EX-173
                                Exhibit 23.5






Report of Independent Public Accountants


To the Board of Directors of
National Welders Supply Company, Inc.:

We have audited the accompanying balance sheet of National Welders Supply
Company, Inc. (a North Carolina corporation) as of March 29, 1997, and the
related statements of income, changes in shareholders' equity and cash flows
for the period from June 29, 1996, to March 29, 1997.  These financial
statements are the responsibility of the Company's management.  Our
responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on
our audit.

We conducted our audit in accordance with generally accepted auditing
standards.  Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to
obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of
material misstatement.  An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence
supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements.  An audit
also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant
estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial
statement presentation.  We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis
for our opinion.

In our opinion, the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in
all material respects, the financial position of National Welders Supply
Company, Inc. as of March 29, 1997, and the results of its operations and its
cash flows for the period from June 29, 1996, to March 29, 1997, in conformity
with generally accepted accounting principles.


                                         ARTHUR ANDERSEN LLP


Charlotte, North Carolina,
April 30, 1997.