On April 19, 2011, Acceleron, Inc. hosted a meeting of the Connecticut Section of the American Welding Society. Twenty-three members of the section attended along with several of Acceleron’s staff.

Acceleron, Inc. is a local company that specializes in high energy beam welding. They provide laser beam and Electron Beam Welding as well as drilling services for clients engaged in aerospace and defense, medical, semi conductor, commercial, and petrochemical industries.

The meeting began with a tour of Acceleron’s facilities, showcasing 15 Electron Beam welding machines, 2 high speed drilling machines, and several GTAW stations. Of interest to many was the electron beam drilling capabilities that allows Acceleron to drill up to 2000 holes per second in materials as thin as 0.002 inch and up to 0.200 inches thick. Typical drilling speeds are 50-150 holes per/sec in material .060”-.134” thick. The holes are usually perpendicular to the drilled surface and are held +/-.001”

Don Christensen, Manager of Account Development for Acceleron, gave a presentation on the overall capabilities of their services and gave a brief overview on the mechanics of laser processing, electron beam welding and electron beam drilling. Don and Rory Montano, President of Acceleron, also fielded questions about EBW and LBW. Don then presented background and technical information on a collection of welded and drilled components that Acceleron keeps on display at their plant.

A quote from Albert Moore, Chairperson of the Connecticut Section of the AWS, on Don Christensen’s presentation

“Your presentation was dead on. It covered the subject in sufficient detail to tell us what you do and what the equipment can do without burying us with too many technical details. The tour was fascinating. Most welders never get to see the machines at work, nor do they get to see the type of welds the equipment are capable of making. I’m sure everyone was as amazed as I was at the drilling operation! I would like to say on behalf of the Connecticut Section of AWS that we really appreciated the tour and your hospitality.“

A few key notes about Albert Moore, Chairperson of the Connecticut Section of the AWS:

Albert is an adjunct instructor for ASME and AWS. He developed the course titled Practical Welding Technology offered by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and he is instructs the AWS Certified Welding Inspector Seminar offered by the American Welding Society. A course tailored to the needs of welders and visual inspectors has been developed and approved to meet the requirements of Navy welding (NAVSEA S9074-AQ-GIB-010/248) and inspection (NAVSEA T9074-AS-GIB-010/271) standards.

He has presented papers on the subjects of structural steel inspection, visual welding inspection, and nondestructive testing at the University of Connecticut, University of Massachusetts, University of New Haven and local sections of AWS, ASNT, and Connecticut Engineers in Private Practice.

He is also a member of the AWS Certification Committee, the Committee on Methods of Inspection, and the Standing Task Group on the Welding Inspection Handbook. He is the Chairman of the Subcommittees on Visual Examination of Welds, Certification of Welding Educators, Certification of Welding Technicians, and Vice Chairman of the Subcommittees on Accredited Test Facilities and Certification of Structural Inspectors.

Albert is a NOCTI certified welding instructor, an AWS Senior Certified Welding Inspector, and currently holds ASNT ACCP Professional NDT Level III certificates in four NDT test methods; RT, UT, MT, and PT, and is certified in accordance with SNT-TC-1A for VT. He holds an Associate of Science Degree in Civil Technology (Structural Design) from the Hartford State Technical College, a Bachelor of Science in Applied Science and Technology (Welding Technology) from Charter Oak College, a Masters in Business Administration from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, and a Certificate of Professional Development from the Department of Welding Engineering of Ohio State University.

As a NDT Level III for RT, UT, MT, PT, and VT, Albert provides training and (certification) examinations for NDT technicians employed by many industrial sectors. The NDT courses developed include visual inspection, dye penetrant, magnetic particle, ultrasonics, and radiographic testing.

He has been certified to weld with the SMAW, GMAW, FCAW, GTAW, and SAW processes on various base metals including aluminum, carbon steel, nickel alloys, stainless steel, and titanium. He has been a member of the Ironworkers Local 15 for 45 years.