Two students from the Parkside Collegiate welding program showcasing the CWB WeldSAFE PPE Kits who are moving on to pursue welding at Fanshawe College in the fall. PHOTO courtesy CWB Welding Foundation.
CWB Welding Foundation along with partners 3M Canada, Lincoln Electric and Weldready recently celebrated the first year of the CWB WeldSAFE program, supporting over 7,000 students across 63 Canadian secondary schools.
A special event was held at Parkside Collegiate Institute, a CWB WeldSAFE recipient, in St. Thomas, Ontario where Brent Charlton, US & Canada Portfolio Manager for Welding at 3M Canada’s Personal Safety Division, Tony Rosato, District Manager of Southwestern (Ontario) at Lincoln Electric and Kevin Seymour, President of Weldready, got to see the CWB WeldSAFE program in action. There was a tour of the weld shop at the school and they got to interact with students who benefit from the PPE kits firsthand. They were joined by Mark Fisher, Director of Education, Thames Valley District School Board, as they spoke with students and educators about how the CWB WeldSAFE kits and resources have impacted their learning and teaching.
“We recognize that learning cannot happen without the assistance of the resources required such as appropriate personal protective equipment – or PPE – to make sure that when we run programs like [the welding program at Parkside Collegiate], which are essential to learning and essential to future employment, we can do that in a way that is safe,” said Fisher.
The CWB WeldSAFE program addresses the increased need for upgraded personal protection equipment (PPE) in classrooms due to higher enrollments. Advances in the quality of PPE have been significant in the past ten years, as has knowledge in safety and injury prevention across all trades, including welding.
“The CWB WeldSAFE program addresses this by supplying individual PPE kits and materials to maintain and improve safety standards in high school welding shops and provide resources that instill a culture of safety that students will take into the workplace. I want to thank our industry partners 3M Canada, Lincoln Electric and Weldready for making this possible,” said Susan Crowley, Executive Director of the CWB Welding Foundation.
The student kits, available to eligible Canadian secondary schools, include 3M welding helmets, N95 welding particulate respirators, eye/ear protection and more. 3M Canada also provides learning resources that improve classroom safety by educating students on the proper use and fitting of PPE. To complete the kits, Lincoln Electric and Weldready subsidize the CWB WeldSAFE program with welding jackets, gloves, and foot protection.
From Left to Right: Heather Jakobi (TVDSB), Mary Fuke (CWB Welding Foundation), Brooke Sveinbjornson (3M Canada), Mark Fisher (TVDSB), Kevin Seymore (Weldready), Brent Charlton (3M Canada), Tony Rosato (Lincoln Electric), Martin Naylor (TVDSB). PHOTO courtesy CWB Welding Foundation.
When remarking 3M Canada’s commitment to the program, Charlton said, “3M is on a mission to invest in organizations and initiatives that have three things. Number one: Inspire interest in STEM and skilled trades. Secondly, it’s to improve academic outcomes in these areas. That is what the CWB Welding Foundation is driving with the WeldSAFE program. Third is to provide transformational opportunities to individuals who choose this career path.”
Together with its partners, the CWB Foundation aims to elevate educational success at all levels, advance workforce development, foster excellence and champion public safety by delivering world-class materials joining and allied technology awareness and education programs. With safety at the forefront and growing enrollment in secondary welding and technology programs, the CWB Foundation and its partners continue to complement CWB Education’s high school curriculum and their existing programs for secondary schools and educators with the CWB WeldSAFE program.
Learn more about the CWB WeldSAFE program and the CWB Welding Foundation at www.cwbweldingfoundation.org
