BLD Waste Services Donates Equipment to CTC’s Welding Program

Chattahoochee Technical College welding students are entering the workforce better equipped thanks to a generous donation from Brian Stover of BLD Waste Services. The Dallas-based company’s donation to the Chattahoochee Tech Foundation allowed for the purchase of destructive testing equipment.
According to certified welding inspector and CTC instructor Jim Thomas, this piece of equipment will now allow him to test a student’s work to ensure it is meeting the standards of the American Welding Society, a nonprofit organization with a global mission to advance the science, technology and application of welding and allied joining and cutting processes, including brazing, soldering and thermal spraying. 
“It has always been my goal that any type of welding in North Georgia should be associated with our name. We should be the go-to place in welding,” Thomas said. “This is a big piece to completing that puzzle.”
During a recognition ceremony held at the Paulding Campus on Thursday, May 25, CTC President Dr. Ron Newcomb praised Stover for his generosity, stating that he not only deserves recognition for his professional accomplishments but also for helping others. “Brian Stover is the perfect example of the American entrepreneurship and the notion that someone can have an idea and pursue it piece-by- piece and become successful,” said CTC President Dr. Ron Newcomb. “Support from the community is so important to the health of a program.”When Stover took a tour of the college’s welding lab on the Paulding Campus, he said donating to the program required little thought. Stover said he has had a difficult time finding well-trained, qualified employees but noted that graduates of CTC’s welding program enter the workforce prepared for a successful career.
“I just see such a great need for technical education,” he said. “This is nothing against four-year universities, but I just see so many kids that think they have to go that route instead of going to a technical college. I feel like we have lost the manpower. If these students don’t have the work ethic, they won’t go far.”Chattahoochee Technical College’s welding program is conveniently located on the Paulding and Appalachian campuses. Students are challenged in a hands-on learning environment that focuses on skill development and meeting industry standards. The instructors all have real- world industry experience and are available to assist students in meeting their long- and short- term goals.
To learn more about this program, visit ChattahoocheeTech.edu.

photo#1: Chattahoochee Technical College President Dr. Ron Newcomb, right, examines a welding test coupon with Brian Stover of BLD Waste Services.
photo#2: Chattahoochee Tech welding instructor Jim Thomas demonstrates how the new equipment works in his Paulding County lab.