Merrill Institute Manager Receives Welding Award

Jason North, the manager of operations and industrial training at the Merrill Institute (Alma, MI), received the 2015 Excellence in Welding Award for his dedication to promoting the image of welding in his community. The award is issued by the American Welding Society (AWS; Miami, FL) and the Welding Equipment Manufacturers Committee (WEMCO; Doral, FL), an association of welding manufacturers.

Annually, individuals from the welding industry nominate their peers for the Excellence in Welding Award, which is distributed in nine categories: Individual, Educator, Educational Facility, Small Business, Large Business, Distributor, AWS Section, Media and Veterans. The nominations are submitted to the Excellence in Welding Committee, vigilantly reviewed and winners are selected. Winners of this prestigious award were invited to the recent AWS Excellence in Welding Awards ceremony held at the FABTECH 2015 show in Chicago on Wednesday, November 11.

North is an AWS-Certified Welding Inspector (CWI) and Certified Welding Educator (CWE) who is experienced in all phases of welding processes including GMAW, GTAW, SMAW, FCAW and SAW. He has over 23 years of experience in the welding and manufacturing field, and has developed numerous weld procedure specifications under various codes and standards within the industry. “When I first joined the Merrill Technologies Group family I was taken under the wing of a welder with over 30 years of experience in the industry. The Merrill Institute is a program that now helps me share that knowledge with others. It is an honor to be recognized for such a prestigious award for doing what I love on a daily basis.”

Since the Merrill Institute opened its doors in 2011 to help bridge the skilled trades gap, North has helped over 200 students graduate from the welding program, and helped the organization reach an employment placement rate of 89 percent.

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