FLCC takes welding on the road

The College uses innovative gear to solve a workforce problem.

Over the last three months, FLCC has graduated three small classes of beginning welders: six Victor high schoolers, five adults in Newark, and six others at a manufacturing plant in Penn Yan.

Until recently, transportation and the cost of traditional welding equipment would have made it costly and impractical to offer small classes over a wide geographic area.

Enter the Miller AugmentedArc, a welding simulator that uses augmented reality to provide hands-on training without the danger of sparks, molten metal, and heat. Students wear a welding helmet and grasp a torch-like tool. Both are connected by cables to a computer running simulation software.

“It’s portable. It’s easy. You can teach people faster with it,” FLCC President Robert Nye said.

Convenience and flexibility

Welding is a high-demand field, but those jobs are scattered across the region. The College’s adoption of innovative equipment has made it possible to provide training to students of all ages in multiple locations. 

Instructor Jahaan Williams totes two cases that look like oversized luggage from site to site, assembling the simulator in minutes. The computer screen in the helmet shows students exactly what they would see if using a real torch and metal.

The software provides constant feedback, for example, alerting students if they are holding the tool incorrectly or need to change their hand motions. They can practice over and over again since there is no need for acetylene and metals.

Students spend the final two weeks of the 12-week program in a real welding shop. By then, they have a firm grounding in basic technique and safety. The Victor High School seniors, for example, got hands-on practice with a torch and metal in the main campus art studio. 

In Penn Yan, the students got simulation instruction and their final skills training at Coach and Equipment, which makes small and mid-sized buses. Four of the students were Coach employees, assemblers eager for the skills – and higher pay –  of welders. Two were local residents.

After 10 weeks on the simulator, students like Olena O’Brien, left, of Dundee, can practice with a real torch and metal samples. O’Brien assembles electrical harnesses for Coach and Equipment buses. She joined the program to become eligible for a promotion Coach and Equipment partnered with FLCC to solve a persistent problem of finding and retaining welders, said Brian Forrest, human resources manager at the 78-year-old company. 

As company leaders considered training their own welders, the manufacturer faced its own challenges of scale. With a workforce of about 200, the company needs a steady supply of welders, albeit in small numbers. 

“Working with FLCC was a very nice way to achieve the goal of offering a reward to people already working here who had the aspiration to move up,” Brian explained. “It is also helpful to not have too many in the program at one time, where they would not be able to find welding positions to use their new skills in a reasonable amount of time after completing it.” 

FLCC’s low-cost, portable training program allowed the company to round out a class by accepting local residents, who, in turn, were spared a long drive from Yates County to find job training.

Growth and potential

Coach and Equipment’s class wrapped up in February, and the company plans to hold another class this summer. The promise of a more sustainable welding workforce is critical as the company prepares to launch an expansion. The leadership hopes to lessen a year-long backlog of bus orders by opening a second production line.

Workers have embraced the idea of training for a promotion without ever leaving the plant. Classes are held two days a week after a shift change. For all its practicality, the program has also boosted morale, Brian said.

“I went and chatted with people after the first weeks to see how it was going. One person said, ‘I can’t wait for the next class. It’s so interesting.’ Isn’t that the highest level of praise that every instructor would hope for, that your students are literally clamoring for the next class?”

Of the five Newark graduates in December, four had job offers within a week of completing the program from companies such as AW Welding in Clyde and WesLor Enterprises in Lyons. Welders earn about $24 to $31 per hour, according to the New York State Department of Labor.

Nick Sculli, a counselor at Victor Central Schools, said the seniors who completed the welding class expressed a sense of accomplishment in learning a new, marketable skill.

Two of the six students now plan to pursue a career in welding, he added.

“They didn’t have plans at the beginning of this year, and now they do, so it gave them a direction,” Nick said. “That was really cool to see.”

Beginning welding classes open to the community are held in Newark and Canandaigua. Day and evening classes will continue through 2026 and 2027. Training at other sites can be arranged through the Workforce, Career and Experiential Learning Office. For information, email workforce@flcc.edu or call (585) 785-1670.