Welding Program Back on Track

For Release - August 24, 2009

The University of New Mexico-Gallup’s welding program, on hiatus for the last year, is getting back on track with a new instructor and plans for a more rigorous course of study.

Joe Sanchez, a Gallup native with 35 years of experience in welding, has been hired as visiting lecturer for the coming year and is looking forward to beefing up the program, with a focus on certification.

“I want to turn out certified welders,” Sanchez said. “If you’re going to school to be a lawyer or a doctor, you should be able to perform when you complete your coursework. It’s the same for welding. You should be ready to get any job when you get your certificate.”

The curriculum and certification will be according to the standards of the American Welding Society. Students will learn all the basic functions such as setting up a machine, layout and fabrication and reading blueprints. They will also study metallurgy, and learn four types of welding: oxyacetylene, M.I.G., T.I.G. and stick welding. At the end of the one-year course of instruction, students will be tested by the American Welding Society. The college currently has an agreement with Clovis Community College whereby they will proctor UNMG’s certification test, and UNMG will reciprocate.

Rick Krouth, chair of the Applied Technology Department and Sanchez’s supervisor, emphasized that a syllabus outlining the course of study will be followed.

“There are liability issues,” he said. “We need to be sure that whoever graduates from our program is knowledgeable and capable of being certified.”

Sanchez says his goal is to have the best welding program in the Four Corners Region, and the premier program in the state. His intention is that students obtaining their certificates from UNMG will be qualified for many of the well-paid jobs in welding.

“Welding used to be looked at as a dirty job, but today, things are changing,” he said. “There are opportunities in the green industry, including wind generators, with an emphasis on using, lighter stronger metals.”

Other opportunities for employment exist in aerospace, nuclear power plants, submarines, food processing plants, shipyards, the oil industry and aviation.

Salaries for starting welders, depending on the type of industry, can run from $40k to as high as mid $50k.

UNMG’s welding shop is well equipped with some state-of-the-art machines. Many of the welders are digitized and multi-task machines. There is also a brake machine, a notcher, and portable welders.

The program will accommodate about 20 students. Sanchez invites students of any age, male or female, to apply. Students must be able to see well or else must wear glasses to correct poor vision. Contact wearers are advised to wear glasses, as contacts may become fused to the eye through one of the heating processes involved in welding.

“We’re looking for students who are enthusiastic about learning the trade, whether it’s to build a career or to do their own projects, such as art work,” Sanchez said.

For more questions about the UNM-Gallup welding certificate program, contact Joe Sanchez at 505.863.7510.