Welding is getting busier: what the latest calls say about process tooling

The read in plain words

The newest reports from companies that sell welding and dispensing equipment point the same way: volume is starting to carry the growth. Lincoln Electric said volume growth outpaced price in the third quarter for the first time in over 2.5 years.¹ Graco's organic incoming orders rose 7% in the quarter.⁴ ITW described accelerating demand in its capex-related segments, Welding and Test & Measurement and Electronics.⁶

Why does the mix matter? Growth that comes from price can fade once customers push back. Growth from volume means factories are buying and using more equipment. That makes this a demand story, not a pricing story.

This is not a clean all-clear, though. The same round of calls also showed large capital projects slipping.⁵ So the useful question for investors is whether the volume holds through the next quarter.

Lincoln Electric: volume, automation and two new tools

Lincoln Electric makes welding equipment and robotic welding systems, and it is the clearest example of the shift. On its third-quarter call on October 27, management said automation and equipment helped drive volume growth in the high teens percent in the Americas.³ That ties the welding story to the robotics story: factories are buying automated cells as well as replacement equipment.

Price is still part of the picture. The company implemented price actions in all three segments during the third quarter and expects to reach price-cost neutrality in the fourth quarter.⁷ Price-cost neutrality means price increases fully cover higher input costs. If that holds, the volume gains would no longer be offset by margin pressure.

The product news supports the volume read. Lincoln Electric launched a hot wire submerged arc welding solution for heavy industry customers that delivers up to 50% improvement in deposition rates using existing Lincoln equipment.⁸ Deposition rate is how fast weld metal is laid down, so a gain there means more welding per machine-hour without new hardware.

It also launched ExpertLink, which lets robotic welding systems adapt to part variability in real time and makes them easier to use for high-mix, low-volume manufacturers.⁹ High-mix, low-volume shops make many different parts in small batches, which has historically made robots hard to justify. Tools that make that easier could widen the market for welding automation. Lincoln Electric is second in our score, and these facts are why it sits close to the center of this read.

Graco: orders up, timing still lumpy

Graco, whose business includes an Industrial segment and a packaging product called Invisipak, shows both sides of the cycle.^5,10 Third-quarter revenue finished slightly below its $580 million to $600 million guidance, excluding Valco Melton, on a comparable basis.⁵ The company pointed mainly to Industrial, where large capital projects were delayed.⁵

The order book tells a firmer story. Organic incoming orders rose 7% in the third quarter and were up 4% year-to-date.⁴ On current order trends and backlog, Graco guided fourth-quarter revenue of $610 million to $640 million.¹¹

Pricing has been steady rather than aggressive. On its July call, Graco said it had realized pricing of roughly 1.5% to 2% this year, with price-cost staying positive and gross margin up 130 bps.¹² Graco is third in our score. Our read: delayed projects look like a timing issue as long as orders keep rising, and the fourth-quarter range is the test.

ITW and Nordson: the wider capex signal

ITW is a diversified industrial with seven segments: Automotive OEM, Food Equipment, Test & Measurement and Electronics, Welding, Polymers & Fluids, Construction Products, and Specialty Products.¹³ It raised full-year 2026 GAAP EPS guidance to a narrowed range of $11.45 to $11.55 per share, which it says represents 10% growth year-over-year at the midpoint.¹⁴ The detail that matters for process tooling is that its capex-related segments, including Welding, saw accelerating demand.⁶

That matters because it is a second, independent welding read. When two suppliers with different customer mixes describe stronger welding demand in the same season, it is less likely to be one company's product cycle.

Nordson leads our score, and its signal comes from electronics rather than heavy industry. On its August call, the company said its Advanced Technology Solutions segment delivered record quarterly sales and strong organic growth, with differentiated products in semiconductor and broadening electronics end-market demand.² More recently, Contrinex will be integrated into that same segment.¹⁵ So the part of Nordson most tied to semiconductors and electronics is also the part getting bigger.

What to watch next

Three checks will show whether this read holds. First, Lincoln Electric's fourth quarter: whether price-cost neutrality arrives as the company expects, and whether automation keeps adding to volume.^7,3 Second, Graco's fourth-quarter revenue against its $610 million to $640 million range, which will show whether the delayed Industrial projects come back.^11,5

Third, Nordson's next report on Advanced Technology Solutions, the first read since Contrinex was folded in, and whether semiconductor and electronics demand keeps broadening.^2,15 ITW's welding commentary is a useful cross-check on Lincoln Electric's numbers.⁶

The simplest way to think about it: process tooling sits where factory spending turns into hardware on the floor. When volume leads price and orders lead revenue, that spending is showing up. The next set of reports will tell us how far it runs.