Remember the 80’s movie, Flashdance? The female lead, Jennifer Beals, was a welder by day in a Pittsburgh steel mill and for many people that was their first glimpse of what a welder did for a living.

Welding is serious business, but it can often get romanticized. In truth, welding is part science and part craftsmanship, and mastering it takes more than a macho posture and a gas mask. Each welding ...