Lincoln Electric Holdings Inc. (www.lincolnelectric.com) is suing a former employee for allegedly stealing the company’s trade secrets then trying to use them to help a Chinese competitor enter the U.S. market.

In a suit filed Oct. 15 in the U.S. District Court (www.ohnd.uscourts.gov) in Cleveland, Lincoln Electric Holdings said that a former marketing and sales employee attempted to help Ningbo Longxing Group Co. of China to enter the U.S. market for welding products, and violated a non-compete agreement he had with Lincoln Electric.

The suit says Roy M. Short worked for Lincoln Electric for five years, ending in 2006, and agreed that he would not go into a business that competes with Lincoln nor solicit its employees for two years after his last day of employment. It also said that, as a representative for Lincoln’s business and supply contracts, he agreed to keep the company’s trade secrets and proprietary information confidential.

Lincoln Electric alleges in its complaint that Short violated that agreement by working for CDL International Sales Inc., a unit of Ningbo Longxing that is based in Hendersonville, Tenn.

The complaint says that Short planned to attend trade shows for CDL International, and used information that belongs to Lincoln Electric to contact potential customers and employees.

Lincoln Electric is asking the court to stop Short from working for Ningbo Longxing and its business units before his non-compete agreement ends. Lincoln Electric also is seeking unspecified damages.