At Work
UPDATE!!!
I have retired. In January, 2020, after 45 years, I decided to retire. At 65 years old, I could have kept going for a couple more years. I still had plenty of energy and was in reasonably good health, but I knew I was going to have to do it someday, so I decided to retire while I still had plenty of energy and was in reasonably good health!
I have had a couple jobs over the years, but I won't bore you with ancient history. I have been working at Harnischfeger (P&H) for 45 years now, and honestly, anything before that is ancient history. The nice thing about working for a big corporation is the variety of different jobs available. Up until I took the crane operator's job on first shift, I hadn't held any one job for more than 5 years. The change of pace created by having different jobs keeps things interesting and helps prevent me from going crazy (most of the time), but it also prevents me from mastering any of them. I have worked at the Oak Creek plant (it no longer exists) and the National Avenue plant, and now at the Milwaukee Distribution Center, which is located in....I know what you're thinking, but you're wrong....it's in Oak Creek..... go figure. So, just for the record, Harnischfeger Corporation became P&H Mining Equipment, which became Joy Global, and now it is Komatsu Mining Corporation.... whatever, it will always be P&H to me.
Here is a list of the different jobs I have had at P&H:
Welder - large weldments - National Avenue, Milwaukee WI.
Submerged arc welder - Nat. Av.
Submerged arc welder - Oak Creek, WI.
Welder - Oak Creek
Shear/punch press/burning table operator - Oak Creek
Storeroom lead man - Oak Creek
Welder - Nat. Av.
Setup welder - lattice booms - Oak Creek
Setup welder - platforms and handrails - Oak Creek
Setup welder - trolleys - Oak creek
Hydraulic assembly - Oak Creek
Setup welder - small weldments - Nat. Av.
Setup welder - large weldments - Nat. Av.
Setup welder - crawlers and car bodies - Nat. Av.
Crane operator - Nat. Av.
Logistics Clerk - Milwaukee Distribution Center - Oak Creek
I was a welder for 30 years, but it is behind me now.
Over the years, I held the following certifications in welding:
SMAW (rod welding) all for unlimited thickness of plates
Horizontal
Flat
Vertical
Overhead
FCAW (Flux-core wire welding) all for unlimited thickness of plates
Horizontal
Flat
Vertical
Overhead
Submerged arc welding
Pipe welding
I was also a licensed fork truck driver.
I was a crane operator for 10 years between two different shifts and two different cranes. I took a substantial cut in pay when I left welding. Most of my co-workers said I'd never do it. When asked why, I told the following story:
I was summoned to a meeting. All my various body parts were in attendance. A vote was taken to determine my future at P&H. My knees, back, elbows and wrists voted for the crane operator job. I enjoyed the challenges of being a setup welder and my mind didn't want to leave, but as you can see, I was outvoted.
I loved operating the crane and planned to retire from the crane, but a series of unfortunate circumstances precipitated my premature departure. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say it wasn't easy leaving a job I loved.
Here are a few pictures from when I was working in the crane.
I have retired. In January, 2020, after 45 years, I decided to retire. At 65 years old, I could have kept going for a couple more years. I still had plenty of energy and was in reasonably good health, but I knew I was going to have to do it someday, so I decided to retire while I still had plenty of energy and was in reasonably good health!
I have had a couple jobs over the years, but I won't bore you with ancient history. I have been working at Harnischfeger (P&H) for 45 years now, and honestly, anything before that is ancient history. The nice thing about working for a big corporation is the variety of different jobs available. Up until I took the crane operator's job on first shift, I hadn't held any one job for more than 5 years. The change of pace created by having different jobs keeps things interesting and helps prevent me from going crazy (most of the time), but it also prevents me from mastering any of them. I have worked at the Oak Creek plant (it no longer exists) and the National Avenue plant, and now at the Milwaukee Distribution Center, which is located in....I know what you're thinking, but you're wrong....it's in Oak Creek..... go figure. So, just for the record, Harnischfeger Corporation became P&H Mining Equipment, which became Joy Global, and now it is Komatsu Mining Corporation.... whatever, it will always be P&H to me.
Here is a list of the different jobs I have had at P&H:
Welder - large weldments - National Avenue, Milwaukee WI.
Submerged arc welder - Nat. Av.
Submerged arc welder - Oak Creek, WI.
Welder - Oak Creek
Shear/punch press/burning table operator - Oak Creek
Storeroom lead man - Oak Creek
Welder - Nat. Av.
Setup welder - lattice booms - Oak Creek
Setup welder - platforms and handrails - Oak Creek
Setup welder - trolleys - Oak creek
Hydraulic assembly - Oak Creek
Setup welder - small weldments - Nat. Av.
Setup welder - large weldments - Nat. Av.
Setup welder - crawlers and car bodies - Nat. Av.
Crane operator - Nat. Av.
Logistics Clerk - Milwaukee Distribution Center - Oak Creek
I was a welder for 30 years, but it is behind me now.
Over the years, I held the following certifications in welding:
SMAW (rod welding) all for unlimited thickness of plates
Horizontal
Flat
Vertical
Overhead
FCAW (Flux-core wire welding) all for unlimited thickness of plates
Horizontal
Flat
Vertical
Overhead
Submerged arc welding
Pipe welding
I was also a licensed fork truck driver.
I was a crane operator for 10 years between two different shifts and two different cranes. I took a substantial cut in pay when I left welding. Most of my co-workers said I'd never do it. When asked why, I told the following story:
I was summoned to a meeting. All my various body parts were in attendance. A vote was taken to determine my future at P&H. My knees, back, elbows and wrists voted for the crane operator job. I enjoyed the challenges of being a setup welder and my mind didn't want to leave, but as you can see, I was outvoted.
I loved operating the crane and planned to retire from the crane, but a series of unfortunate circumstances precipitated my premature departure. I won't go into details, but suffice it to say it wasn't easy leaving a job I loved.
Here are a few pictures from when I was working in the crane.
This is my office.
The four controls from left to right are: bridge, trolley, main hoist, auxiliary hoist.
The four controls from left to right are: bridge, trolley, main hoist, auxiliary hoist.
As you can see, it is an open air, room with a view.
The entrance to my office. Yes, I have to climb down a ladder to get into it.
My office is little more than a cubicle hanging under the girders.
Here are a few of our products.