Marvin Woodie, Jr. and Cliff Forrest (center left and right) along with Conn-Weld employees cut a gold ribbon commemorating a 110,000 sq ft expansion at the company’s 50th anniversary celebration. (Photo: Steve Fiscor)
By Steve Fiscor, Editor-in-Chief
On October 16, 2025, 50 years to the day Jim Connolly founded the company, Conn-Weld celebrated the anniversary with an open house at its facilities in Princeton, W.Va. Since its inception, the company has grown steadily to become the largest screening machine manufacturer in the USA. Even though Conn-Weld’s ownership has changed hands, Connolly’s passion for problem solving and customer service still inspires the company today.
Conn-Weld President Marvin Woodie, Jr. introduces Homer H. Hickman, Jr. (background), the author of October Sky. (Photo: Steve Fiscor)
Prior to an elaborate outdoor reception with awards and guest speakers, Conn-Weld employees led guests on a brief tour of their factory with several stations dedicated to the history of the company. They discussed how Connolly had a vision of how to better serve coal operators as far as their screening needs. His patented fusion welding process greatly improved the quality of the profile used for wire screens. As a result, Conn-Weld became very popular in the coal business before expanding into aggregate, hard rock and industrial mineral applications.
Shortly after developing the fusion welding process, Connolly realized the company would consume a lot of raw materials, mostly in the form of wire. Considerable testing led to the development of the metallurgical composition needed to produce wire that would deliver the best performance and allow the company to supply its customers with quality products in a timely manner. Conn-Weld opened its own wire mill in Dublin, Va., in the 1980s. The wire mill was instrumental in Conn-Weld’s growth and long-term success.
Conn-Weld added space incrementally for fabrication, various technologies and the engineering team, which supported the company’s growth in the 1990s. The company began to build larger machines, and it developed and added other products to its line, like the E-Z Deck system, screen baskets, sieve units and the G Master line of vibratory screening machines. Its market reach expanded into Canada.
During the 2000s, the company added water-jet cutting and laser welding technology. The global footprint and the size of the facilities continue to grow as Conn-Weld adds larger welding, painting and assembly bays. The company built its largest machine, a 14- x 28-ft double-deck banana screen.
Connolly passed away in 2014. In 2020, longtime customer Cliff Forrest, who owns Rosebud Mining, purchased the company, carrying the vision forward and expanding on it. Forrest appointed Conn-Weld Vice President of Field Operations, Marvin Woodie, Jr., as the company’s president. Conn-Weld broke ground on a 110,000 sq. ft. expansion, which brings the company’s total production space to 500,000 sq. ft.
The October Sky Keynote
Conn-Weld is a company that builds a finished product from raw materials in West Viriginia and exports that product to the world. To celebrate its 50th anniversary, the company invited Homer H. Hickman, Jr., the author of October Sky, to give the keynote address. October Sky is an autobiography of the son of a coal miner who takes up rocketry and eventually became an engineer for NASA. The story is based on the lives of four young men who grew up in the late 1950s in Coalwood, W.Va., a company town at the time.
Woodie places the 50th anniversary logo in the middle of a montage dedicated to the company’s history. (Photo: Conn-Weld)
Hickman was happy to return to the region, saying that he normally has to explain a great deal about West Virginia, coal mining and company towns to describe the setting to audiences, but the audience gathered for this event already understood those things. He shared stories that were not included in the book and encouraged people to do their best.
Afterwards, Forrest presented Hickman with a gift and drew some parallels between his early, formative years in the coal business with those that Hickman had described. Forrest began his career working underground in McDowell County, W.Va., not far from Coalwood.
“I didn’t have the pleasure of knowing Jim Connolly, but it was his passion that built this company,” Forrest said. “We were such happy customers. We knew about the quality of Conn-Weld’s products, and we also knew about the company’s customer service, and that’s what attracted me to this business. I couldn’t be more proud of being involved with Conn-Weld.”
Forrest said he started his first company when he was 22. “Successful business owners know that you treat people the way you want to be treated,” he said. “Marvin Woodie shares that same passion.”
Woodie recognized and called forward several employees who had been with the company for 30 years or more. He also recognized the many veterans the company employs. After a ceremonial ribbon cutting, several rockets were launched. Another employee rallied the group with a rendition of John Denver’s song “Country Roads.”
Woodie thanked all of the people who attended the celebration, saying, “We owe our success to you, and we will continue to serve you in the future based on Conn-Weld’s philosophy of quality, know-how and service.”
Source: www.coalage.com
