Confronting Her Fears Leads to Giving Back

“Even the smallest gesture can make a huge impact on someone’s life,” says Lori Kuiper, Director of Specialty Products, Red-D-Arc . Kuiper’s welding career is a series of crossroads, with each decision representing an important trajectory in her life. Kuiper will provide inspiring words about her path to a successful welding career at the AWS Welding Summit in Houston, where she’ll present as the closing keynote speaker on how she makes an impact in the welding industry and what she’s doing to give back.??

In her young twenties, Kuiper arrived at her first career crossroads, making the decision to apply for a welding apprenticeship program at General Motors. After struggling with ADHD in high school, learning a trade seemed like a worthy effort, and it was good money.?

?“I was one of the first three women in the millwright/welding trade at General Motors in that foundry,” says Kuiper.??

?With encouragement, Kuiper moved on to get her welding engineering degree – another crossroads. She entered the welding engineering track at Delta College and finished her last two years at Ferris State. This was an even bigger decision, as her foundry co-workers thought she was crazy to give up such a good job. Many didn’t know what welding engineering was and couldn’t see the potential.?

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“I’m really glad I did it, because after going to college, they closed that plant down,” says Kuiper. “I don’t want to miss an opportunity due to fear, so I make myself do it.”??

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While at Ferris State, she landed an internship with Miller Electric Manufacturing Co. and then secured a job as welding engineer with Miller’s Global Pipe Group. She has also been a welding engineer with EuroWeld and Graycor before joining Red-D-Arc/Airgas.?

?Part of what Kuiper enjoys most at Red-D-Arc/Airgas is supporting the company’s efforts to give back to the welding industry, such as through a high school initiative program where the money donated can be used for just about anything to improve their welding program.?

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At the recent SkillsUSA national event, Airgas donates all the gas for the welding competitions, and Kuiper was a judge for the sculpture contest. She participated in the interview portion of the judging, which proved to be an emotional rollercoaster. Many participants had amazing backstories of overcoming early life challenges or family loss.??

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“However challenging giving back can be, it’s even more amazing when you see what people can overcome,” says Kuiper.?

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Kuiper has also joined forces with Weld Like A Girl? founder Shanen Aranmór, CWI/CWE,?to develop a series of talks called “Do I Have to Wear Pink?”??

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“Shanen and I were lamenting that whenever they want to show PPE for women, they make it pink,” says Kuiper. “It’s like, ‘Do we have to wear pink?’ We need to move beyond color appeal and recognize that PPE needs to be made to physically fit women —?something Airgas is working on — and to offer women insights on welding as a career.”?

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In conjunction with the AWS, Kuiper and Aranmór kicked off their “Do I Have to Wear Pink?” talks at SkillsUSA, plan to hold a variation of the discussion at the Welding Summit and also bring it to FABTECH USA.?

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Visit aws.org/WeldingSummit for more information on these and other important industry topics being presented at the 2024 Welding Summit, August 7-9, 2024, The Woodlands Resort, Texas, which is 45 minutes north of Houston. Register now and take advantage of the hotel discount through July 24th.?