PRESS RELEASE

Radnor, PA May 28, 2026
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Airgas Returns for 4th Consecutive Year as SkillsUSA National Championships Sponsor

Airgas, an Air Liquide company, proudly returns as the industrial gas supplier for the 2026 SkillsUSA National Leadership & Skills Conference (NLSC) taking place from June 2–4 at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.

Airgas is addressing the nation’s critical skilled trades gap by deploying advanced gas cylinders and specialized equipment for the hands-on career competitions, ranging from Welding, Welding Fabrication, HVAC, and Automotive Repair. Student competitors will utilize ready-to-weld ARCAL™ premium shielding gases paired with Airgas signature EXELTOP™ cylinder valve technology, designed to deliver optimized and safer welding gas use on the competition floor.

Beyond the sparks of the competition arena, Airgas will also exhibit at the SkillsUSA TECHSPO in Booth #156. Students, educators and attendees can interact with the Airgas team, witness live showcases of Airgas innovative technology like the RADNOR™ 4x4 plasma cutting table, and explore the size-inclusive RADNOR line of men’s and women’s personal protective equipment.

Bill Pharmer, Senior Director of Airgas Advanced Fabrication Technologies, states, "Returning to the SkillsUSA National Leadership & Skills Conference for our fourth consecutive year represents our commitment to the future skilled trades workforce. We aren't just supplying the show with industrial gases, but are supporting these bright young fabricators so they are fully prepared to build the infrastructure of tomorrow."

Airgas, Inc.

Airgas®, an Air Liquide company, is a leading U.S. supplier of industrial, medical and specialty gases, as well as hardgoods and related products; one of the largest U.S. suppliers of safety products; and a leading U.S. supplier of ammonia products and process chemicals.

Airgas helps its more than 1 million customers advance their business performance and reach their full potential with reliable products,services and expertise used to create, build, care, serve and sustain. With nearly 18,000 associates, over 1,400 locations, a robust eBusiness platform, and Airgas Total Access ® telesales channel, Airgas is ready to help customers fill their potential, every day.

As an Air Liquide company, a world leader in gases, technology and services for Industry and Health, Airgas offers customers an unrivaled global footprint and industry-leading technology and innovations.

For more information, please visit www.airgas.com.

SkillsUSA

SkillsUSA is America’s proud champion of the skilled trades. It’s a student-led partnership of education and industry that’s building the skilled workforce our nation depends on with graduates who are career ready, day one. Representing nearly 440,000 career and technical education students and teachers, SkillsUSA chapters thrive in middle schools, high schools and college/postsecondary institutions nationwide. SkillsUSA’s mission empowers students to become skilled professionals, career-ready leaders and responsible community members. That mission is accomplished through the SkillsUSA Framework of Personal Skills, Workplace Skills and Technical Skills Grounded in Academics, which is integrated into the classroom curriculum. Through Framework instruction, students develop the character-shaping leadership skills — teamwork, communication, professionalism and more — that successful careers and lives demand.

At the same time, students hone their high-level technical skills against current industry standards in more than 130 skilled trade areas, from 3-D Animation to Welding. The result? Focused, confident and highly skilled graduates who are ready to work, ready to lead and ready to make a difference in our schools, workplaces and communities. A vital solution to the skills gap, where more in-demand skilled trades positions are available than qualified professionals to fill them, SkillsUSA has served over 14 million difference-making members since 1965. To learn more, visit www.skillsusa.org.

Airgas Communications
Marysa Mazanek
610-230-3213
mediasupport@airgas.com



Oxygen, nitrogen, hydrogen, and many other essential small molecules are the invisible pillars of our world and our lives. They have been at the core of the Group's activities since its creation in 1902.

A world leader in gases, technologies and services for industry and healthcare, Air Liquide acts as the backbone of numerous economic sectors, serving 4.3 million customers and patients across 59 countries with approximately 65,000 employees. With revenues close to 27 billion euros in 2025, Air Liquide combines strong performance and useful growth.

The Group is a leader with a diversified, resilient business model and a strong local footprint across the globe. Through deep engineering expertise and technological innovation, Air Liquide provides scalable solutions that enhance industrial efficiency, accelerate decarbonization, and strengthen value chains. Strategically exposed to growth markets and megatrends, the Group accompanies major industrial and societal transformations to create long term added value and build a sustainable future.

Air Liquide is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange (compartment A) and belongs to the CAC 40, CAC 40 ESG, EURO STOXX 50, FTSE4Good, and Dow Jones Best-in-Class Europe Index indexes.