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About the Cover Just as welding provides long-lasting strength that holds major structures together, Lincoln Electric has remained strong through the most challenging periods of its 116-year history. Lincoln will continue to grow stronger by delivering the highest standards of quality and value-added products.Three of our valued Company officers retired this past year. Through his many assignments, Richard J. Seif, who just recently completed 40 years with Lincoln, established our marketing and global product develop- ment as the leader in the arc welding industry. Ron Nelson, who spent more than three decades at Lincoln, expertly managed our machine division and contributed his vast expertise to help establish our manufactur- ing operations as the standard for the industry. Vinod Kapoor, who joined us in 1999, was the catalyst for increasing the efficiency of our operations by instituting lean manufacturing. All three will be missed, and we wish them the best in the years ahead. We are fortunate that those who are carrying on after the departure of our three colleagues are extremely capable and talented and are indicative of the strong succession planning system we have in place at Lincoln. Personal Note We were saddened that Frank L. Steingass, a former member of our Board of Directors and a grandson of James F. Lincoln, died December 11, 2010, at age 71. Mr. Steingass contributed A Global Partner of international greatly through his lifelong service to the Company and helped advance the Lincoln legacy of commitment to customers, employees and shareholders, while delivering the highest standards of quality and value. We will also miss Kenneth L. Brown, who passed away September 20, 2010. Mr. Brown, a project research engineer, attained the unique status of being one of the few Lincoln employees with 50-plus years with the Company. Mr. Brown will be remembered for his many contributions to Lincoln and the arc welding industry. He was widely known and respected throughout the welding industry for his welding safety and health expertise, so much so that the American Welding Society has renamed its Safety and Health Award the Kenneth L. Brown Memorial Safety and Health Award in his memory. Outlook Based on the growth trends forecast for our key markets and our improved results in 2010, we are optimistic about continued growth in 2011 and beyond. Major worldwide markets such as infrastructure, energy production and pipelines are expected to continue to grow steadily for the coming years. On a regional basis, the BRIC countries also are expected to experience double-digit industrial production growth rates in 2011 and beyond. Research and development will continue to be one of the primary areas of investment for Lincoln Electric, and we will be targeting our efforts on the infrastructure, energy and pipeline markets. For the longer term, we continue to invest in strengthening the core capabilities that differentiate us in the market. These include: