Welding Technology
Are you mechanically inclined or do you enjoy working with your hands? Are you interested in a career that combines skill and attention to detail? The Aims welding technology program gives you the training you need to begin a rewarding career in the welding industry.
Welding uses heat to fuse metal parts. Welders can create something new, such as a trailer, fire pit, or sculpture, and repair existing structures and objects, including vehicles, pipelines, bridges, and more. Learn vital welding skills such as fabrication, a variety of welding techniques and weld inspection at the recently remodeled Greeley or Fort Lupton campuses.
Earn your welding associate degree at Aims and start a career in any number of industries where you can make a difference creating or repairing vital components and infrastructure that keep our society running.
"We have many success stories and students who come to see us afterward and say, ‘I'm working here and I love it, and this shop is amazing.’ That's the passion that we want to have as faculty members in the welding department at Aims, to see these students flourish and continue to grow."
--Jeff Klein, Aims Welding Technology instructor
Aims welding technology instructor Jeff Klein describes the pride in craftsmanship you’ll gain from taking raw materials and making something new, from art to functional necessities.
The welding program at Aims teaches the most common welding processes used in the industry today. With each welding technology degree course, build your knowledge and skills to prepare you for work in the industry.
Study techniques including:
- Cutting processes
- Shielded metal arc welding (stick welding)
- Gas metal and flux core arc (MIG welding)
- Gas tungsten arc welding (TIG welding)
- Pipe welding
- Metallurgy
- Reading blueprints
- Fabrication
- Weld inspections
Work closely with experienced instructors while learning specialized welding techniques, safety standards and inspections.
You’ll receive your own equipment and welding booth for each class. Choose between recently remodeled facilities at the Greeley or Fort Lupton campuses.
Both welding facilities feature:
- State-of-the-art welding fume extraction systems
- A welding shop with individual arc welding booths
- Metal preparation areas with metal cutting, grinding and cleaning stations
- A fabrication shop
The Aims welding facilities are equipped with a variety of standard welding and cutting equipment that is specific to the processes being taught. These processes include oxyacetylene welding, shielded metal arc welding (SMAW), flux-cored arc welding (FCAW) and more. The fabrication shops at Aims have specialized metal fabrication equipment including CNC plasma cutters, plate shears, ironworking, cold saw, band saw, and specialized fabrication tables.
The welding associate degree program at Aims also teaches soft skills that employers want. These include attention to detail and the patience to follow through with difficult projects. A capstone course allows you to apply everything you’ve learned by designing and fabricating a pressure vessel.
Watch Aims welding student Justin McEntee successfully test his pressure vessel to 1000 lbs. of pressure for a welding class project.
- Metal Cutting and Gouging Certificate
- Arc Welding Processes Certificate
- Pipe Welding Certificate
- Metal Fabrication Certificate
- Welding Technician Certificate
Launch Your Welding Technology Career
If you’re mechanically inclined or love working with your hands, a career in welding offers a variety of career opportunities. Work in diverse industries, including manufacturing, aerospace, construction, HVAC, and oil and gas.
Types of welding jobs you can get with a welding associate degree include:
- Production welding and manufacturing
- Pipe welding and fitting
- Welding supervision and management
- Automation and robotics welder
- Welding inspection and quality control
- Welding equipment sales and repair representative
- Custom fabricator
- Business owner or entrepreneur
Welding Technology Faculty and Staff
Learn from instructors with real-world industry experience in many different types of welding from a variety of industries. While earning your welding associate degree, gain feedback from people who have worked in the field and understand what employers expect.
