALYSIS REPORT Provided by ITR Economics™

U.S. CRUDE OIL SPOT PRICES

A

RECOVERY

Jun 2021 Sep 2021 Dec 2021 Mar 2022

$62.09 per barrel $63.08 per barrel $64.72 per barrel $65.49 per barrel

HIGHLIGHTS ◼ Prices edged down in April after five consecutive months of above-normal rise ◼ Expect Prices to generally rise to approximately $65 per barrel by 1Q22

U.S. Oil Futures Commodity Prices Data Trend

$/bbl.

$/bbl.

120

120 3MMA Forecast 3MMA Actual

100

100

80

80 61.03

60

60

40

40

20

20

0

'12

'13

'14

'15

'16

'17

'18

'19

'20

'21

'22

0

◼ Demand is strengthening, but supply will likely keep Price rise relatively muted U.S. Crude Oil Spot Prices edged slightly downward in April, ending a streak of five consecutive instances of above normal month-to-month rise. We revised the forecast upward by about $8-10 per barrel for the coming quarters. We expect Prices to generally rise into at least early 2022.

However, the rise will likely be relatively mild, with Prices staying in the $60s-per-barrel range throughout the next four quarters.

We expect Prices will sustainably reach about $65 by early next year.

Rise in leading indicators of global economic activity, such as the JP Morgan Global Purchasing Managers Index and the OECD Plus Six Non-Member Economies Leading Indicator, augurs for strengthening demand as 2021 progresses. Meanwhile, quarterly OPEC Crude Oil Production and U.S. Crude Oil Production are recovering.

We expect that the combination of stronger demand and recovering supply will yield a fairly balanced market, keeping Price rise relatively muted.

112 • Summer 2021

U.S. Oil Futures Commodity Prices Rate-of-Change 100

100 12/12 Forecast Range 12/12

50

50

3/12

0

0 -9.4

-50

-100

-50

'12

'13

'14

'15

'16

'17

'18

'19

'20

'21

'22

-100

Management Note: As you pass through price increases, consider using economic data to explain the change to your customers. This will illustrate your company’s commitment to transparency, which may in turn foster customer loyalty.

ITR FOR GAWDA U.S. STEEL SCRAP PRODUCER PRICE INDEX

B

ACCELERATING GROWTH

Jun 2021 639.67* Sep 2021 638.47* Dec 2021 624.50* Mar 2022 654.03* * Index based to 1982 = 100.

$/GT

U.S. Steel Scrap Futures Commodity Prices Data Trend

900

3MMA Forecast 3MMA Actual

700

$/GT 900

700

622.9

500

500

HIGHLIGHTS ◼ Steel Prices’ 4Q-to-1Q ascent was the second strongest on record

300

300

◼ We revised the forecast upward; the timing is unchanged

100

'12

'13

'14

'15

'16

'17

'18

'19

'20

'21

'22

100

◼ Domestic supply is failing to keep pace with demand U.S. Steel Scrap Producer Prices posted the second-strongest fourth-to-first-quarter increase in the last 74 years. Surging business-to-business orders, as well as other demand-side factors, are coinciding with a slow ramp-up in domestic steel production, yielding very robust rise in Prices. We revised the forecast upward. The shape of the Prices 3MMA forecast – relative flatness in the coming quarters followed by general rise into early 2022 – is unchanged.

Quarterly U.S. Raw Steel Production was down 6.3% year over year with the latest data, and U.S. Nondefense Capital Goods New Orders (excluding aircraft) were up 10.5%. This is causing a supply-demand imbalance that will take time to resolve, keeping Prices elevated. More steel supply is likely on the way, which aligns with our outlook for relatively flat Prices in the second half of the year.

U.S. Steel Scrap Futures Commodity Prices Rate-of-Change 100

100 12/12 Forecast Range 12/12

50

50

3/12 16.2

0

0

-50

-50

-100

'12

'13

'14

'15

'16

'17

'18

'19

'20

'21

'22

-100

Management Note: You may be able to pass along rising input costs to customers, but if they balk at the increases, it could eventually hurt your volume.

Consider combatting high Prices through efficiency gains.

Summer 2021 • 113

THE GAWDA INDUSTRY ANALYSIS REPORT Provided by ITR Economics™

U.S. FABRICATED METAL PRODUCTS NEW ORDERS

A

RECOVERY

2021 9.6% 2022 2.8% 2023 2.0%

$401.5 billion $412.7 billion $421.0 billion

U.S. Fabricated Metal Products New Orders Data Trend Bils of $ 150

125

75

◼ A number of leading indicators suggest that the New Orders growth rate will rise through 2021

50

◼ Supply chain disruptions are hindering activity in key end-use markets and pose a near-term risk to the outlook U.S. Fabricated Metal Products New Orders during the 12 months through March were down 1.2% from one year ago. The quarterly Production trend, however, is up 9.8% from the first quarter of 2020. This suggests that New Orders will transition to Phase B, Accelerating Growth, in the near term, in line with our outlook. Expect annual New Orders to generally rise through at least the next three years, though the pace of rise will slow between early 2022 and the first half of 2023.

Rising trends in U.S. Small Business Capital Expenditure Plans, U.S. Corporate Profits for Fabricated Metal Products Industries, and the U.S. Metalworking Business Index portend business cycle rise for New Orders this year. Expect recovery in the U.S. industrial sector to bolster demand for New Orders into 2022. However, supply chain disruptions are hindering activity in a number of end-use markets, including construction machinery, light vehicle, and

114 • Summer 2021

12MMT Forecast 12MMT 3MMT

500 375.7

100

HIGHLIGHTS ◼ New Orders will transition to Phase B, Accelerating Growth, in the near term

Bils of $ 600

400

300

'12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 '24

200

U.S. Fabricated Metal Products New Orders Rate-of-Change 30

30

20

20

10

10

0 -10 -20

-1.2 12/12 Forecast Range 12/12

0 -10 -20

3/12 -30

'12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '20 '21 '22 '23 '24

-30

heavy truck production. This could soften rise in New Orders in the near term. On the flipside, rising prices pose an upside risk.

Management Note: Evaluate your capacity needs in light of New Orders rising nearly 10% by the end of 2021.

ITR FOR GAWDA FOODX: U.S. FOOD PRODUCTION

A

RECOVERY

HIGHLIGHTS ◼ Quarterly Production was 1.3% above the first quarter of 2020 ◼ Production tentatively transitioned to Phase A, Recovery ◼ While most Production components are in Phase A, U.S. Animal Slaughtering and Processing dipped below the yearago level U.S. Food Production in the first quarter was 1.3% above the first quarter of 2020.

Production declined less than 1% from December to March, posting the smallest fourth-quarter-to-first-quarter decline in the dataset’s 74-year history. Expect the Food Production 12MMA to rise in the coming quarters as the U.S. macroeconomy recovers and rises.

U.S. Food Production transitioned to Phase A, Recovery, with March data. Rise in the U.S. Food Utilization Rate 1/12 suggests that this business cycle rise is likely to persist until at least late this year. The majority of Food Production components are also in business cycle rising trends, particularly segments relating to dairy, bakeries, and fruit and vegetables. However, the largest component of Production, U.S. Animal Slaughtering and Processing (including poultry), dipped below the year-ago level with March data.

U.S. Food Production Index Data Trend Index 120

Index 120

12MMA 3MMA

115

101.4

115

110

110

105

105

100

100

95

95

90

'12

'13

'14

'15

'16

'17

'18

'19

'20

'21

90

U.S. Food Production Index Rate-of-Change 6

6

4

4

2

2

0

0

-2

-1.8

-4

-4 12/12

-6 -8

-2

'12

'13

'14

'15

'16

'17

3/12

'18

-6

'19

'20

'21

-8

Management Note: Make opportunistic capital and business acquisitions to prepare for increasing Production in the coming years.

Summer 2021 • 115

THE GAWDA INDUSTRY ANALYSIS REPORT Provided by ITR Economics™

ITR ECONOMICS – METHODOLOGY MOVING TOTAL/MOVING AVERAGE:

12MMT/A:

Moving totals/averages are used to smooth out the volatility inherent to monthly data at the product/company level.

A 12-month moving total (12MMT) or average (12MMA) is the total (or average) of the monthly data for the past 12 months.

The 12MMT(A) removes the seasonal variation in order to derive the underlying cyclical trend. It is also referred to as the annual total or average.

MONTHLY MOVING TOTAL (MMT) VS. MONTHLY MOVING AVERAGE (MMA): There are times when it is desirable to calculate a monthly moving average instead of a total. Averages are used when the data cannot be compounded, such as an index, percent, price level or interest rates. Totals are used for things where it makes sense to add the data together (for example, units sold or total dollars spent).

3MMT/A: A three-month moving total (3MMT) or average (3MMA) is the total (or average) of the monthly data for the most recent three months. Three-month moving totals (3MMT) or averages (3MMA) illustrate the seasonal changes inherent to the data series.

RATE-OF-CHANGE: A rate-of-change figure is the ratio comparing a data series during a specified time period to the same period one year ago.

Rates-of-change are expressed in terms of the annual percent change in an MMT or MMA. Rates-of-change reveal whether activity levels are getting progressively better or worse compared to last year. Consecutive rate-of-change illustrates and measures cyclical change and trends.

ITR Economics’ three commonly used rates-of-change are the 1/12, 3/12 and 12/12, which represent the year-over-year percent change of a single month, 3MMT(A) and 12MMT(A), respectively.

A rate-of-change above zero indicates a rise in the data relative to one year prior, while a rate-of-change below zero indicates decline.

BUSINESS CYCLE POSITIONS: The data trends and rates-of-change identify positions in the business cycle. Those positions are: 12/12 is rising below zero and the data trend is either heading toward a low or is in the early stages of recovery.

A

RECOVERY

This is the first positive phase of the business cycle.

B

ACCELERATING GROWTH

12/12 is rising above zero, data trend is accelerating in its ascent, and growth is occurring above year-ago levels.

This is the second positive phase of the business cycle.

C

D

SLOWER GROWTH

RECESSION

12/12 is declining but remains above zero, data trend is decelerating in its ascent or has stopped its rise, but it is still above last year.

12/12 is below zero and the data trend is at levels below the year-earlier level.

This is the first negative phase of the business cycle.

This is the final phase and second negative phase of the business cycle.

ITR Economics for GAWDA | Welding & Gases Today ITR ECONOMICS | P: 603-796-2500 | www.itreconomics.com 116 • Summer 2021

INDUSTRY NEWS David J. Nangle to Retire Effective October 1 Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. announced that David J. Nangle, Executive Vice President, President, The Harris Products Group (HPG) will retire effective October 1, 2021 and will be succeeded by Gregory Doria. As part of the transition, Doria has been proDavid J. Nangle moted to Senior Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, The Harris Products Group. He formerly served as Vice President, Marketing, Lincoln Electric.

Nangle joined Lincoln Electric in 1979 and during his distinguished 42-year career with the Company, held various sales management leadership positions Gregory Doria before being named President of the Company’s Harris Calorific subsidiary in 1999, followed by President of the Company’s retail subsidiary, WCTA LLC in 2003, and President of J.W. Harris Co. in 2005.

As Executive Vice President, President of The Harris Products Group, Nangle has achieved fifteen years of record sales and profitability growth in the segment through transformational commercial and operational initiatives. In addition, his commitment to operational excellence and sustainability has positioned HPG as an operational leader at Lincoln Electric, as reflected in the many “Chairman Environmental, Health & Safety Awards” earned under Nangle’s leadership. In addition, HPG was awarded Industry Week’s “Best Plant Winner” for their Mason, Ohio facility.

“It’s been an honor and privilege to represent Lincoln Electric for over forty years in such a great industry, and lead such an exceptional team at Harris,” said Nangle. “I am tremendously proud of what we have accomplished together and the strategic goals we are working to achieve,” Nangle commented. “While I will certainly miss my family of colleagues, customers and industry partners, I feel this is the right time for a leadership change and Greg will successfully lead the team forward and drive continued success.”

“I am confident that Greg’s global commercial and application expertise will help advance HPG’s strategic initiatives,” stated Mapes. “Greg’s track record of leading successful change management initiatives will reinforce HPG as a high-performance organization ready to capitalize on future growth opportunities.”

Doria joined Lincoln Electric in 2000 and during his twenty-year career with the Company has held several leadership positions in sales and marketing, including Director, Global Industry Segments, Director of Global Sales & Application

Engineering for Indalco, and West Regional Sales Manager (USA). Since 2019, he has served as Vice President, Marketing with oversight of Lincoln Electric’s global industry segment strategy and marketing program, as well as applications engineering. He received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Western Ontario and an MBA from the University of Phoenix. He has also completed Lincoln Electric’s Management Development and Leadership programs.

Flange Wizard Names Rob Doan as President Flange Wizard announced that Rob Doan will serve as its President and be tasked with managing the company’s dayto-day operation. Bob Doan will stay on with the company as CEO and Director of Special Accounts.

Rob Doan

Butler Gas Selected for “World’s Greatest!...”

Television Series The producers of the television show “World’s Greatest!…”, How2Media, announced that they selected Butler Gas to be a part of the popular television series.

When it comes to industrial, specialty, and medical gases and dry ice, it takes a certain level of expertise to be considered the best regional manufacturer and distributor in the business.

Butler Gas Products has been meeting and exceeding that level of expertise for three generations and they’ve never been more important than they are right now. “We think their story will be meaningful as well as educational to our viewers” said Gordon Freeman, Executive Producer of the show.

As part of the show, How2Media sent a film crew to spend time at the company’s facilities in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to find out what the story behind the story is with this great and growing company, and to show the “World’s Greatest!…” viewers why Butler Gas was selected as the best in their category, and therefore featured on the show.

IWDC Promotes Vic Wilson After Rich Mansmann’s Retirement. Hires Lance Flanagan IWDC announced the prom o t i o n o f Vi c Wilson to Director of Marketing & Gas Program. Vic will report to Frank

Rich Mansmann

Vic Wilson Summer 2021 • 117

INDUSTRY NEWS Kasnick, President & CEO, and will be responsible for overall IWDC marketing initiatives and will also lead IWDC’s gas program. Vic’s promotion comes after Rich Mansmann retired from the cooperative effective July 1. Rich will continue to support the IWDC as a partLance Flanagan time consultant.

IWDC also announced that Lance Flanagan joined IWDC as Regional Sales Manager, reporting to Keith Werkley, Director of Sales & Vendor Management. Lance will assume Vic Wilson’s prior Regional Sales Manager responsibilities. In this role, Lance will be responsible for promoting IWDC’s value proposition to the Membership as well as driving profitable growth of IWDC’s Vendor partner brands and Weldmark® brand.

Norris Cylinder Achieves “Made in the USA” Designation TriMas announced its Norris Cylinder business is now officially a “Made in the USA” designated manufacturer. Even before achieving this status, Norris was the only remaining manufacturer of forged steel high-pressure cylinders and acetylene cylinders located in the United States.

“For more than 70 years, Norris Cylinder has provided a strong commitment to providing customer solutions with demonstrated quality and exceptional service to the compressed industrial gas industry,” said Thomas Amato, TriMas President and Chief Executive Officer. “We believe this important step to recognize our Made in the USA status is a win for our customers, employees and the communities where we operate. We are pleased to continue to support our stakeholders by further investing in Norris Cylinder manufacturing operations in the United States, which continues to advance local skills and technology development.”

AWG Promotes Schadek to Vice President of Specialty Gas Sales American Welding & Gas announced that it has promoted Zach Schadek to Vice President of Specialty Gas Sales.

Schadek, who joined the industry in 2004 as a specialty gas sales engineer, had previously served as VP of Sales for AWG’s South Region. In his new position, he will focus on growing AWG’s specialty gas business throughout the U.S.

Zach Schadek

Astaras Announces Addition of Dick Wilkinson as Sales Manager Astaras announced the addition of Dick Wilkinson to their team as Sales Manager.

Dick brings more than 30 years of welding industry knowledge to this position. He will be responsible for maintaining and growing the company’s sales relationships with current and new customers in the Dick Wilkinson future. In his long tenure in the welding industry, Dick has held several different positions in purchasing, marketing and sales with the majority of his years in the wholesale industry.

BUG-O Announces Hiring of Norman Galeana Bug-O is pleased to welcome Norman Galeana to lead Bug-O’s strategic initiatives in Latin America. Prior to joining Bug-O, Galeana was employed by the Lincoln Electric Company, advancing during his seventeen years to the position of General Manager, Automation Division, Brazil.

“We are excited to have a welding Norman Galeana industry professional like Norman join our team,” Bug-O president Matt Cable said. “Norman is familiar with BUG-O products and the opportunities that exist for BUG-O in Latin America.”

SafTCart Announces New Hires Nolan Walker, a third generation of the Walker Family, has recently joined the family business. He is currently learning the production process and will eventually move into sales for the company. Nolan is excited to finish his training and begin working with our customers firsthand.

SafTCart also announced that it has hired a new mechanical engineer, Claude Clegg. Claude is a graduate from the University 118 • Summer 2021

INDUSTRY NEWS of Mississippi, and currently working in Memphis. Claude is excited to be returning to his hometown of Clarksdale, MS. He will be joining the engineering team in July and will be SafTCart’s lead engineer over robotics and mechanical engineering. He will be working with the research and development department, and be the lead engineer in design assisting with SafTCart’s sister company Carolina Piping Services.

Hobart Promotes Bob Bilokonsky to Vice President/General Manager Hobart is pleased to announce the promotion of Bob Bilokonsky to the role of vice president/general manager (VP/ GM). Bilokonsky joined Hobart in 2010 as a sourcing manager and also served in the capacity of supply chain manager for the company for two years. He has taken Bob Bilokonsky on progressively more responsibilities as a business unit manager for several filler metal segments, most recently overseeing metal-cored and aluminum products. In this new position, Bilokonsky will have overall profit and loss responsibility for the Hobart Filler Metal division. He and his team will also be concentrating on customer growth and retention, with a continued focus on innovation and operational excellence.

Having worked for several cylinder valve manufacturers, Russ has gained 25+ years of experience in cylinder valve sales.

With his experience and expertise in the industry, coupled with the quality and customer service welding distributors have come to expect from Tekno Valves North America, the company is excited to welcome him to its organization!

Norris Cylinder Company Hires Bill Kingsley Norris Cylinder Company named Bill Kingsley as Regional Sales Manager – Midwest Region. Before joining the company, Kingsley spent more than 30 years in the welding supply and industrial gas industry working Bill Kingsley with The Harris Products Group, a Lincoln Electric Co., Cyl-Tec, Inc. and ESAB/GCE Valves.

He brings a vast wealth of industry knowledge to Norris Cylinder and their customers.

Joe Francis Named 2021 St. Cloud Area Small Business Owner of the Year The St. Cloud Area Chamber of Commerce announced their 2021 Small Business Award Winners. Central McGowan President/CEO Joe Francis was named Small Business Owner of the Year. The Chamber of Commerce said: “Since becoming President/CEO of Central McGowan in 2016, Francis has led the company through a number of expansions and acquisitions. He has doubled the number of employees and diversified the business from industrial gasses to custom automation, robotics and dry ice. He is the Small Business Owner of the Year.”

Tekno Valves North America Appoints Russell Snyder

Russell Snyder

Tekno Valves North America, Inc. is pleased to announce the addition of Russell Snyder to its North American team. Russ will be a Manufacturer’s Rep for TVNA’s Specialty Gas Products throughout North America.

Summer 2021 • 119

INDUSTRY NEWS the construction supply and most recently a project manager for a leading national contracting firm.

Weldcoa Announces Extractcoa Division Butler Moore, Villarreal, Walsh Join CGA Board of Directors The Compressed Gas Association announced that Abydee Butler Moore, Butler Gas Products; Hector Villarreal, Weldcoa; and Mike Walsh, EspirGas; have joined the association’s Board of Directors.

Tim Born Named VP, Oceania and SE Asia for Nikkiso Clean Energy & Industrial Gases Group Nikkiso Cryogenic Industries’ Clean Energy & Industrial Gases Group, a subsidiary of Nikkiso Co., Ltd (Japan), Tim Born is pleased to announce that Tim Born has been appointed as the Vice President of Oceania and Southeast Asia Region.

This important addition to its management team is in line with the objectives of the Industrial Division of Nikkiso to better serve and support its customers in strategic territories.

Heather Fletcher Joins Ratermann Manufacturing As RMI continues to grow and expand, the company announced that it has added an additional Heather Fletcher Account Manager based in Atlanta, GA to better support our customers.

Heather Fletcher joins RMI with over 10 years in 120 • Summer 2021

Weldcoa announced its new Extractcoa division, created specifically to support the expanding hemp and cannabis market with CO2 supply solutions. Extractcoa will develop equipment and controls to supply Carbon Dioxide to its customers in a controlled, safe manner that delivers quick ROI results.

Noble Gas Solutions Hosts Glens Falls Grand Opening Celebration

According to an article in The Saratogian, Noble Gas Solutions hosted a ribbon cutting event for its third storefront location in South Glens Falls, New York. From the article: Noble Gas Solutions, a family-owned industrial gas and welding supply company that has been a staple in the Capital Region for more than 80 years, officially opened its newest location in South Glens Falls with a ribbon-cutting and grand opening celebration.

Located at 15 Third St., this facility is the third storefront location for the industrial gas and welding supplier. The 6,000-square-foot area includes a retail site, offices and warehouse space to store medical, specialty, industrial and consumer gases.

INDUSTRY NEWS The facility has three employees who joined Noble Gas from the former Taylor Welding Company and have more than 100 years of experience and knowledge combined. Along with one salesperson based out of the South Glens Falls location, these employees look forward to assisting clients in the North Country.

J. David Mahoney, president of Noble Gas Solutions, said that opening this location “is a transformative step forward for the future of the company as it moves its footprint to the North Country. We’re proud to be part of such a dedicated community like South Glens Falls.”

The newly expanded store and warehouse offer the same products that the existing Noble Gas locations provide and will be an extension of the company into the North Country of New York state. Opening a facility further north will help immensely by providing top-notch service in the region.

Holston Gases Opens New Branch Locations in Birmingham, AL and Muscle Shoals, AL Holston Gases announced that they opened new stores in Birmingham, Alabama, and Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Holston Gases President Robert Anders said, “We are very excited about this latest expansion. These new locations will allow us to provide products and services throughout middle and northern Alabama as well as adjacent markets in Mississippi.”

Hypertherm Awards 2021 Educational Grants to 12 North American Schools Hypertherm is excited to announce recipients of its 2021 Spark Something Great educational grant. The grant program, now in its seventh year, is designed to place the latest plasma technology into schools so the next generation of metalworkers can train on the equipment found in workplaces.

This year’s winning schools were selected from a pool of 231 applicants representing high schools, vocational schools, and colleges from throughout the United States and Canada.

Each of the 12 schools will receive a Hypertherm Powermax45 XP plasma system and in-person training from a Hypertherm industrial cutting expert. This year’s recipients are: • Bluestone High School – Skipwith, VA • Clark County Area Technology Center – Winchester, KY • Felicity-Franklin High School – Felicity, OH • George Stevens Academy - Blue Hill, ME • Iron Eagle Welding Academy – Stockton, MO • Morrilton High School – Morrilton, AR • North American Trade School – Baltimore, MD • South Carolina School of Welding, LLC - Beech Island, SC • Spotswood High School - Penn Laird, VA continued on next page

IN MEMORIAM AL STARK GAWDA extends its condolences to the friends and family of Al Stark, who passed away on May 11, 2021.

Al was born on April 5, 1950, in La Porte, Indiana. He attended Indiana University and married his high school sweetheart, Linda. Al began his career at Air Products 50 years ago, in 1971. Ten years later, Al began his cylinder career at Marison Cylinder in South Bend, Indiana, where he worked for 10 years.

Al began his long, storied career at Norris Cylinder on

April 4, 1991, as Midwest Territory Manager. He recently celebrated his 30th year with the company.

In addition to his 30+ years of dedicated service to Norris and 50 years in the industry, Al will be remembered for the many lives and decades-long friends he made along the way. He is described by those who knew him best as: passionate, brash, honest, bold, opinionated, charming, loud, funny, a gentleman, an industry icon, a mentor, a friend. He made an impression on all who knew him, and he will be greatly missed Al leaves behind his loving wife, Linda, and his devoted children, Jen and Alex, and his grandchildren.

Though he is gone, his soul lives on in the minds and hearts of many.

Summer 2021 • 121

INDUSTRY NEWS Terre Haute North Vigo High School - Terre Haute, IN • University of Tennessee at Martin – Martin, TN • Vincent Massey Secondary – Windsor, ON In addition to its annual grant program, Hypertherm provides educational discounts to schools and students, and offers educators its “Plasma Cutting Technology: Theory and Practice” curriculum as a free download. To date, thousands of teachers have acquired the lesson plans helping standardize the teaching of plasma cutting to students in North America and beyond. Hypertherm also offers ProNest® for Education, a free program that places ProNest CAD/CAM nesting software in schools using CNC applications.

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Dale Oxygen Announces the Opening of its Somerset, PA Branch According to an article from the Daily American, Dale Oxygen has opened its new location near Somerset, PA. From the article: President Evan Bennear said this will be the fourth location for the family-owned business. The others are in Johnstown, Indiana and Altoona.

“We stock and supply industrial gases, welding supplies, industrial tools and safety equipment,” Bennear said. “Dale Oxygen is a distributor for recognized welding and cutting equipment brands such as Lincoln Electric, Hypertherm and Miller Electric, to name a few.”

According to Bennear, the location will have three or four employees. They’re to sell cylinder gases, welding equipment and other supplies. They’ll also offer to refill propane containers and deliver to commercial customers throughout the Somerset area.

“Dale Oxygen is very excited to add Somerset community to our network of locations to better serve our existing customers and new customers in the future. …

The entire team at Dale Oxygen has worked very hard to grow our company over the years, and this expansion is a testament to their dedication and commitment to our goals as an organization.”

Eleet Cryogenics Breaks Ground on New Texas Facility Eleet Cryogenics, Inc. has broken ground on a new strategically located facility in Texas, expanding its capabilities for customers in the Southern United States.

The facility will serve as an ideal location for cryogenic bulk tank rehabilitation and microbulk refurbishment as well as a distribution point for new Taylor-Wharton Bulk and Microbulk tanks, a full range of vaporizers, provide rental trailers as well as purchase of the Scorpion portable units, 122 • Summer 2021

and provide Eleet-built manifolds and assemblies. The facility includes ample storage both indoor and out for customer assets, large office space with training facilities, and a state-of-the-art blast and paint booth.

The President of Eleet Cryogenics, Garry Sears, had this to say, “The new facility enables us to provide identical services to our Ohio location on a broader size of products. No longer will infrastructure be a limitation to what we can do.”

This facility is a logical growth step following the purchase of West Cryogenics in 2019. The production area totals 48,000 square feet, all with 70+ ft high bays to store and service even the largest vertical tanks. Eleet is actively looking to hire additional personnel to add to our growing team of highly skilled cryogenic professionals.

The new location will be ready to receive customer equipment in the 4th Quarter 2021 and fully operational soon after.

CryoWorks, Inc. Announces Timothy Mast, Jr. as New President/CEO CryoWorks, Inc. announced that the company’s Board of Directors has named Timothy Mast, Jr. as Chief Executive Officer and President, effective immediately. Mr. Mast, Jr. has worked at CryoWorks since 2011 and has served as Vice President of Operations of CryoWorks since February 2019. He succeeds Timothy Mast Sr. and Donna Mast, who are transitioning into Board Timothy Mast, Jr. of Director roles.

In their newly established Board of Director positions, Timothy Sr. and Donna Mast have been elected Chairman and Director. Mr. Mast Sr. and Mrs. Mast founded CryoWorks in 2009, pursuing their entrepreneurial dreams with their desire to take control of product quality and company culture. They will continue their presence at CryoWorks, as they mentor, set goals, guide, oversee management decisions, and remain part of CryoWorks’ ongoing operations.

Anthony Welded Products Appoints Nick Salvucci as VP of Operations Anthony Welded Products appointed Nick Salvucci as the company’s VP of Operations.

In this role, Nick will be responsible for overseeing the company’s California and Texas manufacturing plants. He will also be assisting Anthony’s sales team in introducing new products to the market.

Nick Salvucci

INDUSTRY NEWS Nick brings seven years of industry experience to the role, having entered the industry directly after graduating Cal Poly in 2014. He began in the industry as a parts runner in Anthony’s Houston manufacturing plant and has grown quickly in the company, holding various roles including: sales associate, purchasing agent, and, most recently, plant manager. With this experience, Nick plans to continue the Anthony legacy as the head of operations for the company.

“In the next 12 months, we plan to streamline all manufacturing procedures through updated technology, continued efficiency, and by keeping the product quality to the Anthony standard,” Nick says.

Cable/Delta and Stanley Black & Decker/DeWalt as both an Industrial Sales Representative and Regional Account Manager and owned an Independent Manufacturer’s Sales Agency, representing large brands across the woodworking and industrial markets.

FEIN Power Tools Announces Leadership Promotions

GAWDA Media Visits Dynabrade’s Clarence Facility

FEIN Power Tools, Inc., a manufacturer of high-quality power tools and accessories for the metal and interior industries, is pleased to announce the promotion of two individuals to newly created positions: Joel West to Commercial Sales Manager and Doug Hohenstein to Senior Business Development Manager.

“The promotions of Joel and Doug reflect the professional dedication and valuable contributions they have made to FEIN during their time here,” said Ray Bellavance, President.

“These newly created positions represent FEIN’s commitment to strategic growth and development of our team, and we look forward to what Joel and Doug will accomplish in these roles.”

Promoted to Commercial Sales Manager, Joel West is responsible for mentoring, training, and managing FEIN’s field sales team and the FEIN sales process. Joel has been with FEIN for nearly three years in the role of Eastern Regional Manager and has extensive experience in strategic selling and leading sales teams to success. Prior to FEIN, he worked at ITW Paslode as Eastern Regional Manager and Senior Sales Representative.

Promoted to Senior Business Development Manager, Doug Hohenstein is responsible for driving FEIN’s strategic revenue growth by managing and executing FEIN’s opportunity funnels. In support of business development, Doug will also serve as a critical contributor to FEIN’s overall corporate strategic planning. Doug has been with FEIN for 13 years as a Senior Sales Representative and Western Regional Sales Manager. Prior to FEIN, he worked at Porter

On Tuesday, June 8, Dynabrade hosted representatives from GAWDA Media at their Clarence, NY facility. GAWDA Media was given a tour of the company’s offices, manufacturing plant and warehouse facilities by Vice President of Operations Colin Brogan and Welding Supply Channel Specialist Lexi McDermott. They were then treated to a hands-on display and training in the company’s Walter Welsch Training Center by Corporate Trainer Vince DeLorenzo.

The GAWDA Media staff was very impressed by how clean and organized the plant was. Dynabrade prides itself on producing American-Made tools in house in the Clarence headquarters and the pride and high-quality of craftsmanship were on full display.

After the tour, GAWDA Media was given a hands-on training by Dynabrade’s Corporate Trainer Vince DeLorenzo. Dynabrade has a state-of-the-art training center on site and also offers virtual training, allowing for interactive, virtual demonstrations.

Cavagna Group Appoints Denis Guardini Line of Business Manager for Compressed Gas Equipment Cavagna Group appointed Denis Guardini in the role of Line of Business Manager for Compressed Gas Equipment.

He will be responsible for driving the Compressed Gas division of the company forward and following the digital transition in line with the Cavagna Group’s goals.

Denis Guardini Summer 2021 • 123

INDUSTRY NEWS

MA SCORECARD

Lincoln Electric Acquires Zeman Bauelemente Produktionsgesellschaft m.b.H. Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc. announced that it has acquired Zeman Bauelemente Produktionsgesellschaft m.b.H., a division of the Zeman Group.

Headquartered in Vienna, Austria with facilities in Scheifling, Austria, Zeman Bauelemente is a leading designer and manufacturer of robotic assembly and arc welding systems that automate the tacking and welding of steel beams. The company’s systems are primarily sold under the Steel Beam Assembler (SBA) name and serve customers in the structural steel and infrastructure sectors globally. The addition of Zeman Bauelemente, increases Lincoln Electric’s annual automation sales by approximately 10% and expands its international automation capabilities as part of its Higher Standard 2025 Strategy.

“We are excited to welcome the Zeman Bauelemente team to Lincoln Electric and integrate their unique offering into our industry-leading automation portfolio,” said Christopher L. Mapes, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer.

“The combination of the SBA and our PythonX® solutions offers structural steel fabricators the advantage of greater productivity and capacity to meet the growing demand from structural steel and infrastructure projects.”

Metal Impact Announces Acquisition of Luxfer Aluminum Gas Cylinders Division Metal Impact East LLC, a subsidiary of Thunderbird Manufacturing LLC, announced the addition of the Luxfer 124 • Summer 2021

Holdings PLC aluminum gas cylinders division. With the acquisition, Metal Impact acquires the manufacturing operations of Luxfer in Graham, North Carolina, as well as its catalog of products and services.

The acquisition will more than double the cylinder capacity and manufacturing footprint of Metal Impact, supporting a more expansive line of cylinders for a broad range of markets, including industrial, food and beverage, fire extinguishing, performance racing, SCUB, and life support.

“As a Thunderbird company, Metal Impact is dedicated to growth - organically and through acquisitions,” said Phil Kretekos, President of Thunderbird, parent company of Metal Impact. “This addition to our aluminum gas cylinders operations will assure the industries that rely on us that we have the best talent and resources to support the growing demand for our products and services. It also positions us to address individual needs and foster relationships in a timely manner like never before.”

Wise Telemetry Acquired by Otodata Inc. Otodata Technologies USA (“Otodata”) is pleased to announce that it has acquired Wise Telemetry, a leading provider of remote monitoring devices and services for the industrial gas industry.

Founded in 2008, Otodata designs, develops, and manufactures market leading remote level monitoring products and technologies for a variety of industries. Otodata’s unique monitoring software that accompanies the hardware, allows

INDUSTRY NEWS users to monitor their tanks remotely, providing insightful, real-time data to drive asset and labor productivity in their business.

“We are so pleased to be working with the Wise Telemetry team. This acquisition will accelerate our diversification into the industrial gas market, allowing us to leverage our innovative solutions for remote tank monitoring and serve this growing segment. This represents an important step in our strategy to address the growing demand for reliable, affordable and automated tank monitoring solutions across a variety of industries and geographic markets,” said Andre Boulay, President and Chief Executive Officer of Otodata.

“The Wise team is thrilled to be part of Otodata. Joining forces allows us to provide our customers with additional products, services and innovative pricing structures, enabling them to monitor every asset and receive an instant return on their investment, both locally and abroad.” said Eric Wise, Founder and CEO of Wise Telemetry.

Catalina Composites Division Acquired by Uttam Composites LLC According to a letter from Catalina Cylinders, The Catalina Composites Division of Catalina Cylinders has been spun-out into a standalone entity called Catalina Composites, Inc. On April 8, 2021 the shares and ownership of Catalina Composites, Inc. were acquired by Uttam Composites, LLC. The decision to sell the Composites Division to Uttam Composites was made in the best interest of the employees, customers, and stakeholders of both Catalina Cylinders and Catalina Composites. The long-term prospects of the Composites business under the ownership of Uttam Composites are significantly more favorable than other available alternatives.

Let’s get

Holston Gases Acquires AG Propane, Inc. Holston Gases completed the acquisition of AG Propane, Inc. with operations headquartered in Franklin, GA. Holston Gases will maintain the current location at 329 Pierce St., Franklin, GA. Holston Gases President Robert Anders said, “We are very pleased to add the propane customers of AG Propane, Inc. to those of Holston Gases. AG Propane, Inc. has a great reputation and loyal customers that we are excited to bring into the Holston Family.”

The owners of AG Propane, Inc. agreed that the consolidation of the two companies’ resources in Northwest Georgia and Eastern Alabama bring added value to the current AG Propane customers.

American Welding & Gas, Inc. Acquires A+ Distributing American Welding & Gas, Inc. (“AWG”) is pleased to announce that A+ Distributing Inc., headquartered in Strawberry Point, IA, has joined forces with AWG effective immediately.

Locally owned and operated by Robert (Bob) and Diane Maker, A+ Distributing Inc. has built a strong reputation for prompt, professional service for its CO2 customers.

“After 20 years in the CO2 business, we are pleased to be joining the team of American Welding & Gas, Inc. Together with AWG and our valued customers, this acquisition will broaden the business platform to continue to deliver high-quality product and service to our customers. We are excited about the new adventure with AWG and our continued loyal customers,” said Bob Maker, President A+ Distributing, Inc. “We are pleased to welcome Bob and Diane Maker to the AWG team. And we welcome their wonderful customers throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa. Our combined team and resources represent an extensive CO2 network that facilitates our CO2 growth plans,” adds Jason Krieger, President & CEO AWG.

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Summer 2021 • 125

NEW OFFERINGS

PRODUCTS | SERVICES | TECHNOLOGIES 1 2

1. Tweco Launches Pullmaster2 Push-

Pull MIG Gun as Part of Total Solutions for Aluminum Applications To improve performance and productivity in MIG and pulsed MIG aluminum welding applications, or when feeding wire long distances and around obstacles, Tweco®, ESAB brand, has launched the PullMaster2 push-pull MIG gun. The updated version of this pistol-grip style gun improves ergonomic through an angled cable-to-gun connection combined with a ball-and-socket strain relief than enhances balance and reduces perceived cable weight. The easy-to-grip handle features a short-stroke trigger for easier activation, while an aluminum unibody reduces parts for greater reliability, easier repair and weight reduction.

Because improper drive roll tension deforms soft aluminum wires and leads to feeding problems, the PullMaster2 now features an internal pre-set drive roll tension mechanism that reduces the risk of deforming the wire while ensuring positive feeding performance. The drive rolls are also electrically insulated to prevent microarcing, a common source of performance issues.

Available as an air-cooled model (with water-cooled models coming later in 2021), the PullMaster2 feeds wire diameters from 0.030 to 0.052 in. (0.8 to 1.3 mm), has a rated duty cycle of 60 percent using mixed gas, is available with 20-ft. or 33-ft. cable length and uses standard Tweco 16APS standard contact tips. The PullMaster2 is available standard and “smart” models.

The PullMaster2 smart gun enables operators to select and switch between up to 10 synergic programs; a synergic program contains pre-programmed welding parameters that have been optimized for a particular wire, application or welding position. Using simple buttons and a digital display on the 126 • Summer 2021

gun, operators can fine tune arc performance by increasing or decreasing voltage and wire feed speed, as well as select between 2T (standard) and 4T (latching) trigger mode to reduce hand fatigue on long welds.

The PullMaster2 smart model offers plug-and-play simplicity by automatically recognizing when it is connected to ESAB’s new Robust Feed Pulse wire feeder paired with the new Aristo 500ix pulsing power source. The gun also works with the Aristo® Feed 3004 feeder and Aristo 4004i power source.

2. Anova Transcend™ IoT Platform Advances Industrial Gases Supply Chain Monitoring

Anova announced the release of Anova Transcend IoT Platform™, a revolutionary new Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) platform for industrial gases producers and distributors.

Building on over 30 years of Anova experience and industry expertise, Anova Transcend reveals broad insights into the industrial gases supply chain by integrating data from multiple monitored tanks and advanced systems into one platform.

Users gain deep, instant insight from beautifully visualized data and customizable dashboards displaying information collected from multiple tanks, vaporizers, pipelines, PLCs, and other advanced systems. Built upon the foundation of the most widely used remote telemetry IIoT platform in the industry, and customizable for in-house or end-customer branded users, Anova Transcend already monitors over 70,000 cryogenic tanks and 8,000 advanced systems assets globally, delivering near real-time processing speeds with an intuitive and familiar user experience. Digitizing the industrial gases supply chain at any scale, and with data from any source, has never been easier.

NEW OFFERINGS

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3. Harris Model 351 Regulator Improves Weld When Using Shielding Gas

The Harris Products Group “zero” compensated flowmeter regulator for use with shielding gas protects the weld puddle against contamination from atmospheric air and other elements that can cause weld defects.

The Harris model 351 “zero” compensated flow control device utilizes a ball float and a variable area flowmeter to yield precise control of the welding gas. The control valve is strategically placed on the upstream side of the flowmeter, which means that it can operate accurately at virtually any inlet pressure, unlike traditional pressure compensated models, which require operation only at the calibrated pressure. This design also significantly reduces the surge associated with pressure compensated flowmeters allowing it to also function as a gas saving device.

Harris produces two versions of the Model 351 regulator, one for pipeline applications up to 200 psi inlet pressure and one for cylinder applications up to 3000 psi inlet pressure.

The regulators feature a one-piece encapsulated seat design with an internal filter and a PTFE Teflon® seat. They are equipped with a forged brass body and conform to CGA E-4 standard for gas pressure regulators. All Model 351 regulators are manufactured and tested at Harris’ Gainesville, Georgia facility, and have a seven-year warranty.

Harris offers the Model 351 as a standalone product or with an inert gas hose.

4. Why Dynabrade Offers FREE Virtual and In-Person Training

Dynabrade’s founder, Walter Welsch, believed in the power of demonstration. He knew that our tools would sell themselves

4

once they are in someone’s hands, and he wanted to provide our distributor partners with the knowledge needed to support that. Thanks to Walter, training is one of Dynabrade’s core beliefs, and it remains a very important part of how Dynabrade markets our products today.

In-Person Training • Dynabrade has over 40 direct sales representatives across North America, and each rep has over 150 tools on-hand for live demos and end user testing. Additionally, your local Dynabrade rep is equipped with a “Performance Assurance Case”, which allows us to assess your end-user’s current work-station environment and make significant, demonstrable cost savings recommendations.

Dynabrade’s “Cost Savings Program” is another service we offer FREE of charge!

• Dynabrade has 3 fully loaded customized “DynaVan” sprinter vans that travel around the country for tool clinics, distributor events and end-user trainings. You can contact your local Dynabrade rep to learn when the DynaVan will be in your area!

• Dynabrade offers comprehensive training right in our Clarence, NY headquarters. Distributor partners are encouraged to visit Dynabrade for a tour of the factory, receive training in the Walter Welsch Training Center, and even use our meeting rooms for your own company meeting. Yes, in addition to receiving product and application training specific to your company’s needs, we extend the offer to have you use our facility for your meeting needs, all FREE of charge!

Virtual Training The Walter Welsch Training Center is not only set up for hands-on training, but it is also equipped for interactive, Summer 2021 • 127

NEW OFFERINGS

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virtual demonstrations. Our corporate trainer will host your team virtually, providing trainings not only on products and applications, but also on tool repair and best practices for safety. Whatever your needs are, we will tailor our virtual trainings to satisfy them and help make YOUR team a more valued asset to your end-users.

5.

ESAB Rogue ES 130i Pro Compact Stick/ Lift Tig Inverter

ESAB Welding & Cutting Products has introduced the Rogue ES 130i PRO, a new portable and affordable Stick/Live TIG inverter with professional arc performance and controls such as adjustable hot start, adjustable arc force and power factor correction. The Rogue ES 130i PRO joins the Rogue ES 180i PRO, introduced last year, as the latest addition to the Rogue ES family of compact Stick/TIG inverters.

The new Rogue 130i PRO weighs just 18.2 lbs., measures 13.5 x 6 x 10.4 in. and uses 120 – 230V ± 15% 50/60 Hz primary power. On 230V input it delivers a maximum output of 130 amps at 25 percent duty cycle for welding with electrodes up to 1/8-in.; on 120V input it offers a maximum output of 90 Amps at 25 percent duty cycle for welding with 1/16- and 3/32-in. electrodes.

Rogue’s next-level control technology produces a smooth welding arc with all types of Stick electrodes, including E70818, and it has a special mode for E6010. The Live TIG (DC TIG) function provides positive arc starts without the use of high frequency. It delivers a stable TIG arc down to 10 amps, giving welders the control they need to work on thin metal or delicate components. Users include mechanical contractors and those in general fabrication, maintenance 128 • Summer 2021

and repair, rental, process pipe, food/beverage, farming and home workshops.

6. 1132 Series Valves from Sherwood Valve The Superior1132 Series is designed for use in liquefied gas applications, including refrigerants and flammables, and is especially suitable for propane, butane, fuel-gas applications and sterilant gas applications. The key features and benefits of the 1132 series include: • Two-piece stem reduces wear and increases valve life • Optional Integrated Valve Charging Port with ¼ inch SAE flare connection • Replaceable 435 or 375 STD CG-7 Safety • Liquid and vapor withdrawal versions available • 50 mm handwheel designed for ease of operation and to reduce the risk of valve damage from over torquing

7. Alumifurb Is Cost-Effective Alternative to Buying New Cylinders

With compressed gas cylinders in high demand and increasing prices, choosing to have a well-used fleet of cylinders refurbished and requalified is the right choice for many businesses. All Safe Global’s proprietary Alumifurb process makes it possible for companies to retain their own aluminum cylinders without having to invest in a new fleet.

Short for “aluminum refurbishment,” Alumifurb is an ASG exclusive testing and refurbishing process which transforms used aluminum cylinders to look and perform like new. The process is often used for portable medical oxygen cylinders.

Alumifurb is an extremely cost-effective approach compared to buying new cylinders. During the process we

NEW OFFERINGS remove any labels from the cylinder, buff it free of the old clear coat, perform an Ultrasonic Examination (UE) on each cylinder, repaint shoulders as needed, and finish with a fresh, durable temperature-sensitive clear coat. Your old cylinders are renewed to like-new condition for a fraction of the price of new.

There are many aspects that should be considered when selecting the right compressed gas cylinder for a given application. Because safety is critical, proper specifications are a necessity, and cost is always a factor. ASG takes pride in guiding customers through an array of options when it comes to building a fleet of cylinders right for their needs. ASG ensures that its services and products meet or exceed strict industry specifications.

8. Dynabrade Nitro Series Electric Dynisher The Dynabrade Nitro Series Electric Dynisher will give the user the professional results they desire. This powerful tool is excellent for in-line graining, blending and polishing applications. The Dynisher is perfect for use on other metals,

as well as plastics, composites and more.

Features and Benefits include: • Powerful 1000-watt (1.3 hp) power output insures enough power and torque on any surface.

• With a lower center-of-gravity, this tool is easier to control to keep the graining pattern straight.

• The compact, right angle tool configuration with spindle lock allows for quick wheel changes.

• The multipurpose arbor accepts Dynacushion Pneumatic Wheel and Non-Woven Nylon Wheels.

• The 3/4” Arbor can also be removed to allow threaded adaptors for mounting different threaded wheels.

• Variable Speed Dial allows operator to control speed from 1 to 6 (800 - 3000 RPM).

• The locking trigger for extended use helps relieve hand fatigue and the comfortable ergonomic design delivers smooth, repeatable results.

Tech Tip: Slow speed Dynishers typically produce deep, long scratches, while higher speed models create shallow, short scratches.

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ADVERTISERS INDEX Acme Cryogenics............................................ 49

Lincoln Electric................................................. 7

All Safe Global................................................ 59

McDantim....................................................... 91

AmWINS Program Underwriters..................... 92

Meritus...................................................... 24, 25

ANOVA............................................................ 13

NorLab Calibration Gases............................... 53

Arcos Industries............................................ IBC

Norton Abrasives............................................ 17

ASM/American Standard Manufacturing................................................. 21

REGO-O........................................................ 129

Black Stallion/Revco Industries...................... 85 Bug-O Systems International.......................... 95 California Cylinder Corp.................................. 92 Chart................................................................. 5 Computers Unlimited...................................... 16 Controlled Efficiencies.................................... 81 Cryogenic Industrial Solutions........................ 58

Rotarex........................................................... 18 SafTCart........................................................... 9 Select-Arc...................................................... BC Sherwood Valve.............................................. 23 Thermco Instrument Corporation...................... 8 TOMCO2 Systems Company............................ 3 Veite Cryogenic Equipment & Service Corp...... 1

Cryoworks...................................................... 73

Voestalpine Bohler.......................................... 57

Cyl-Tec............................................................ 45

Watson Coatings............................................ 67

Equigas........................................................... 37

Weldsale......................................................... 51

Eleet Cryogenics............................................. 19

Weldcoa.......................................................... 11

Flexovit USA................................................... 55

Weldship Corporation..................................... 87

Generant Company....................................... 119

Winton Products............................................. 91

H & H Sales Company.................................... 78

Wire Wizard..................................................... 82

Harris Products Group...................................IFC

Witt Gas Controls........................................... 83

Kaplan Industries............................................ 15

130 • Summer 2021

The following businesses recently joined the Gases and Welding Distributors Association. For more information about the benefits and services available to members, please contact GAWDA at 844-251-3219 or visit www.gawda.org.

DISTRIBUTOR MEMBERS AIRCHEM INDUSTRIAL GASES 777 S. Flagler Drive, Phillips Point, West Tower, Suite 800 Palm Beach, FL 33401 http://airchem.com Michael T. Kennedy, Chairman, CEO michael.kennedy@airchem.com

LEONARD’S SYRUPS

RAS ENTERPRISES LLC

4601 Nancy St Detroit, MI 48212 http://leonardssyrups.com Sherri Iskra, Vice President sherrii@lsyrups.com

2512 25th Ave. Ste. 3 Gulfport, MS 39501 Randall A. Soboul, LTC USA (ret.), President randy@rasenterprises.biz

MERITUS GAS PARTNERS LP

TEX-AIR GAS CO., INC.

666 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10103 http://MeritusGas.com Robert F. D’Alessandro, Vice Chairman RobDAlessandro@MeritusGas.com

2305 Julian Blvd Amarillo, TX 79102 http://www.texaircorp.com/ Joe Prowell, President joe.prowell@texaircorp.com

SUPPLIER MEMBERS ALLIANCE DISTRIBUTION PARTNERS

GLOBAL CYLINDER MAINTENANCE TESTING

131 Saundersville Rd, Ste 310 Hendersonville, TN 37075 AllianceMRO.com Roger Woodward, President roger.woodward@alliancemro.com

107A Flex Ave. Portland, TN 37148 615-906-8458 Justin Tucker, President jtucker.jtt@gmail.com

BAHCO

IC BIOMEDICAL

6978 Canosa Place Ranch Cucamonga, CA 91701 Charles Yates, Account Executive charles.yates@snapon.com

1301 Cass White Road, NW Cartersville, GA 30121 https://icbiomedical.com/ Ian Pope, Chief Commercial Officer ipope@icbiomedical.com

NOVA GAS TECHNOLOGIES 2781 Three Lakes Road North Charleston, SC 29405 http://www.lasergas.com James Lyons, General Manager jalyon@lasergas.com

REPOWR 508 Hambaugh Avenue Birmingham, AL 35209 https://repowrgas.com Patrick Visintainer, Co-Founder / CEO patrick@repowrtransport.com

Summer 2021 • 131

@redballoxygen We had a great time meeting face-to-face again at @gawdaorg Spring Management Conference a few weeks ago. It was so nice to finally see new and old friends in person!

G

AWDA members shared the below posts and pictures using Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. We encourage GAWDA members to keep the conversation going all year long by using #GAWDA next time you post.

@allgasweldingsupplyny Near completion of our new flagship welding supply store & cylinder plant. Reinvesting to better service our customers!

@cyltec_inc Hanging out with our awesome sales guys – Kirill and Jim – at GAWDA SMC in Nashville (Yeah, John and Chris are there, too.) Be Sure to stop by and say hi!

@black.stallion.bsx Meet Louisiana combo rig welder, Josh @localarclegends – Josh started welding 9 years ago when his first daughter was born. He wanted a secure profession that would allow him to provide for his wife and kids. Josh says it’s amazing how far he’s come with it and he still learns something new every day.

132 • Summer 2021

@awg_gases AWG supplying a new customer with Bulk CO2 in Houston. AWG Houston team training on use of new CO2 bobtail.

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