STI/SPFA Weld of the Year Awards were presented on Wednesday, September 24th at the STI/SPFA Future|Now Conference in Nashville, TN. The awards recognize exemplary work of the talented craftspeople throughout the steel fabrication industry.

Entries were submitted by member companies and awarded in four different categories:

• Field Welding
• Metal Inert Gas (MIG) Welding
• Submerged Arc Welding (SAW)
• Tungsten Inert Gas (TIG) Welding

Submissions were reviewed by a panel of judges. Winners were selected based on the following criteria:

• Weld Quality
• Weld Difficulty
• Overall Fabrication

Weld of the Year Winners 2025
Field Welding
Welder:	Billy Frye
Company:	Kennedy Tank & Manufacturing Co., Inc.
Project Name:	Cleveland Cliffs - Middletown, OH Works - Blast Furnace Shell Repair
Material Type:	Carbon Steel - 516-70
Materials Thickness:	2"
Size of Weld:	13'-6" long through wall cracking
Weld Position:	2G
MIG Welding
Welder:	Jacob Gordin
Company:	Kennedy Tank & Manufacturing Co., Inc.
Project Name:	Heat Exchanger
Material Type:	SA516-70
Material Thickness:	0.375
Size of Weld:	1/2" - 5/8"
Weld Position:	Vertical
Submerged Arc Welding
Welder:	Jeff Arinder
Company:	Boardman LLC
Project Name:	4th Stage Separator
Material Type:	316 ss
Material Thickness:	1/2"
Size of Weld:	3 to 1 Taper
Weld Position:	1G/Rolled
TIG Welding
Welder:	Claxton Hymel
Company:	Boardman LLC
Project Name:	Experimental Overlay Procedure Qualifier
Material Type:	ERNiMo10 (Hastelloy B3) over lay on carbon pipe
Material Thickness:	1/2"
Size of Weld:	3/16
Weld Position:	2G Rolled

Congratulations to all of the winners! Prizes for each winner were supplied by Beeline, National Board of Boiler and Pressure Vessel Inspectors, and Lincoln Electric. For more information, please visit https://stispfa.org/about/awards/weld-of-the-year/.