Abstract: Welding apparatus includes a welder and an electrically pre-heated wire that is fed into the perimeter of a weld puddle. The apparatus has equipment to produce relative motion between the welder and the workpiece. A stream of gas, such as a mixture of inert gas and oxygen, is applied to the weld puddle at a location between the welder and the pre-heated wire. Pipes may be rapidly welded in an end to end fashion using such apparatus by rotating the pipes past the welder. The welder is mounted at the side of the joint of the pipes and the pipes are rotated so that the portion thereof adjacent to the welder translates upwardly. The electrically pre-heated wire is fed into the melted portion of the joint which trails the welder.