Howard B. Cary - 2001 Obituary
Giants of the Welding Industry
10 November 2001
Howard B. Cary
By A. Lesnewich and M. Baker
Howard Bradford Cary, 81, passed away on November 10, 2001 in Tipp City, Ohio. He was dedicated to his work, his family, and the world's welding community.
This devotion to the welding industry began in 1942 when, as a mechanical engineering graduate of The Ohio State University, he joined the Fisher Body Division of General Motors Corporation as a welding engineer to build Army tanks. He was a registered professional engineer in the State of Ohio. After serving in the U. S. Navy from 1944 to 1946, he returned to Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio, to begin development work which led to the gas shielded metal arc welding process. Joining Marion Power Shovel Company as a welding engineer in 1948 he advanced to the position of Assistant General Works Manager.
Hobart Brothers Company beckoned in 1958 where he spent the next 30 years. By 1969 he was Director of the Technical Center and in 1973 became the Vice President of Welding Systems while, simultaneously, served as President of Hobart Institute of Welding Technology. Seeing the need for robotics in welding applications he moved the company into advanced welding systems development and was instrumental in merging the two technologies and forming a partnership between Hobart and Yaskawa Electric Company. Later, this became the separate company of Motoman, Inc. After retirement, he continued to serve Hobart as Senior Advisor of Special Projects and later as Consultant. He was national president of the American Welding Society in 1980-81 after spending virtually his entire career serving on various AWS Committees and chairing local sections including the Columbus, Ohio Section. He also served as an AWS Director-at-Large.
He was the recipient of many awards including the A. F. Davies Silver Medal, the National Meritorious Certificate, the Samuel Wylie Miller Memorial Medal, the Plummer Memorial Educational Lecture and Award, and the National Safety Council Award. He served on the Board of Directors of Edison Welding Institute and worked in the international arena as a U.S. Delegate for Commission XIV of the International Institute of Welding. Howard was an active member of The Ohio State University Alumni Association.
Howard was a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, ASM International, the Welding Institute of Canada, the French Society of Welding Engineers, the German Welding Society, the Japan Welding Society, and others. He shared his knowledge by presenting technical talks throughout the United States and in Canada, Europe, Australia, Mexico, South Africa, and South America.
He held five patents and authored over 100 technical articles and two books including Modern Welding Technology and Arc Welding Automation. In fact, Howard completed the fifth edition of Modern Welding Technology just a few months before his death. He is survived by his wife, Harriet Harmony Cary, one son, one daughter, four grandchildren and two brothers. Memorial contributions may be made to the Howard B. Cary Scholarship Fund, c/o the Hobart Institute of Welding Technology, 400 Trade Square, East, Troy, OH 45373.
