The purpose of this session is to develop and publish a roadmap document that provides a coordinated, consensus-approved plan for the collaborative development of advanced welding technology that is applicable to multiple business sectors.

Who Should Attend:

Technical, financial, and management personnel willing and capable of defining or supporting an agenda for the development of welding technology.

Session Agenda:

9:00 am – 9:15 am
Introduction
Jack McCabe, Program Manager, NCMS

11:45 am – 12:00 pm
Summary
Dr. Dawn White, Staff Technical Specialist, Ford Motor Company

Objectives:

1. Review welding industry needs as perceived by sector representatives from industry, government, academia, industrial societies, and R&D organizations—near-term, mid-term, and long-term—all materials, all processes,
2. Identify cost drivers, technology barriers, business needs and research needs,
3. Develop a schedule of collaborative R&D projects that address priority needs.

Background:

Welding is a joining process often used in a variety of economically important business sectors—automotive, aerospace, medical, … Whether manual, semi-automatic or fully automatic, welding tends to be labor intensive, requiring various skill types and levels. Materials to be joined are increasingly more complex, both in material makeup and geometry. As a consequence, welding is frequently a manufacturing cost driver that calls for a continual infusion of technology to ensure quality and control costs. This session develops a plan of action to address these issues.

Technique:

The needs for advanced welding technology will be presented by representatives from six groups: the U.S. automotive Big 3, the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Department of Energy Office of Industrial Technology, the American Welding Society, the Colorado School of Mines, and the Edison Welding Institute. NCMS will invite experts in welding technology from various industries throughout North America. The presentations and discussions will lead to a consensus on the prioritized content of the roadmap document. NCMS will publish the document and, through the NCMS Fall Workshop and other means, seek to initiate collaborative projects to enact the roadmap.

Session Contact: Jack McCabe - 734-995-4919, jack.mccabe@ncms.org