Fairfield High School receives ventilation machines for welding program

FAIRFIELD — Fairfield High School welding students will have better working conditions in their shop this fall thanks to a grant that purchased portable fume extractors.

The grant to purchase the machines came from Airgas, which has a Fairfield branch. The company selected Fairfield High School to receive welding education program support as part of the Airgas High School Welding Education Initiative wherein Airgas provides recurring material donations and educational support to schools with underserved welding programs.

Fairfield industrial technology instructor Shawn Peck said he routinely does business with Airgas both personally and through the school, and in November he learned from Airgas account manager Jared Flynn that the company offers a grant for schools. Flynn asked Peck what equipment Fairfield needed. Peck said he gave it some thought and decided that the shop where the welding students work could use better ventilation.

“We’ve got wall-mounted fans that pull air through the shop, and they do OK sometimes,” Peck said. “I told Jared it would be great to do something about fume extraction, and he put together the grant.”

Fairfield High School was one of 23 high schools to receive a grant. It received five portable fume extraction machines.

Peck said welding rods release fumes in a process where a coating is applied to a weld to keep oxygen from it while it is cooling. Though this is an important process in welding, the fumes from it can be dangerous.

“To be able to prevent people from breathing that as much as possible is a good thing,” Peck said. “I think these new machines will go a long way in controlling the fumes and gases that are created in the process of welding.”

Peck said each machine costs about $2,100, and the school is anticipating receiving a sixth one later.

In a typical school year, Peck has three to four classes of welding students with 10 kids per class. This year, he’s scheduled for six classes of 10 kids each.

“Welding is taking off as an occupation, and there’s an interest in it from the students,” Peck said. “It’s been growing the last four or five years. The job market is good for people with welding skills.”

Airgas stated in a news release that while the welding industry is facing a shortage of skilled labor and STEM graduates, the field of welding is undergoing a rapid transformation and evolution in manufacturing technologies.

“The U.S. will need over 375,000 welding professionals by 2023 to fill job openings, according to recent projections accounting for economic growth, a retiring workforce, career advancement of the workforce and technological advancements,” the company said.