Latest News

Posted By DAVID MARQUARD
October 29, 2020 Category: Social Media, Internet Safety

By Dave Marquard, WEMCO Tech Chair     What you see here What you say here What you hear here When you leave here Let it stay here                      Many of us who grew up working summer jobs in defense or other types of factories may remember seeing signs that had dire warnings to keep what we saw confidential. One of my favorite books about WW2 summed up the danger succinctly by showing a poster that was ubiquitous throughout the war years. It contained just four words: “Loose Lips Sink Ships.”   Flash forward to today. Pre-COVID, I enjoyed taking plant tours whenever I could. But I noticed that, especially when it was a tour of a pharmaceutical or other medical equipment manufacturer, I was asked to leave my cell phone with a guard. This is because what I was seeing on those plant tours was valuable information that needed to be protected.   Today’s version of loose lips is often transmitted unwittingly through social media. There are lots of very good reasons to use social media, including promoting products, services or causes you are fond of. However, social media also comes with lots of red blinking lights. You should know where to look for them. This article focuses on when, what, and why you and your family shouldn’t use social media.   First, you must accept that if you or someone you know has something of v

Posted By Brittany Fichter
August 04, 2020 Category: General

Many cleaners contain chemicals that are hazardous to cylinders and medical devices. They may also require additional steps to ensure proper and safe disinfection. Use SuperFlash’s Bioesque to help disinfect cylinders and equipment.   Kills Coronavirus in just 1 minute! Ready-to-use formula with no rinsing required Does not require the use of PPE Non-abrasive and non-corrosive Heavy duty, EPA registered, broad-spectrum cleaner and disinfectant Kills 99.9% of bacteria, viruses*, fungi & molds Safe for everyday use *Virucidal according to the ASTM Standard Test Method for Efficacy of Virucidal Agents   Have questions? Call us at 888-327-7306 or email

Posted By Dave Marquard, MBA, OPM (HBS)
July 28, 2020 Category: General, COVID 19, COVID, IT, Informational Technology, Pandemic, Coronavirus

By Dave Marquard, WEMCO Tech Chair        “If I had an hour to solve a problem and my life depended on the solution, I would spend the first 55 minutes determining the proper question to ask for once I know the proper question, I could solve the problem in less than five minutes.”                        ----- ALBERT EINSTEIN, DECEMBER 19,1917     Much has changed over the past century since Einstein made this observation. But one fact has not changed: how well you define a problem determines how well you solve it.   I have had the distinct honor and privilege of writing this column for several years now and none of them have been more important to me than this one. This is because none of us have ever faced a personal and business crisis in our lifetimes like COVID-19. I was a cop in Ohio before I started my businesses and I thought I had seen everything too horrible to mention. But this disease is different.  It has touched the lives and businesses of everyone on this planet in a way that challenges and frightens on a scale I never imagined possible.    So how do we best manage our welding businesses in the COVID-19 era? It’s tricky because the virus is new and we have to make decisions in such a potentially lethal environment. Using today’s Information

Posted By Laura Frederick
May 21, 2020 Category: Flashback Arrestors, Safety, OxyFuel, Gas Safety, Welding, FBA, Industrial, Pipeline

SuperFlash flashback arrestors are UL and BAM approved, 100% tested for reverse flow, leak  integrity and flashback protection with actual flashbacks, and contain a built-in 100 micron inlet  filter, reverse flow check valve, 3-5 micron flame barrier, and a thermal shutoff valve in our point of supply models. So you can be sure that not only are you getting enough gas flow, you are  getting the highest quality safety device available. SuperFlash flashback arrestors are the worldwide leader in quality and functionality. DO ALL FLAME BARRIERS PROVIDE THE SAME LEVEL OF PROTECTION? No, all flame barriers are not created equal. Flame barriers can be made of different materials and have different micron openings. The flame barrier needs to be made a material that will extinguish fires and have the right size openings to allow gas through—but not a flashback. If the micron openings are too large or the material is not correct—the flame barrier will not stop a flashback. SuperFlash flashback arrestors are made of high quality 3-5 micron stainless steel, and are 100% tested so they stop flashbacks every time. 100% Flashback Testing ensures our products work in real world situations. 3-5 micron stainless steel flame barriers stop flashbacks. Other brands have larger microns and less effective materials, that might not stop flashbacks every time. 100 micron inlet filter keeps contaminants out and increases service life by as much as

Posted By Laura Frederick
March 20, 2020 Category: General

By Dave Marquard March 20, 2020 “We can't all be heroes, because somebody has to sit on the curb and applaud when they go by.”--- Mark Twain Some things don’t change.  Mark Twain’s sense of humor causes laughter today just as it did 140 years ago. Even today he is often lauded as the greatest humorist in American history.  I am sure he would have had a funny take on our modern welding technology if he were alive today. Reputations have a way of sticking through the ages.  I can imagine the type of humor Twain might have written had he known about robotic welding or additive manufacturing, for example. The jolt of cataclysmic historical events always passes and we move on from them. But we remember a lot about them. All WEMCO members remember 9/11 and where they were and how they heard about it.  All WEMCO members remember Columbine. The events passed and we recovered but the impact and change they caused altered our way of life in a permanent way. When was the last time any of us did not have to go through security at an airport? When was the last time we felt schools were completely safe for our children?  The events passed.  The impact and fallout from them lingers and stays with us. Now we are faced with another cataclysmic event that is changing our lives: the arrival of the Coronavirus.  This too won’t pass because it has changed us as much as 9/11 did.  Social distancing, hand sanitation, look

Posted By Brittany Fichter
November 22, 2019 Category: FABTECH, Super Shield, Show, Chicago, Welding

JOIN US AT FABTECH! FABTECH is where the metal forming, fabricating, welding and finishing community comes together to see what's new and what's next. It's where connections are made and where deals get done. Where you can experience interactive exhibits, learn from expert-led education and network with peers. The complimentary expo pass in the link below gives you access to 1,700+ exhibits, hands-on product demonstrations, keynotes, special events, and more. Make plans today to attend and be part of the Industrial Evolution taking place. Experience the future of metal fabricating and more - only at FABTECH 2019. STOP BY B33077! Please join us at the 2019 FABTECH Welding Show in Chicago, IL November 11-14, 2019 Booth #B33077   Download your free pass here!     SEE WHAT'S NEW! SuperFlash’s Super Shield Gas Mixer is a 2-gas adjustable gas mixer that allows users to mix their own gases at almost any ratio needed to fit their process

Posted By Laura Frederick
November 22, 2019 Category: Technology, Business, WEMCO, FABTECH, Marketing

By Dave Marquard November, 2019 I had attended forty consecutive AWS Welding/Fabtech Shows until the streak was snapped a few weeks ago because of an important meeting elsewhere I had to attend.  No one can physically be in two places at the same time, although today’s technology allows us to “beam up” our presence from afar via electronic robot cameras.  It’s a technology my companies are investing heavily in because of the immense potential it has for allowing us to dramatically cut travel and expense costs. In my absence from physically being at Fabtech I thought a lot about what I missed most about it.  I missed walking  the aisles, meeting people  and seeing the latest welding technologies a lot—but oddly enough I also missed the entertaining shows I often  found while walking those aisles—especially the magicians hired by companies to attract people to their booths. Many magic tricks are based on illusions. The magician makes you think you saw something that didn’t happen. The hand is quicker than the eye, and artful magicians use distraction to their advantage in creating illusions that befuddle even the most observant individuals. My background and training as a cop probably makes me more observant than most.  Even today, decades since I left policework, I still notice open doors, broken windows, people in industrial uniforms, anything that might seem out of place as I drive through neigh

Posted By Laura Frederick
July 15, 2019 Category: Safety, Welding, Industrial, Training, Auditing

All the common welding and industrial gases found in the work place are hazardous when safety procedures and equipment are not used or ignored. Welding and industrial gas safety requires training and equipment which is readily available from gas and welding equipment

Posted By Laura Frederick
June 13, 2019 Category: Technology, Business, WEMCO, Software

By Dave Marquard, WEMCO Tech Chair June 8, 2019 –  Curiosity has often driven me to action.  In 1982 I purchased one of the world’s first portable computers, the Osborne 1.  It weighed almost 25 pounds and didn’t have an on-board battery. It had to be plugged into a wall outlet to power up and use.  However, it was still classified as a portable computer because it could be hand-carried.  The Osborne 1 shipped with a large bundle of software worth almost as much as the computer.  That software included some of the most powerful and pioneering programs of the day such as D-Base2 for data sorting; SuperCal, an early spreadsheet, and WordStar, a leading word processor application that had a dominant market share that lasted until the mid-1980s.   I was a young VP at a small welding equipment manufacturing company, which while a market leader in its small niche, could never seem to break out of a slow growth cycle.  My new “computer aided” ability to process large amounts of data, prepare “what if” scenarios, and then sum it all up quickly in a word-processed proposal, was enormously helpful.  It enabled me to make a positive contribution to the company that impressed my superiors, peers, and subordinates.  The Osborne 1 enabled us to form teams that used its data enhancing speed benefits to efficiently develop new products.   By the end of

Posted By Laura Frederick
May 03, 2019 Category: Superflash, Oxygo, Smart50, Innovation

Victoria Marquard-Schultz/OxyGo Announced as a winner in 2019 Smart 50 Awards