Professional Program 2026

The AWS Professional Program is a technical conference for presentations on applied and fundamental research related to welding, brazing, soldering, surfacing and additive manufacturing (AM). Plenary speakers and special symposia are included in the conference.

It is held annually at FABTECH and attracts many of the top scientists and engineers in the joining, surfacing, and AM arena. Speakers with accepted abstracts will give oral presentations at FABTECH 2025 within the AWS Professional Program.

Program at a Glance

*Programming for the Professional Program will run Wednesday, October 21st through Friday, October 23rd.

Program Highlights:

• Opening Ceremony: Recognition of AWS Officers and new AWS Fellows and Counselors
• The Comfort Adams Lecture: Dr. Jorge Dos Santos, Stirtec
• Plenary Presentation: Dr. Alex Shapiro, Titanium Brazing, Inc.
• Plenary Presentation: Prof. Hongyan Zhang, XJTL University, China
• Plenary Presentation: Prof. Wei Zhang, The Ohio State University
• Plenary Presentation: Prof. Zhenzhen Yu, Colorado School of Mines
• Plenary Presentation: Dr. Volodymyr Kachynskyi, Paton Welding Institute
• Honorary Symposium for Prof. Stephen Liu, Colorado School of Mines

POSTER COMPETITION 2026

The AWS Poster Competition is a key component of the annual AWS Professional Program. Posters and videos will present results from welding and additive manufacturing (AM) related studies, which are best conveyed visually, as well as research results involving study and analysis of graphs, micrographs, tables, or CAD drawings.

Poster Submission Deadline: August 15, 2026