Morgan City, Louisiana, December 2, 2025
LAD Services is partnering with Path Robotics to bring its Physical AI for welding into its shipbuilding operations. This investment is a direct response to the widespread shortage of skilled welders, coupled with LAD’s rising demand for specialized vessels. Instead of relying on traditional methods that cannot keep up, LAD is turning to Path Robotics’ technology, which was explicitly built for the realities of modern shipbuilding.
With Path, LAD expects to cut barge production time in half — without sacrificing the precision and quality needed to bring its new cutting-edge designs to reality.
“The welding craft is aging, quality is under pressure, and skilled welders are getting harder and harder to find. We reached a point where we simply could not make everything we needed to make with people alone. Traditional automation could not handle the reality of shipbuilding. Path’s technology gives us the added capacity we need without relying on a shrinking labor pool of welders, while maintaining the quality our customers expect. Path was the only solution that made sense for LAD and we’re confident this will revolutionize the industry.”
Unlike traditional welding automation systems that struggle with the variability inherent in shipbuilding, Path Robotics’ AI-powered welding cells handle the complex, high-mix welding tasks that have historically not been possible to automate and thus required scarce, but valuable human expertise. Path’s physical-AI for welding delivers consistent, high-quality welds with no risk of worker injury and continuous operation, fundamentally changing LAD Service’s production capacity.
LAD will showcase its ongoing partnership with Path Robotics at the upcoming International WorkBoat Show in New Orleans, LA, starting on December 3rd.
About LAD Services
LAD is a leader in innovative barge and vessel construction, known for novel structural designs that increase cargo capacity and performance. The company has built a reputation for continuously reinventing how barges are designed and manufactured, combining advanced engineering with deep industry experience to serve customers across commercial and industrial markets.
www.ladcompanies.com
About Path Robotics
Path Robotics builds Physical-AI for manufacturing. Path’s welding cells handle the complex, variable welding work that traditional automation cannot, enabling manufacturers to overcome labor shortages and expand production without sacrificing quality.
www.path-robotics.com
