FABTECH meet and greet will feature “Metal Shop Masters” judges, contestants

The premiere of the Netflix competition series “Metal Shop Masters” on Sept. 10 will bring welding and cutting to the front of mainstream entertainment programming. The show’s judges—metal artist, pipe welder, and instructor Stephanie Hoffman (program manager of workforce development at AWS) and metal sculpting artist David Madero—will greet fans at the AWS Careers in Welding Mobile Exhibit at FABTECH 2021, held in Chicago's McCormick Place, on Sept. 15 at 11 a.m. On Sept. 14 at 2:30 p.m., show contestants will be at the Careers in Welding Trailer Booth for an informal meet and greet as well.

“While welding has been an ancillary part of other reality shows, ‘Metal Shop Masters’ puts our skilled trade and craftspeople into the limelight like never before,” said Gary Konarska, executive director/CEO, American Welding Society. “’Metal Shop Masters’ will connect with millions of viewers, exposing them to all the cool things you can do with metal as a career, hobby, passion, and creative outlet.”

“Most of the competitors weren’t professionally trained welders,” said Hoffman. “You’ll see self-trained welders, some with CNC backgrounds and others who weld for cathartic reasons.

“One aspect that appealed to me is that the show allows fans to see all the contestants’ very real struggles from start to finish. Real life isn’t like Instagram, and every episode of ‘Metal Shop Masters’ showcases some epic welding triumphs, ,and battles of seven very talented artists,” she said.