Dewitt, NY – March 19, 2010: Machine & Welding Supply of Tuscaloosa, AL, has been in the care in the Aldredge family for four generations, and each new one has brought the gases and welding distributorship to a new level of growth.
In the Spring issue of Welding & Gases Today, the leading provider of information to the welding and gases supply business, Gases and Welding Distributor Association (GAWDA) President Elect Lloyd Robinson sat down with Machine & Welding Supply Company President Emmett Aldredge Jr. and his sons, Vice Presidents Emmett Aldredge III and Christopher Aldredge. Robinson, president of AWISCO in Maspeth, NY, discussed the history of Machine & Welding Supply Company with the trio and also asked about the future of the company.
The company originated in a machine shop opened by William Aldredge in Dunn, NC, in 1925. Emmett Aldredge Sr. and his brother Raymond Aldredge steered the business toward the gases and welding side and bought the company from their father after returning from World War II.
Emmett Aldredge Sr. passed away in 1972 and Emmett Aldredge Jr. became president at the age of 25. Under Emmett Aldredge Jr.’s leadership, the company grew from four locations to 23. In addition to the “arcs and sparks” staples, the company expanded to include a beverage CO2 business. The Aldredges point out that diversifying the company’s product offering enabled the company to withstand the recent economic downturn. (two parts of this sentence do not go together).
As a family business, Machine & Welding Supply Company is rooted in a commitment to its employees. That means ensuring the future success of the company. The Aldredges believe maintaining the family business is a matter of responsibility. “One thing that my dad instilled in me and that I’ve instilled in my sons is that we are more than owners of the company—we are stewards of the company,” says Emmett Aldredge Jr.
For more information, contact Welding & Gases Today Editor Carole Jesiolowski at (315) 445-2347; e-mail editor@weldingandgasestoday.org.
