I know work isnt always fun my job seems to get harder and harder. At first they had 6 trucks and i was part time with 2 full time guys working on custormer stuff now they have over 12 trucks that are used almost every day and 10 others that are seasonal. Now there is only one other guy and he dosent have time to help out . All but one was secound hand so they all have some miles on them. They had 2 shops but turned one into a storage building. The other shop is small the longer trucks when there hoods are up you cant walk around them. The trucks are geting to the point were every time i look at one several things need worked on and i have had so much to do i dont fell like i can take time to do more than just keep them on the road.The owners are not mechanics its hard for them to understand what is going on one owner is there less than half a day sometimes so i dont have anyone to ask if a problem comes along. Its going to get cooled before long and the last 5 years the shop heaters have been giveing us problems. We dont have hot water and there is a mud hole in front of the shop. I have about a year of work i can do on my own so money isnt a problem but i worry that my next job will be just as bad.
Becomes a pick your poison days, hated when got into those conditions. Cannot make your decision but can speak of when I turned my back on garage work. Hands would not, DO Not take the cold very well with that Uncle Arthritis was barking at me nearly everyday when too damp, too cold, too whatever where I started to listen. In the mid 90s kept hearing of new mechanics are dime a dozen as to asking for benefits or raises, when asked for more help was told not worth adding as would have to lay back off when slow, never got slow. Just got tired, old and beat up where had enough and moved to other work seemingly but not really easier work until retired.
Look for another job. They had all summer to fix the heaters and it sounds like they are a little clueless of what it takes to run and maintain a bunch of trucks.
I had to chuckle when I read w. daves response..{post 3} The first thing they'll say to Doug is> "Well WHY haven't U fixed the heaters"?? Lol 1 thing I learned from conditions similar.. "as long as u take it, the more they shove it on".. Raining?? send Mike.. Snowing?? send Mike.. Hurricane 5hrs off the coast?? send Mike.. 110* out & Bomag broken down at the landfill?? send Mike..
Then they'd be mad he's fixing the heaters in summer when he could be fixing trucks. Kind of a no win situation.
Heaters? It is MO isn't it? I think you are spoiled. Build a fire in a barrel in the shop on the cold days. That might get some attention pointed at the issue.
In some ways sounds like where I worked near the end. Most upper management had no respect for the hands on people. One time many years back had a guy from way up the corporate ladder come through who asked how many mechanics we had at this location. At that time we had been cut back to two mechanics. Guy said for a plant of our sizes where he was from, England, he would expect about four mechanics. Well a couple years latter the guy I worked with took a transfer to another plant closer to his house. After a couple more years they did hire a kid that was suppose to be my "helper" but he did everything he could to work in other parts of the quarry and then decided he did not like the place and moved on. When I was getting close to retiring, I told my immediate boss a full year in advance, I figured they would be hiring someone to learn the place or maybe see if some other employee could/would want to take the job. Then less than a month before my departure day they finally had Bill come in and work with me more or less part-time. As if in two or three weeks he stood a chance of even learning half of the stuff he should know. Part of the problem was as I had been a one man show for decades much of the show was set up somewhat free-form. Things were arranged in a way that made sense to me but not every shelf or drawer was labeled. Computer records were set up by me using basic spreadsheet that I set up as I learned by trial and error over the years. So I was kind of like if anyone of you were told to jump in someone else's service truck on a moments notice and go fix a machine. Just figuring out where to find a screw driver or 9/16 inch wrench could take several minutes looking! I know I got more than a little off the original subject but was trying to point out the problems of any place where there is lack of planing from management.
One of my more infamous quotes Poor Planning on Your Part does not constitute an Emergency on MY Part. Nuke has lost 30% of the old hands as has most of my previous employers Dirt Burners now, they are in crisis control mode looking to reduce vacation time, change schedules, are contemplating a retirement qualification age change to 60 earliest out to next contract where others are already aligning the wheels to leave well before then. Company already hosed the newcomers, changed in 2012 from Pension to Cash Balance after 7 years tenure where all prior got to retain that pension with possible early out at 55. Cash balance rules preclude making any 'adjustments' to when or how much the now becoming old hands can take with them lump sum and have already been a few jumped ship as tenure arrived and ran seeing the numbers and writing on the walls. Company is losing vital cash as they do leave. Best laid plans. Was on sick leave when retired, the company sent me a letter stating I HAD to fill out all my tribal knowledge on provided forms to receive my retirement. Took it to a local attorney, told me just ignore them as they can do nothing so did, still draw my retirement. Been called as to what I knew/know of old(Archaic) troublesome systems and the idiosyncrasy's we knew to keep them running, told the man on the phone $60K for a months training time for the newbies and would show them the cheats or the tricks to get these systems to function. Told no, had to write them down, hung up. Have been called twice since as have several others I retired with, cannot cough up the coin so knowledge slips away with time and the plant personnel get educations by fire. Are now in process of replacing entire systems that never worked as designed and no engineering prowess on Analog systems to get them to work better. May actually work out better for the company over time but tried for the money!!
Time to put your interests in front of the employer. You have all the power now, use it. A month or so ago I was talking to a sales rep about doing a project for them as an independent contractor. Seems that this dealer shop doesn't have the people or time to install some optional components in some older machines for one of their customers. This didn't make any sense to me so I asked him how that was possible that a dealership didn't have time to complete their own service responsibilities. He told me they keep losing mechanics to end users. They had one who's last day was that day. The rep stated that they offered the guy $10 an hour more than he was making currently, he got the same benefits and could sleep in his own bed every night. I don't think it takes a genius with an MBA to figure out the issue here.
John C. it's like the same story here. The place I retired from for years had no problem finding guys to work. Now for the first time ever they have an 8 foot by 4 foot sign posted at the corner screaming HIRING! Looking for all kinds of different people. A few years back when the head man in the state had one of his few meetings with the quarry workers he made a statement that "If you don't like the way I'm running this place you know where the gate is and for everyone of you sitting here there are ten guys just out side that gate that would love to get paid what I'm paying you!" In the mean time the company bought out a local Redi-Mix Concrete outfit. One of there main plants is at the most three miles from my house. I hired a contractor to do some work on my driveway and the walkway to the side door. He needed four yards of concrete to repair the driveway apron to the overhead doors. It took a week to get that load delivered and the kicker is the guy who is the manager for this Redi-Mix operation is the son of the contractor doing my driveway! Even with that pull it still took a week! But this company is not the only one in this area with the same problem as contractor had contacted at least three other Redi-Mix operations near by and all said the same thing, can't find drivers! Some even have said they had neww or almost new trucks they are thinking about selling because they are paying loans on them while they sit unused!
Our redi mix facilities for five counties are much the same, pretty bad when the plant manager delivers a load knows you have a CDL and offers a job to the customer. Millennials are going to have to crap or get off the pot and get some amount of effort kindled or their narrow little hi-tech world will collapse beneath them. Sad to say neighbor cannot drive a nail, 37 years old, does not know the difference framing hammer to finish hammer to ball peen hammer, can barely tighten a small screw enough to keep it tight a week. No strength, no stamina except to thumb hammer a iPhone looking for someone cheap to fix his screw ups. Bought a house to telecommute as his job is in N CA and he cannot afford to live there, flies out once a month for meetings and butt chewings otherwise speaks to the one eyed brain musher on his desk hammering out code for whatever project he has to do electronically. Has a gravel drive, asked me to come grade it but when asked what would pay got a deer in head lights look, stated I had a tractor with a blade, couldn't I just do it for playing with the machine time. Bought a little 36" cut riding mower last fall second hand, smoked bad, belt was loose until he balled it up and burn't it off, local shop came got it suggested engine replacement as had NO OIL in it(had stopped smoking). He bought another second hand from elsewhere and left that one with them, is aggravated(per his GF) that they are threatening a lien on his house to pay what he owes on it. I give him this winter will be gone come spring from here as has angered most all the neighbors and he grew up with them. "Knows" a Condo is a better choice again per that GF that is friend of the wife. I am thinking many in his age group are useless. House is looking worse each passing week as to no maintenance as cannot find that cheap fix person.
Most of the trades are dying. I think they want the big bucks right off the bat and don't want to have to work their way up. It somebody can sit in front of a computer and make more money is easier than working out in the weather and getting dirty. In welding there isn't much emphasis on stick welding anymore. Out in the field it's hard to use MIG and Flux-Core for a lot of repairs. Having to put tents and shields around everything turns a half an hour repair in to a half a day repair.
Yet at some point not having the out in the weather workers the office workers will have no one to market for, they set themselves up as Enron did, don't make the power just buy it re-sell it and make money, only works for a short term.
At the place were i worked as a welder they had me build some gates and wanted them put up before a big dog and pony shop. I was buy my self welding the hinges on plpe posts. A forman came buy i told him to send me some help. Two guys showed up they also worked as welders i told them one could weld and the other would help fit up. They turned and looked at each other nether one could stick weld.
Grand Nephew is becoming a welder First they taught him was MIG Inside protected shielded from breeze. Next was TIG Pretty decent at it til came to the farm!! Checked gas regulator on my Miller 210 said WAY too high wasting gas, left it be then went to smoking iron on a crapy dirt screen I built. Outside in the sun breezy, he tried and tried then handed gun to me. Drug out the stick welder ran a couple decent beads let him try, even he said was uncoordinated to do for him. He tries, lots of learning to go.
When I learned welding in high school......you were taught stick with old Lincoln buzz boxes and gas welding, yup, torch and filler rod. You learned that real fast after a few "pops" that blew molten steel down the back of your shirt. Ed
Gas welding first teaches you about the puddle and what to watch for. Also promotes good hand/eye coordination.
mig& tig had`nt been heard of then
My dad the welding instructor taught my grandpa to gas weld when grandpa was 75 or 80. After that he made custom gates and panels for his barn out of square steel stock with those delicate tiny gas weld beads and baling wire for filler rod. Dad tried to graduate him to stick welding but he was not interested, he just stuck with gas the rest of his life. The first gates he made were heavy monstrosities but after he got the hang of it they were very nice pieces of work with a man gate inside of a road gate, feeders, and stuff like that.
I did alot of gas welding years ago we didnt have a metal hanger in the house. My dad bought a new lincoln in the 70s when i was 14 i wired it up and went to the library and checked out both books they had on welding. L did alot of welding but when i was in my late 20s i took some stick weld classes i learned more there in the first 2 nights than i would have learned in years working as a welder. If i can some day i want to take some classes on gas welding. When i got out of high school i took my first pay check from runing a AC HD 11 and bought a new Harris torch set. I steal have it had most of it has been rebuilt. The best $140.00 my hole check that i ever spent.
who knows how to heat-n-hammer weld?
You talkin' forge weld?
yes` don`t know much about it but I remember an old blacksmith doing it back when I was about 8 yrs old . his comment to me was heat n hammer kid thats how its done
Steel has to become 'Plastic' to heat and beat weld or Forge Weld, just at that stage of 'Yellow' hot before melt or cooks. Takes a keen eye to catch it, I really do not have it.
Learned to gas weld first, during Trade School classes, to connect exhaust flex tube to a manifold connecting flange, we used brass for that initially but advanced to steel rod to perform later. Arc welding was always a second best for me, could stick stuff together but never enough time in performance to get 'Good' at it and make look pretty. Been a little more active at welding at the Farm and on old machines so got my practice time in, helpful hints from the guys in the know and often use has been great(JY).
I havent done it but i have seen it done.I am a member of BAM. The 2 parts are heated then borax is sprinkaled on then they are lightly hammered together.I saw a 1' drill that the tang had been forge welded on. Its hard to believe some things that some people could do back then.
Borax or Boron is basically a dry acid, much as a flux for soldering when used by a smith.
If your problems don’t affect the boss personally they could care less .if they do affect them personally they will be taken care of.