Remembering Frank Armao and his Aluminum Workshop

Frank Armao passed away on May 21, 2020.

For the first time in 18 years, Aluminum Workshop is absent from the pages of this magazine. On Thursday, May 21, 2020, author Frank Armao passed away at the age of 71. With his passing the welding world lost an advocate and an unparalleled expert. But more importantly, we lost a teacher and a friend.

I started working with Frank in early 2007 when I took over as editor of this magazine, back when it was Practical Welding Today. I was completely overwhelmed and had never run my own publication before. Frank, on the other hand, had been writing the column for almost five years and had the routine down pat. Instead of me guiding him through the nuances of publishing, he was the one who helped me.

Frank was a member of the AWS D1 Committee, chairman of the AWS D1 Aluminum Subcommittee, and member of the Aluminum Association Committee on Welding and Joining. He was a longtime employee at Lincoln Electric before retiring a few years ago to open his own consulting firm.

Most of my interactions with Frank over the last 13 years were through email, but every now and again we’d talk over the phone. We had a pleasant banter that typically centered around the always unpredictable Midwestern weather. He would comment on how difficult it was to choose a topic, but that “something popped in my head at the last minute,” and it was always excellent.

Frank had a special ability to take a complex topic, narrow it down, and write in a way that was easy to understand, relatable, captivating. Believe me, it was all him. No magic editing required. I had the opportunity to speak with him at length in 2016 for an article I wrote about him for our 20th anniversary. This description of him stands out to me even now, and it’s how I’ll always remember him. Here’s a portion of what I wrote:

He’s had to juggle his writing responsibilities with those of his regular job and his hectic travel schedule, sometimes hitting send on his latest column from various hotel business offices, on location in exotic cities like Shanghai, or, occasionally, poolside with a tropical drink nearby (I don’t know this for sure about the drink, but it’s always the way I imagined it). Armao’s extensive aluminum knowledge paired with his loyal readership have made his name almost synonymous with the material he knows just about as well as the back of his hand.

I know that Frank appreciated everyone who emailed questions, comments, or praise over the last 18 years. He truly enjoyed sharing his knowledge with you in an effort to make aluminum welding a little less daunting. You are a part of his legacy, and together we are all better for reading his column and gaining an insight into the vast knowledge he possessed.