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Prep welders step up in NIC competition

by Megan Snodgrass/North Idaho College
| February 23, 2022 1:00 AM

High school welders competed on Feb. 11 to see who would go on to enter the statewide competition.

More than 60 students from Kootenai Technical Education Campus, Lakeland High School and Sandpoint High School competed in North Idaho College’s annual welding competition Feb. 11 at NIC Parker Technical Education Center in Rathdrum.

NIC Welding professor Tim Straw, who organized the event, said the competition acts as an unofficial regional qualifier for North Idaho high schools to determine which students will compete at the statewide Skills USA competition.

“We have industry folks judging so it’s fair,” Straw said. “It helps the high school teachers out just because they can say, ‘You won the NIC competition, so you get to go to state.’”

This year’s competition was judged by Jeremy Brondt with Grey Beard Steele in Post Falls and Ryan Brown with Wagstaff Applied Technologies in Spokane Valley, as well as current NIC welding students Cody Veitenheimer and Chandler Kees.

The event was sponsored by local and regional companies, including Pacific Steel, which donated metal, and prize sponsors Coeur d’Alene Metals, Miller Electric Manufacturing and Lincoln Electric.

Brondt and Brown have judged this competition regularly since they were NIC welding students themselves in 2014. They each said this year’s competitors produced some of the best work they’ve seen in the competition’s history.

“It was really hard to judge this year,” Brondt said. “I’m the quality control inspector at my job, and I’d let most of these welds go in my shop, so we had to nitpick, and I had to throw out some that were nice welds, but some win and some don’t.”

Part of the competition is challenging students to perform under pressure, similar to what they might experience doing a welding test for a job interview, said Corey Pettit, who is the industrial mechanic instructor at KTEC and Lakeland High School.

“The more they have to deal with that kind of pressure, the more comfortable they get and the better they can manage stress and time,” Pettit said. “I can’t replicate that in our shop because they know the machines and they know the shop, so this is huge for them to learn what it’s really like.”

KTEC junior Abby Stevens said she found her first welding competition nerve-wracking but exciting.

“NIC’s shop is a lot different than ours so that’s a little scary, but working under pressure is part of the job,” Stevens said. “You’ve got to learn how to do it, and this is the work and practice I need to get better, so I’m excited about this competition.”

Lakeland High School senior Clay Lawrie, who took first place overall in the competition, said he was offered a welding job after his boss approached Pettit about skilled welders in the Lakeland welding program.

“I would have never been able to get that job without this competition,” Lawrie said. “It’s crazy how much this competition relates to the industry. It’s the same thing; it’s just a different environment.”

The competition also serves as one of the NIC welding program’s best recruitment tools, Straw said.

“We have dozens of high school welding students in here that get to come see what NIC has to offer, see the program, see the facilities, see what they might be doing if they come here,” Straw said. “It just shows them opportunities. I don’t care if a student comes here and decides that they want to do the diesel tech program at Parker. I’m OK with that, as long as they know what NIC can offer them.”

The students competed in three categories: cutting, shielded metal arc welding and flux cored arc welding.

KTEC’s Jackson Lucas took first place in cutting, with Lakeland’s Clay Lawrie and KTEC’s Nick Turbes taking second and third, respectively.

In shielded metal arc welding, Lawrie took first place, with Lakeland’s Kevin Dunn and KTEC’s Andrew Stockham in second and third, respectively.

In flux cored arc welding, Lakeland’s Trey South took first place, with Lawrie in second and Sandpoint’s Tiffany Brown in third place.

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NIC Welding Professor Tim Straw, left, evaluates welds with judges Ryan Brown, center, and Jeremy Brondt during NIC’s annual high school welding competition Feb. 11 at Parker Technical Education Center. Photo courtesy of Elli Oba/North Idaho College

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Lakeland High School senior Clay Lawrie won first place overall at NIC’s annual high school welding competition Feb. 11 at Parker Technical Education Center. Photo courtesy of Elli Oba/North Idaho College

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KTEC junior Abby Stevens prepares a piece of metal before the cutting challenge during NIC’s annual high school welding competition Feb. 11 at Parker Technical Education Center. Photo courtesy of Elli Oba/North Idaho College