Have You Checked Out NOMMA's NEW Online Career Center?
The National Ornamental & Miscellaneous Metals Association (NOMMA) announced the launch of the NOMMA Career Center, a new career center that connects metalworking professionals across all disciplines and career stages with employers offering career opportunities.
In addition to serving as a robust source of up to thousands of job opportunities, the NOMMA Career Center will be set apart by a number of benefits it offers to industry professionals and employers, including:
- The ability for craftspersons to post anonymous resumes, allowing them to be recruited while remaining in complete control over which employers view their complete information.
- A variety of options for employers to expose jobs to passive job-seeking industry professionals who do not visit job boards, including Job Flash emails to NOMMA’s registered job-seekers.
- Integration of job content into social media channels to engage industry professionals and provide valuable job exposure to NOMMA’s audiences and relevant users of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and other social channels.
- Extensive employment brand advertising opportunities for employers.
- A mobile-responsive environment to ensure job-seekers have an optimal experience, regardless of the device being used.
- The ability for industry professionals to be alerted every time a new job becomes available that matches their personal goals and interests.
- Integration of career resources, training and other benefits offered by NOMMA to members.
- The ability for job-seekers and employers to gain exposure throughout YourMembership’s network of nearly 2,500 niche Career Centers.
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NOMMA Wants YOU to Help Recruit NOMMA Members and Relay the Value of Membership!
NOMMA’s 2016-17 membership drive is underway! Noted business author and speaker Ed Rigsbee will kick off the membership campaign by hosting a webinar on membership recruitment on Wednesday, April 27 at 4 p.m. (EDT).
In his presentation, Rigsbee will discuss membership evangelism, member recruitment models, ROI, and how to educate the industry on membership value. Rigsbee is author of the popular book, "The ROI of Membership," which NOMMA is using as a guidebook.
Over the next 12 months, all NOMMA members are encouraged to sponsor a member. To sponsor a member, simply ask him or her to put your name on the "Sponsored By" line of the membership application. Those who sponsor a member are recognized regularly in the "Iron Club" section of the magazine and in our weekly email blasts. You may also help by submitting a lead to the NOMMA office, which makes you an automatic member of the "Rust-Free Club."
The NOMMA Membership Development Team is currently looking for volunteers to help with the campaign. If you want to help with this effort, contact Todd Daniel at the NOMMA office (888-516-8585, ext. 102; todd@nomma.org).
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The Heirloom Companies is actually three companies in one, focusing on custom-made staircases, lighting, furniture design and metal works. Ben’s father Allyn Moseley founded the company in 1994, and since then, he’s brought all three of his sons into the business.
The company’s work can be seen in the gracefully curved staircase that greets visitors in the new St. Anthony of Padua Catholic School and on the bronze gates that anchor the two ends of Brown Street in downtown Greenville; both projects won national awards.
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Maynard Studios Inc. was nominated and selected as one of the 2016 Kentucky Business Pacesetters. Their business joins an elite group of Kentucky businesses that will be recognized for changing the economic landscape of Kentucky by introducing innovative products, increasing sales and/or production, boosting employment, and serving the communities of the commonwealth.
Matthew and Karine Maynard are designers, blacksmiths, and artists who use metal and architectural space as their media. As a husband and wife team, they specialize in hand-forged custom stair rails, furniture and applied design. Their work has been featured in international books and periodicals as one of the leading architectural artist blacksmiths teams in the world today. Their designs have been given prominence and awards by both NOMMA and the Artist Blacksmiths Association of North America (ABANA).
The award ceremony will be held at the Capitol Rotunda in Frankfort on Tuesday, May 3 at 10:00 a.m. The Kentucky Business Pacesetter Award is an annual award given by the Kentucky Small Business Development Center.
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Feeney, Inc., a leading manufacturer of high quality stainless steel and aluminum railing systems, has won "Best of Design" on Houzz®, the leading platform for home remodeling and design. The "Best of Houzz" is awarded annually in three categories: Design, Customer Service and Photography. Design award winners’ work was recognized as "most popular" among more than 35 million monthly users on Houzz.
"Being able to visualize outdoor spaces by way of 'Ideabooks' and 'Projects' provides Houzz users with the tools they need to make informed decisions when it comes to the actual design process," said Andy Penny, vice president of sales and marketing for Feeney. "We are honored to have been selected for this prestigious award and look forward to continuing our commitment to the Houzz community."
A "Best of Houzz 2016" badge has been uploaded to Feeney’s profile, as a sign of the company’s commitment to excellence. The symbol is designed to help homeowners identify popular and top-rated home professionals in every metro area on Houzz.
"Anyone building, remodeling or decorating looks to Houzz for the most talented and service-oriented professionals" said Liza Hausman, vice president of Industry Marketing for Houzz. "We’re so pleased to recognize Feeney, voted one of our ‘Best of Houzz’ professionals by our enormous community of homeowners and design enthusiasts actively remodeling and decorating their homes."
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2016 Ernest Wiemann Top Job Competition Winners
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Mitch Heitler Award for Excellence
Compass Ironworks
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A. Gates, Driveway – Nonforged
Gold
Angelo & Son Iron Works
Silver
Berryhill Ornamental Iron LLC
Bronze
Art's Work Unlimited |
B. Gates, Driveway - Forged
Gold
Maynard Studios Inc.
Silver
Emerald Ironworks Inc.
Bronze
Disenos Ornamental Iron |
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C. Interior Railings - Ferrous, Nonforged
Gold
Hess Ornamental Iron LLC
Silver
Metal Head Inc.
Bronze
Eagle Machine & Welding Inc. |
D. Interior Railings - Nonferrous, Nonforged
Gold
Klahm & Sons Inc.
Silver
Art's Work Unlimited
Bronze
Upright Iron Works Inc. |
E. Interior Railings - Ferrous, Forged
Gold
Living Design Studios
Silver
Vasquez Custom Metals Inc.
Bronze
Maynard Studios Inc. |
F. Exterior Railings & Fences - Nonforged
Gold
Finelli Architectural Iron & Stairs
Silver
A2 Fabrication Inc.
Bronze
Chapala Iron & Mfg. Co. |
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G. Exterior Railings & Fences - Forged
Gold
The Heirloom Companies
Silver
Berryhill Ornamental Iron LLC
Bronze
Lynda Metcalfe Designs |
H. Furniture & Accessory Fabrication - Nonforged
Gold
Finelli Architectural Iron & Stairs
Silver
MDO Welding & Fab.
Bronze
The Heirloom Companies |
I. Furniture & Accessory Fabrication - Forged
Gold
The Heirloom Companies
Silver
David Perkins Designs
Bronze
Red Pepper Forge |
J. Gates/Doors - Nonforged
Gold
La Forge De Style LLC
Silver
Custom Metals Inc.
Bronze
The Heirloom Companies |
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K. Gates/Doors - Forged
Gold
Compass Ironworks
Silver
Robert Thomas Iron Design
Bronze
Ephraim Forge Inc. |
L. Stairs Complete - Commercial
Gold
Ebinger Iron Works Inc.
Silver
Big D Metalworks
Bronze
Anvil Craft Corp. |
M. Stairs Complete - Residential
Gold
M. Cohen & Sons Inc.
Silver
Grainger Metal Works
Bronze
Iron Decor |
N. Structures
Gold
M. Cohen & Sons Inc.
Silver
C.T. and S. Metalworks
Bronze
Living Design Studios |
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O. Unusual Ornamental Fabrication
Gold
M. Cohen & Sons Inc.
Silver
Custom Metals Inc.
Bronze
Klahm & Sons Inc. |
P. Restoration
Gold
Allen Architectural Metals Inc.
Silver
Metal Head Inc.
Bronze
Compass Ironworks |
Q. Art/Sculpture
Gold
Medwedeff Forge & Design
Silver
Compass Ironworks
Bronze
Custom Metals Inc. |
Julius Blum Award for outstanding contributions the industry
Jack Klahm, Klahm & Sons Inc.
Frank A. Kozik Award for outstanding volunteerism
Mark O’Malley, O’Malley Welding & Fabricating Inc.
Clifford H. Brown Award for outstanding contributions to education
Big D Metalworks
President’s Silver Star Award for outstanding contributions to membership development
Carl Grainger, Grainger Metal Works |
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In a basement studio off an interstate in Nashville, Ben Caldwell sits behind an oak stump and works. The metalsmith places a U-shaped piece of flat copper on an indentation carved into the stump’s surface, raises a hammer in his left hand, and strikes. Each blow molds the metal, bringing it closer to its destiny as a serving spoon, and simultaneously hardens the copper, which becomes more durable but also less eager to flow into the graceful shapes Caldwell envisions. It’s a craft that demands both brute strength and a fluid touch. "It’s an intuitive thing," Caldwell says. "There’s kind of an ideal form that I’m looking for."
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Blacksmithing isn’t just a man’s world, as Charlotte Pearson finds out. The fourth generation family business T Miles and Son, based in Henfield, was set up by Jo’s great grandfather, and has seen both her grandad and dad join the business over the years.
"It was something that during my teens and 20s I never even considered as an option," admits Jo. "I did odd jobs painting gates and railings when I was a teenager, basically so that I could get some money.
"I never thought in a million years I would end of working with him.
"When I first mentioned it to my dad I think he was surprised and never expected me to stick it out. I think he is really proud now, but it is a hard and very physical job."
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Keep these tips in mind for GTAW applications to help you save time and money in rework and to help ensure a quality finished weld. Taking some extra steps in preparation and setup can help you complete the job on schedule and avoid the cost and hassle of troubleshooting or rework later in the welding process.
Choosing the right equipment and consumables, and following some key best practices in setup and weld preparation, can help get the job done properly and avoid common problems in GTAW.
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Why is the primer coming off after I peel the finish coat back?
Fellow NOMMA Members came to the rescue (by way of using NOMMA's ListServ) and offered the following suggestions:
Although I am not an expert on the matter, the rule of thumb in metal coating is that you can use water-based top coat over an oil-based primer, but not the other way around. This is not true however for wood and some porous materials, but there we have specifics about the times in between applications (each product has its own set of rules). There are very good water base primers and top coats for metal today, and the technology keeps improving day after day. I personally use a Tnemec product. The water-based paints have the great advantage of offering the VOC compliance required by most states, are definitely more environment friendly, with a very low toxicity for the user.
- Philippe Fiers, Armadillo Metalworks, Inc.
The fact that the lack of adhesion occurred at a joint in the tube, does that not at least leave open the possibility of a pin hole leak? It does not take much of a pin hole at all for moisture to find a way. Once the moisture has broken the bond between the primer and metal, it's a matter of time before it creeps along and breaks that bond a little at a time. Which would explain why it took 2 years to notice it. The moisture can come from condensation inside the tube. I've seen that effect in TS pickets before.
- Tom Duello, Hemi Systems
We used to wipe down with lacquer thinner and occasionally had issues with the primer not wanting to adhere. Our paint supplier suggested that we change to wax and grease remover, which is very common in the automotive paint industry. So now we wipe with wax and grease remover after fabrication and then abrasive blast, followed by epoxy primer and two coats of acrylic urethane enamel. Everything seems to stick pretty good now.
- Dan Donovan, Allform Welding Inc.
We had problems with any petroleum based thinners used to clean before paint.They all leave a residue. So we went with just soap and water. It’s actually a cleaner/degreaser for cleaning commercial kitchens. Works very well...is a lot cheaper than thinner...$25.00 for a 5 gal. bucket and rinses off clean. In the summer out here it dries in 10 minutes for paint. In the cooler weather we go over the pieces with a weed burner torch to dry them off and warm them up.
- John McLellan, McLellan Blacksmithing
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