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4 ways welding distributors can help weld shops

Take full advantage of the resources they offer

Welding distributors can do more for you than just sell you equipment and consumables. Many offer programs that help your shop optimize performance, increase efficiency, and better compete in your market. (Photo courtesy of Airgas, Radnor, Pa.)

A local welding supply distributor is more than just a place to buy gas bottles, welding power sources, and consumables. From process analyses and safety audits to hands-on training and equipment demonstrations, many distributors can offer expertise and a foundation to grow your welding operation.

Spending some time in the shop or getting to know your rep better could greatly benefit your operations. Being upfront about your issues or desire for process improvements can go a long way as distributors have a lot of expertise and ways to help you do your job more efficiently.

NO.1 They Provide Advice, Analysis for Efficient Operation

Like most consumers, welding equipment buyers often look to the web for the latest deals and to stay up-to-date on trends and new technologies. While electrodes and gas tungsten arc welding rods can be bought online with next-day shipment and are the same no matter where they’re purchased, Rob Tessier, national director of advanced fabrication at

Airgas, said a local distributor can be more than just a source of supplies.

“Realistically, you can buy consumables anywhere. But our goal is not just to sell something; it’s to make sure that whatever you have, you can maximize the efficiencies of your equipment,” Tessier said.

In addition to selling supplies and equipment, Airgas offers programs that help your shop optimize performance, increase efficiency, and better compete in your market, he added. Airgas has conducted more than 200 surveys and can help your company understand its place in the local market and what your purchasing trends may indicate about your operations.

The gas supplier offers a welding efficiency analysis that can help you learn more best practices and see how your usage of consumables compares to peer benchmarks. Viewing metrics like actual time spent welding and gas and gas metal arc welding consumables usage can help your shop identify opportunities for improvement.

Airgas has a team of more than 80 engineers who analyze such data. For example, an analysis may uncover that your welding operation is using more contact tips than it should for a company its size in the market. This could be an indication of electrical discontinuity within the welding system that causes the voltage and amperages at the contact tip to vary.

These efficiency analyses, performed for free, could help you reduce gas and consumables usage, increasing output by more than 20 percent with no capital investment.

“When we start looking at specific ratios that tie to welding, it can help us help our customer look at the root cause of these issues and how they can improve their performance,” Tessier said.

Distributors are an excellent resource for you to learn more about new technologies and try products and equipment before buying. (Photo courtesy of Mississippi Welders Supply Co. Inc., Winona, Minn.)

In an increasingly competitive environment, many distributors are seeking ways to actively engage their customers beyond the point of sale. Chuck Dean, sales manager at Atlas Welding Supply in Tuscaloosa, Ala., said Atlas has positioned itself not just as a distributor and seller of products but as a trusted source for expertise and advice.

“As times have changed, and with the advent of the internet, it has become more important for us to become more than just a supplier of X widget or Y gas. We’ve got to focus on the experience, and we can help them save money,” Dean said.

NO. 2 You Get Expertise, Support Beyond the Equipment Purchase

It can help to let your distributor know problems you’re facing. In one example, Atlas learned a customer was seeking ways to save money on abrasives. A rep helped the customer reduce their use of abrasives by moving from a short-arc with a 75 argon/25 CO2 to a spray application with a different gas mixture. It eventually greatly reduced their cleanup time and their spatter and abrasive use.

“We had proven documentation that we were saving this per feet of weld, and they were using a quarter of abrasives they were a month ago. These are the kinds of things a [supplier] can help with,” Dean added.

Red Ball Oxygen serves a four-state area in the South with nearly 20 locations. While the company sells everything from gases and cylinders to power sources and hand tools, Joel Armstrong, sales and welding engineer, said the distributor also helps its customers with things like process improvements and safety audits.

“We offer a lot of different things. We don’t just ship a piece of equipment and say ‘here you go.’ We can do the install and train your workers on it. We like to go the extra mile and focus on customer service,” Armstrong said.

Although many welding supply houses offer the expertise and services, buyers don’t always take full advantage of the opportunities. Red Ball recently started proactively engaging its key account customers with value-added reviews that analyze purchases, operations, and ways to improve efficiency.

Distributors also can provide niche knowledge or advice to small welding operations that might lack expertise in some areas. Mississippi Welders Supply Co. Inc. in Winona, Minn., can assist with automation and fire protection and training, said Bruce Nuttall, sales manager.

“We even have a cryogenics engineer that can come in and advise a customer on the best way to do whatever process they need to,” Nuttall said.

NO. 3 You Can Test Before You Invest

Distributors are an excellent resource for you to learn more about new technologies and try products and equipment before buying. And this often extends beyond simply glancing at equipment in the showroom. Dean said Atlas requires its sales reps to conduct a certain number of demonstrations every week. Demos can be for new power sources or magnetic drills and grinders, with an introduction and demonstration by the rep followed by the opportunity for hands-on use.

Many distributors can help customers with things like process improvements and safety audits. (Photo courtesy of Mississippi Welders Supply Co. Inc., Winona, Minn.)

“If the customer is qualified, we’ll even let them try it out for a day or two,” Dean added.

Airgas not only informs and educates customers on new technologies, it also encourages test-piloting equipment before buying. Through Airgas subsidiary Red-D-Arc Welderentals, you can test-drive machinery for a few months to see how it aligns with your operations. As more welding shops look to automation, they can now try things like positioners, oscillating pipe welders, and custom turnkey packages to see how they might work in their operations.

“Quite frankly, rather than buying something that might cost $150,000, we recommend you rent it for a short period of time. Make sure that that equipment will do what you expect,” Tessier said

“Capital investments are scary. The easiest way to help people avoid that fear is to allow them to test-drive equipment,” he said.

NO. 4 They support the Next Generation

Finally, many distributors play a strong role in educating and cultivating talent within their markets. The American Welding Society recently estimated there will be a shortage of nearly 400,000 welders by 2024. Atlas has a strong relationship with trade schools in Tuscaloosa, Ala., that includes material donations, discounts, and events.

At the beginning of each school year, students get discounted prices on tools and basic welding equipment. The company also hosts events at local union shops for students and instructors with hands-on demonstrations and seminars.

“We’re very involved with vocational training here, and Tuscaloosa has a great program that starts as early as middle school,” said Dean.

Tessier said Airgas offers free online training related to products, processes, and safety procedures and can help consult on recruitment and retention strategies. One trend in advanced fabrication has been a stronger focus on moving welding students and current welders into specialties.

Craig Guillot, a freelance writer, can be reached at craig@craigguillot@gmail.com.

Airgas, 866-935-3370, www.airgas.com

Atlas Welding Supply, 205-345-6903,

www.atlaswsco.com

Mississippi Welders Supply Co. Inc., 507-454-5231, www.mwsco.com

Red Ball Oxygen, 800-551-8150, wwwredballoxygen.com