The Esab Group Inc.

Thomas D Kelly

David Charles Griffin

A fastening arrangement comprising a thread-forming lobular screw and a member defining a non-tapped pilot hole therein. The screw has a shaft and a head joined to a proximal end of the shaft, the shaft defining a plurality N of lobes circumferentially spaced about a central longitudinal axis of the shaft, a thread being formed on an outer surface of the shaft. The pilot hole comprises a central portion of a diameter intermediate the minor and major diameters of the screw thread, and a plurality N of circumferentially spaced cutouts extending radially out from the central portion. A plurality of longitudinally extending edges parallel to the axis of the screw are defined at junctures between the cutouts and central portion of the pilot hole. The screw thread forms a thread in the member beginning at the longitudinal edges of the pilot hole.

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Florence, SC, United States of America

Thomas D Kelly