Welding program to do free metal work on campus

The welding program at NIC offered its services to create and form any metal work the campus community may need for free.

The projects are built by NIC welding students to get a sense of what it is like to meet real-world quality control, unexpected delays and time constraints.

“It’s very beneficial for students” said John Campbell, one of the students who worked on one of last year’s welding projects.

The number of submissions that will be accepted are limited and usually only taken during the second semester, however submissions can be made at any time throughout the school year as long as they meet the welding program’s curriculum.

NIC’s welding program, run by Earl Dreisbach, Jeremy Dodge, and Tim Straw, has done work in the past that can be seen in the weight room and bike racks at Winton, in Sherman Park, and at the Post Falls Library.

The program is currently in talks to also make a bike rack for the Coeur d’Alene Fire Department, as well as repair the department’s burn house.

“If it’s metal we can make it,” said Campbell

While the labor for this project is at no cost, the metal would need to be provided to the welding program at the submitters’ cost.

The time any metal work takes to be completed varies on the welders’ experience as well as on the design and can take anywhere from a couple weeks to over a month.

The cost of metal for the average 10-foot bike rack is estimated at around $700 to $1000, but the cost may change depending on the design and any powder coating it may need.