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Episode 12: Traveling the Country & Back w/ Peter Santasiero
50 Plays1 year ago
Welcome to Episode 12!
Today we have a fantastic conversation with Peter Santasiero, a CNC machinist who came to HFW in the 90s, traveled the country in the 2000s and is now back at HFW! Peter has had a very interesting career that is a great example of what is possible in the trades!
This was a great conversation, hope you enjoy!
For feedback or if you would like to be on the podcast, speak to Jack. We are always looking for guests!
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Transcript
Peter's Path to Machining
00:00:10
Speaker
All right. And welcome back to the podcast. It's been a little bit since we did the last one, I think about a month, which is, uh, mostly my fault, but we are back here with episode 12. Uh, today I'm excited to be joined by Peter Saniciero, uh, who's got a really interesting story. Um, someone who actually has, this is your second round Peter at HFW, which we'll get into. Um, but I guess first and foremost, thanks for being on the podcast. Glad to be here.
00:00:40
Speaker
So we like to do this a lot when we first start off. I think it's really interesting to hear the origin story, if you will, of your journey into machining. So take us back to high school and what you were doing then and what your interests were. And then as you're getting ready to graduate, how did machining or manufacturing or the trades in general come to the picture?
00:01:06
Speaker
It's kind of funny how that happened actually. My two best friends in high school approached me one day and they're telling me that they were signing up for BOCES to go to take the machine shop course. And so I kind of felt left out. And so I go, I want to do that too. We get to leave school halfway through the day and go to another school and play with machines. I go, I'm on board. So I ended up doing it with them.
00:01:35
Speaker
And, um, it, and it really was from there was when I really fell in love with, um, with metalworking altogether. Um, it's ironic that neither one of those guys ended up being a machinist later in life. And I was the one that was, you know, it's kind of dragged into it and, and I, I kind of just became a machinist. I wasn't sure what I was going to do in life. I wasn't really, I wasn't looking at college. I wasn't really, you know, like.
00:02:03
Speaker
you know, a book kind of, you know what I mean? Like it was more, you know, more of a hands on kind of kid. I used to like working on bicycles and motorcycles and stuff like that. So, so I kind of fell into it and uh, and it was a, you know, history. I just, I enjoyed it and it was, it was fun. I liked working with my hands and then, you know, fell, it all fell into place for me.
00:02:25
Speaker
I think that's something that you hear a lot. Basically by chance you fell into it and then I think that's always the way it works. You were the one that ended up really liking it and going into it. What did your buddies end up doing?
00:02:39
Speaker
Unfortunately, one of my buddies ended up passing away just after high
Early Career Experiences
00:02:44
Speaker
school in an auto accident and my other friend ended up going into the printing business with his family who all worked for a big printing company. Which is funny because back then we were doing a lot of printing work and now obviously with technology and evolution it's changed a lot.
00:03:04
Speaker
not doing much printing at all. But you see the change and I think it'd be interesting to as well, I guess this is kind of where we're going next too. So you've actually been in several different positions and across different parts of the country.
00:03:21
Speaker
Can you talk a little bit about that experience and what that was like and maybe what you've learned from each of your different stops? Especially because I think you've had a different path than a lot of guys here. Most people tend to grow up or some guys moved around a little bit, but for the most part, you kind of find your niche and you stay there. You've moved all over and I think that'd be interesting to hear a little bit about that. Sure.
00:03:46
Speaker
Well, actually, right towards the end of my senior year, I actually landed a job in a machine shop. And what I did was I drilled holes on a Bridgeport mill all day long, eight hours a day for back then, what, $3.35 an hour. Wow. And get making $120 a week. And I did that for quite a while. And then I ended up moving up to I got a job
00:04:16
Speaker
Think I've made doing a little something different. It's still in the same feel like for $5 an hour. And that was a huge raise here. And I was 18 years old. I was like, man, so, so, so that's kind of how I started out. Um, but after, uh, let's see.
Transition to CNC and Beyond
00:04:34
Speaker
I'd say a couple of years later, I ended up in the sheet metal business. I was working for a company called Denler Metal Products. They're no longer around, but in Tonawanda. I ended up getting trained on a CNC laser. I was running a CNC laser with a fan of control.
00:04:55
Speaker
And actually, I got it. I loved it. I got really good. I got really good at that machine and how it worked. And it was really interesting. And I was just like, thought it was so cool. And so I did that for, I don't know, maybe a few years, three, four years or so. And that's when I made my step to come here to HFW.
00:05:19
Speaker
And I worked with Peter Klaus. And me and Pete were the CNC lathe guys. And I was just amazed by the scene. That was like my first exposure to a CNC lathe and a Kuma at that. And I was Florida's. Pete was really knows his stuff. And I trained with him for a while.
00:05:46
Speaker
And I had a girlfriend at the time, and she was just finishing her degree for teaching. And that's what started me going down to Charlotte. Because back then, teaching jobs were hard to get in this area. So they were looking for a lot of teachers down in North Carolina, and she said she wasn't interested in moving down there.
00:06:09
Speaker
And I just happened to have, one day I was here at work and I was looking at my book, my manual, and it's like said, Okuma, Charlotte, North Carolina. I go, oh my God, that's perfect. And I called them on the phone and they told me that I can send them a resume and stuff. So that's how I sent them a resume. And they responded and asked me if I can come in for an interview.
00:06:37
Speaker
So I drove all the way down to Charlotte and got a hotel and I go for my interview. I pull up to the plant and I'm like, I was amazed at how beautiful the plant was. It was just pristine.
00:06:53
Speaker
I go in there and I have my interview, which was pretty long interview and stuff. And then they go at the end of the interview, they shake my hand, say, okay, well, we'll give you a call or something. You know, and it just seemed like, like I went to an interview around the block from my house, you know, and I was like, walked out of there. And I'm like, man, I mean, it kind of stunk, you know, it was like, I was like, but by the time I got home, I think within a couple of days, they called me and made me an offer.
00:07:19
Speaker
And it wasn't long after that, I moved down there. And I remember my first day on the job that when I got hurt, I got hurt. They'd hurt me as a CNC mill guy. And I ran.
00:07:34
Speaker
three big double column machining centers and you had to keep them going all the time. And it really wasn't machining to me. It was really the Japanese are just have everything so fine tuned. You really can't mess with anything. You can't make, you know what I mean? They had complete control over everything. So it really wasn't that it was more of an operator's job to me.
00:07:56
Speaker
But as I was saying, it was my first day on the job. I walk into the shop and they told me, oh, you got to go to human resources. You can't wear that stuff in here. You can't wear anything in that plant that doesn't see a kuma on it. Really? You cannot wear any clothing that does not see a kuma on it. So I had to go to human resources. They had me a pile of shirts and that kind of thing.
00:08:18
Speaker
And so i was like wow so they're really really serious about their appearance and how they look too they always have customers coming through they they have like these long big bus golf carts and they drive customers through like it was almost like you're at a safari or something you know what i mean and um so i did that i did the machina i did that job for a while and um
00:08:41
Speaker
They always had jobs post where you could you could they believe with training within so so i ended up going i go well i think i want to learn how to write their opening for in the assembly department. So i so i've been on and i got it and i'm so now i'm out of the machine shop on the other side of the plan to an assembly which i thought was super interesting so i'm.
00:09:03
Speaker
I ended up on what they call the A-line and that was a hand scraping line is where it's like all handwork, it's like an art form. If you've ever seen a fist scale pattern on metal, that's scraping and it's really intricate as to the reasons why they do that.
00:09:22
Speaker
because it puts little tiny pockets in the parts that rub together, any moving parts on the machine. It puts little pockets for the oil, a place for the oil to sit so that there's not constant friction on the two mating parts or moving parts. And it also creates
Field Service Engineer Journey
00:09:38
Speaker
bearing points. So the cross slide on the saddle is actually riding on these little dots of contact. So that gives the machine longevity in the wearing.
00:09:50
Speaker
So I was on the line and I was scraping cross slides and Gibbs for a year or so. I was at a Kuma for almost four years. And I did that for a while. And then I moved on to another assembly line where they did the actual assembling of all the covers and everything, which made it look like a machine. Because most of them are just bare bones in the Cheyenne, you don't even know.
00:10:19
Speaker
It was really just a crazy, something that everybody should see. The Japanese manufacturing was just, it was so fine-tuned. It was insane. It was cool. So they had a line. They built seven lathes a day that went off the line.
00:10:37
Speaker
And they had a moving line but they would have to pull a floor plate out and move it to the beginning of the line and they would put a fresh cast base casting on there and they'd pull the finish machine off and switch the plate. But then they would play this weird melody music to tell everybody the line is going to move.
00:10:56
Speaker
And you better be ready with what your part is because there's going to be trouble. They were very, very, very disciplinary there. And, um, so, um, I just thought it was really neat. How they just, everything was like kind of clockwork.
00:11:12
Speaker
There's really, you know, you're really seeing bad quality problems or anything that needed to be addressed was always you had to get a Japanese person so they could be the only ones that can make a decision. American people with no matter how high your position could not make a decision on the product. So it was pretty cool.
00:11:31
Speaker
So my final times there, my buddy who I became friends with was from Jamestown here. So he kind of clung to people that from New York State when you're down. It was like a melting pot of people. It's always the way it goes. And he wanted to go into the rigging aspect of it. It was so going out in the field and getting to travel and go and do installations and stuff. So he kind of went over there and he
00:11:56
Speaker
talked me into trying to get in that area. So I went over there with him. I ended up going to almost every state in the country to do a machine installation. It was with a team, maybe five to seven guys would go out in the field and install these machines. It was fun. It wore on me after a while. It was a little bit, but the Japanese really strongly believe if you're away from your family, that they wanted you to
00:12:23
Speaker
be able to.
00:12:38
Speaker
it was just crazy. They put us in the nicest hotels. We didn't have to stay at like this junkie motels or anything. They did it because all built into the price of the machines. Yeah. So they didn't, they just figured that they wanted you to be happy while you're out in the field and not be bummed out and hating it. You know, so, so I did that and then I was able to go to IMTS. I worked there in Chicago for a week. I did the installations and stuff in Chicago and I did, um,
00:13:06
Speaker
West Tech, which was in Los Angeles. I got to do that show. And that was pretty much, so I ended up getting married to my wife and having a baby while my son was born in 2000. So it wasn't too long after he was born, maybe after a year or so, my wife started getting homesick. She wanted to come back to Buffalo.
00:13:32
Speaker
I kind of followed her around, I guess, because she made the decision, I guess, to come back. So I contacted another CNC manufacturer up here, Stripit LVD, and I ran some Stripit LVD turret punches when I was in the sheet metal business.
00:13:52
Speaker
So strip it flew me back up to Buffalo for an interview and I stayed up here for two days. I had like three or four interviews and I got hired on as a field service engineer, which I wasn't an engineer, but that's what they call it. So I was in the CNC manufacturing business, so I was the best candidate for them to train somebody to learn how to fix the machines.
Return to Machining and Growth
00:14:19
Speaker
So I did about a year of training in the factory, which was kind of actually difficult because they were a union shop, but I was exempt. I was a non-union. So I had to depend on these union guys who did not want to train me on what they did because it was just taking work away from them.
00:14:37
Speaker
So it was a pretty rough world for me and that training aspect. And so I went through my training process. I get my first job and I didn't feel I was ready for it. But they told me, you got to do it. We don't have anybody. You're going to have to go and just wing your way through this job. So they fly me down to Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, into a company called TaylorMade.
00:15:01
Speaker
and they make air conditioning units for boats. So it wasn't the golf golf, the golf ball company. But I walk in the plant and I meet the plant manager and he walks up to me with a strong Southern accent and his first words were, you either get my machine fixed or you could start prepping it to get it the hell out of my plant. Here I am, the first line of defense for strip it. I really don't know what I'm doing too much yet. And fortunately,
00:15:30
Speaker
Fortunately, what they needed done was something I knew what to do, and I was able to fix their machine.
00:15:37
Speaker
And I was so proud of myself. I was like, yeah, you know, it's just like, obviously with some support from back at the plane, you can hold back for tech support and stuff. But I was able to get that machine fixed. And then I went on, did that for a while. And then there was a big slump in the market. Boom. Here, I was at the bottom of the ladder and ended up getting laid off with a lot of people. Things really slowed down in the early 2000s.
00:16:07
Speaker
So I was, I was laid off and I ended up not wanting to do that type of work no more. I didn't want to, I didn't want to do the trail. I just got, I just, I just wanted to be in a shop again. Yeah. So I thought the best of both worlds was maybe going to like a machine maintenance type of field. So I ended up getting hired by not all gear, which is what used to be Westinghouse gear division. They're a huge place. I ended up getting hired, hired there as a machine maintenance mechanic. And, um,
00:16:37
Speaker
I was on the earth for a short period of time and I ended up getting handed the keys to be the maintenance supervisor. They fired their supervisor while I was there. The plant manager hands me the big
00:16:50
Speaker
ball of keys and goes, you're going to be the supervisor now. It's literally handed to the keys. They handed me the keys and said I'm the supervisor. And I was intimidated because these guys that were the mechanics and stuff that worked there, the guys I would, you know, we're along with now I'm their boss. And I didn't feel really comfortable because I didn't really want to tell these guys who know way more than me about these, what they're doing there, tell them what to do.
00:17:13
Speaker
But I kind of, we all kind of worked together and we, we made it work and we all worked as a team. Yeah. So I did that for seven years. I was there and they got bought out by ultra industrial motion and ultra industrial motion and wanted to put their own management in. Yeah. So I got laid out of there, laid off out of there. Um, so that's when I started, um,
00:17:37
Speaker
wanting to go back into the machining field because I just wanted to be stable. I wanted to go to the same place every day. I wanted to come home at the same time every day. I just wanted my day to know what my day was going to be like. So that's how that went.
00:18:01
Speaker
So I decided I wanted to go back into machining. So, um, I saw an ad out for, um, a company called HDM Hydraulics. They said right in their ad, they, you know, Kuma lathe, you know, like, bam, I go, I'm going to go, I'm going to go try to, you know, I went there for my interview and they saw my resume. They said, I worked at a Kuma. They heard me right on the spot. They were like, bam, we want you. They, you know, gave me a nice offer.
00:18:26
Speaker
So I ended up being there for eight years and I did really good at it. You know, it was a bit of, it was production machining and it was, so it was really, there was not a lot of gratification and maybe you were gratified like how many good parts you made in a day. Like they, they, they wanted every, they, they were just very, very, very driving, very fast paced environment. And it was kind of, it's kind of tough. It was kind of tough at times and it really, um,
00:18:54
Speaker
It wore on me after a while, but then I started doing a lot of training for new people. So I did a lot of training with the young guys and kids and stuff, so I enjoyed that. I enjoyed teaching people, especially if they paid attention and they wanted to learn, and I just loved sharing the information that I acquired over the years.
00:19:12
Speaker
And to this day, I still don't consider myself, there are some excellent machinists that work here. I really look up to Richard Hendry. The guy is just so smooth. I mean, I look at him and he's like so relaxed and he just, he knows his job and it's just like, I'm like, how is his machines always running? And he's like,
00:19:34
Speaker
But it's just crazy how he's just so relaxed about it. I'm always like, I'm on top of the machine kind of guy. I like watching everything that's going on in there, but he's been doing it so long and he's a journeyman and he knows his stuff and he's comfortable with it. So I look up to him.
00:19:54
Speaker
But there's a lot of good machinists here. And so that's what kind of brought me back here, is the production machining, it wasn't really doing anything for me. I wasn't getting progressing any further. I knew how to make all of HDM's parts. And the only thing that would be exciting would be a new revision on a part. Same part, just a little bit different.
00:20:19
Speaker
So it's just I started getting the itch. And, and I thought, you know, how perfect to, you know, I just figured I would contact Pete, Pete Klaus, and I contacted him and say, Hey, you know, you guys looking for things like happened, just happened to be looking for an Akuma lathe. Come in here for an interview. And yeah, I got, you know, Pete ended up hiring me, your family hired me. And I was grateful for that. And, and I am
00:20:46
Speaker
really digging and working here. I feel like a new machinist myself working here because this stuff is a lot more challenging here, which I enjoy. Sometimes nerve wracking. And that takes me to Mike O'Kee. Mike O'Kee has a very calming way about him. He's like, I got to say, he's one of the best supervisors I've ever worked under.
00:21:09
Speaker
He's super smart, but he's super relaxed and he makes me relax because if I have someone bringing that attention to me, then it kind of gets me and gives me anxiety. He just really appreciates me. He tells me he appreciates me. He makes me feel good about myself and he's just a good leader and he's got a lot on his plate.
00:21:33
Speaker
He always seems to find the time for me and helps me even have any questions. He just makes me feel relaxed and that's huge for me. Yeah. Cause I do have like some anxiety problems, but yeah, he's awesome. So, and I just, I feel I finally found a job that I really just want to finish my time here. You know, if, um,
00:21:55
Speaker
You know, that's the way it is. I just like being here and I want, I'm looking forward to learning more and just moving on. And I see a lot of young up and coming machinists and I know how the, you know, how the business is taking a turn. There's like nobody that's really hard to find people. And when I worked here before, back in the late nineties, this place was full.
00:22:19
Speaker
old school, great machinist said I was like, I was super intimidated my first round here. I forgot to say that. You know, I worked with Pete, kind of took me under his wing and we were kind of like our own little team, but I looked around this place and I go, Oh my God. So I couldn't believe the size of the machines I'd ever seen laid that big in machine and you know, the mills and stuff. And I was just amazed how, you know, that how, how complex machining could actually get. And, um, so that, that, that was a,
00:22:50
Speaker
That was definitely a curve for me. But now nowadays I see that, that crowd thinning out and retiring, as you've been mentioned, and we both know. And, um, I, um, it's just, it's kind of sad for the industry because machining could be a very gratifying job. I mean, you can, like a guy like me, I didn't go to college, but
00:23:13
Speaker
I'm making money that college graduates aren't even making yet. It's something that's good for kids that maybe school isn't the best thing for them. It's such a misconception too. It's such a misconception too. The pay thing is one. Yeah. But the knowledge and the things you learn, you get to work with your hands.
00:23:36
Speaker
I like here working in a job shop now, like making one or two parts. I want them parts to look great. And I really like, so that's the other challenges that I see that I have here is making that good part the first time. You had to really try to strive to make sure that, you know, that part is good because the materials that we work with here are, you know, there are a lot of exotic metals we work with in here and stuff. So yeah, really be careful. And that's, um,
00:24:05
Speaker
That's one thing that's a, like, that's where I'm really starting to learn on how to, how to hit that, hit that target on
Cultural Insights and Work-Life Balance
00:24:11
Speaker
the first time. Yeah. So at HTM, they would give you a setup piece. So I got a practice piece, you know, so you, you tune it, tune all your offsets and get everything tweaked in. And then your first part's going to, you know, then you work go from there. Yeah. So here you, you got to hit, you got to hit it, you got to hit it and you got to, you know, do it in a timely manner because, you know,
00:24:32
Speaker
the company is here to make money. And it's like, you know, they want stuff done in a timely manner because then no one's, you know, it's just not beneficial either, you know, a party. So.
00:24:41
Speaker
Yeah, I mean you touched on so many great points there, and I think that it is a different environment. I think like the production shop, I know there are some guys that just thrive in that environment, but I think what I've also heard from the guys that work here, and obviously I think you kind of echoed these points, and obviously everyone here is biased, but just the fact that
00:25:05
Speaker
I've heard from so many guys that they like the variety of the work and it keeps your mind engaged. And you're coming in, you have a new challenge every day. And like you said, there's an added element of, you know, the Martin Frere is a little bit less, but that's where the supervisor comes in helping you. And I mean, it just puts such a smile on my face, what you said about Mike. I think that's exactly what you want in a supervisor. Well, Mike never lets me.
00:25:33
Speaker
that lets me get too down or get, get, get, you know, like if I got like stuck on some Mike's always there to, you know, and it's so funny how natural some of these things come to him because he's like, you know, he just, he just knows his stuff and he knows like every machine in this place. And it's just like, and he's like younger than me, but he's, but he knows his stuff and he's just, he's just all around a good guy. And I like working with him.
00:25:55
Speaker
Well, it's something too. I think he was on the podcast, uh, just a little while ago and, and you know, he mentioned, and I'm hearing it from you too. I think there is something to be said about moving around a little bit too. He mentioned he traveled the world with his dad, working for Ford and moving all over the world. I think, um, you learn.
00:26:13
Speaker
Especially especially when you're younger you learn what you like you learn what you don't like you know you mentioned with like the travel i think that's it's good to do especially when you're younger and you can do it and um you know you don't have as many responsibilities it's uh in the pay is usually pretty good um but then you you learn hey it is nice to be able to come home at or leave at
00:26:33
Speaker
4.30 every day and be home and I'm a little jealous of you because I know you said you live right around the corner so you're home at 4.35. There's something to be said for that I think especially as you get older and you like to have a little bit of a routine and I think that's something we're trying to embrace here is make sure that we have that kind of environment and
00:26:53
Speaker
Um, you know, we still have, I, I'm always, you mentioned the Japanese obviously working with the Kuma and, um, I've studied the Japanese a lot with Toyota, which I know I've brought up before. So I won't bore people to death with that discussion, but I just like, there's an interesting thing. I think the Japanese make sure they take care of their people. Um, but there's, there's kind of like, uh, it's a two way street. They, you know, they expect a lot like you, it sounds like that was kind of your experience, but they make sure they take care of you as well.
00:27:21
Speaker
And I think that's somewhat similar to what we have here. We don't want to be like I know with as we're working through trying to hit the hours and stuff on jobs like that's something the better we can do that.
00:27:36
Speaker
The more money we can make, the more we can invest in all of our people here and everyone here and make sure that we can offer all these increasing benefits and compete with the big sexy companies that everyone wants to go work for. I think that's been a big focus.
00:27:54
Speaker
I know I'm biased, but I try to really preach that, you know, a small business I think can offer a lot in terms of just that comfort and you know who you're coming in and working with. And, you know, it's not just this big corporate face. It's, you know, like the people around you, you can walk upstairs and talk to anyone and just the environment, I guess. I do enjoy the family atmosphere here too. And it does, that's exactly, you're exactly right on how it is here. It's like, you know, everybody here, like,
00:28:22
Speaker
I never had anybody scold me or just everybody is super decent. I get treated like a man here. When I was at the other shop, I don't want to talk bad about other shops.
00:28:36
Speaker
the the the
00:28:58
Speaker
No one ever gets, I mean, what's going on? No, never. They let me do my job and then we go from there and it's great. It's just, I do my own thing and I'm independent and I enjoy it.
00:29:13
Speaker
And it's constantly a different, you never know what you're going to get. Yeah. You know, never jazz. So it's kind of challenging and kind of exciting too. Yeah. Well, it's good to gain that feedback too. And I think that, um, I think that's one of the things we talked about. We're losing a lot of experience with people retiring. Um,
00:29:29
Speaker
Which is in that's the downside of it and that's tough and that's something that we're obviously actively trying to combat and you know now Mike I know is got his hands full because he's got a lot of young guys I think they're gonna work out but it's like.
00:29:44
Speaker
the the
Continuous Learning and Industry Evolution
00:30:14
Speaker
Cause he's like, tells you, you know, things, things happen and don't get down on yourself cause it's going to happen again. And, but, um, yeah, I just do, it's just, um, I just like working here. It's, it's, it's actually one of the better jobs, one of my favorite jobs now at work. And I worked here before it wasn't my favorite job before. I'm not going to lie. It was intimidating here before I was a little nervous, you know, nervous and stuff. You know, I was young, you know, as I was seeing like all these guys know way more stuff than me.
00:30:42
Speaker
And every day, even being later in my career, I still learn stuff every single day. And some of the younger kids coming up got to realize this is a lifelong learning experience. Every blueprint is going to be different. Every part is going to be different. Materials are going to be different. Methods and different things, it's just always changing and evolving. And equipment and all the whole nine yards is
00:31:11
Speaker
It's always changing. So no one's just going to learn their job. That's going to be that unless they go into a production environment and they're doing the same thing every day. And if that's some people like that. Yeah. I like I like to change the difference, you know.
00:31:24
Speaker
Well, it's reassuring because I'm kind of in the, uh, that younger phase. Um, and it's frustrating when you don't, you know, like you, like I walk, I hear you talking with Peter and you guys have been, well, you guys have, you know, almost 50 years of experience combined or probably maybe even more. And, and I've got like a year and listening to like, I guess just it's second nature to you guys. And I'm trying to gain that knowledge and it's a lot slower of a process, but understanding that it just takes time to develop. Yeah.
00:31:54
Speaker
It's a big, it's a big learning curve. Especially, you know, it really amazes me now being a CNC, a CNC machinist is like, I think about back in the 1940s and the 19th, you know, back when they, when everything was made by hand, like on a manual lathe, like you say, you know, like when a production environment, you got to make 3000 or something. Yeah. It's just insane how, how,
00:32:21
Speaker
that you know how the workmanship and how people this man that they met that's what they had that's all they had to work with and you know look at our you know we're where we are now yeah giving some of those old time to way back in the day seen a CNC lady would blow their mind you can only imagine if they were doing
00:32:39
Speaker
pretty good numbers than what they could produce now with the hell with that, it'd be crazy. Yeah, everything is like a lot more, a lot more math and a lot more, you know, trigonometry is like, I think back in the day, but I seen Pete, Pete Klaus, uh, due to a trigonometry, um, problem, which I was never really good at in high school, you know, and then, and I just feel like, whoa, you know, I was like, well, will you trig now? And stuff like that. It's like,
00:33:08
Speaker
It's just really crazy how things have changed. It's funny because I've heard a bunch of machinists tell me, they're like, yeah, I was not good at trig in high school, but now I can just do it on top of my head. It's nothing. Well, when you apply it to something that puts a reason to it, but when you're in high school and you're 16 years old, you go, I need to know that. This is stupid. I don't need to know any angles.
00:33:32
Speaker
Well, so I think you touched on this a little bit, but you know, based on your experience, what, what advice would you give to a guy? And there's a bunch of them on the floor now that are just coming into manufacturing or machining in particular. What would you tell those guys who are just starting out their careers? Um, rapid override is your best friend.
00:33:58
Speaker
To just never get down on yourself. Never feel discouraged because that's what I'm saying from my own experience that I used to go, these guys are so good, I'll never get to be that good.
00:34:13
Speaker
You got to really just take it in strides and just continue. It's a continuous learning curve and coming up and being a machinist, there's always stuff you're going to learn. Like I said, even the older guys learn stuff every day, but never to get discouraged and to be careful and safe. Like I said, the rapid override
00:34:38
Speaker
You know it would prevent you from having a machine crash which is detrimental to the company and you know any or possibly someone getting hurt right.
00:34:51
Speaker
Just take your time and try to learn. When you make a mistake, don't get down on yourself about it because you learn from it. Next time you get there, I've learned it so many times. I can't even count. When I come to a job where I made a mistake, I get that job again. Now I know
00:35:10
Speaker
I know what I did last time. I need to correct that this time. You know what I mean? And not to make the same mistakes twice, because that's the worst thing. I think the best thing is to learn from your mistake, move on from it, and don't make it the next time.
Personal Interests and Aspirations
00:35:24
Speaker
If it happens, it happens. But still, you just got to keep trying.
00:35:30
Speaker
Yeah, I think that's exactly the mentality like I'm trying to make sure that we all keep in mind too is obviously we're with the young guys and with, you know, being, I think,
00:35:43
Speaker
Um, being short staffed at times that we're, we're getting frustrated and obviously mistakes are being made, but the lesson I think, especially for anyone, but especially for the younger guys too, is as long as we're learning and we're saying, okay, why did this go wrong? And what are we taking away from it? And how do we improve in the future? Uh, I don't think you can, as long as you're, you have that mindset, I think that'll, that will lead to success for everyone. I think that's kind of the mentality that you have to have. Yeah. You got to learn and move on. And it's like I said,
00:36:11
Speaker
guys, you get down on yourself and stuff, you're guaranteed to make that mistake again, you just really got to try to like, get over it. And I know from experience, because I, I can be a nervous guy, you know, like, you know, man, I get down on myself, like I make a mistake, like, I take it to heart. And, you know, sometimes it could be good, it could be bad. The mentality is everything. Yeah, it is.
00:36:37
Speaker
So I guess we've talked a lot about work today, which has been really interesting to hear about. I mean, I knew some of the story, but even just I didn't know like traveling and going on doing the fieldwork. That was something I didn't even know. But getting into, I guess, a little bit more of the personal stuff, who you are as a guy, Peter, when you're not at work, what what might someone find you doing? What are your interests, your hobbies or what do you do when you're not clocked in?
00:37:05
Speaker
I really like the outdoors. I'm a hunting, fishing, camping kind of guy. I like working on my pickup. Yeah, you got a nice truck. My truck. I like doing modifications to my truck. I just like being outside. I love camping. I was just in the Adirondacks.
00:37:28
Speaker
couple weeks ago and um I just love being outdoors. That's more of my thing. Yeah. And also, growing uh in the back in the 90s, I was going to tell you um I was uh um I've been play. I'm a musician. I was a working musician. Oh, wow. Okay. So, I played in a um uh a band uh ironically, no, rage against the machine tribute band. Nice. Alright. So, we're a working band. So, I was doing that a
00:37:57
Speaker
and I did that for a long time. So sometimes you might- What's the best rage song? I'm sorry? What's the best rage song? What's the best rage song? Yeah, if you had to pick one. I have so many, so many. I think one of the ones I like to play there, probably like some of the ones that most people would recognize on the radio, like maybe like killing in the name or something. Yeah. And people really get pumped because a lot more people out in the audience heard it. Yeah.
00:38:27
Speaker
That was probably my one of my favorite ones. Okay. Well, you know any rage? Oh, yeah, not a lot. Let's see. And being a bass player, it was really great. Oh, you're a bass too. I'm the bassist. So I really like because they're really pronounced in that band, you know, not in the background. Yeah, you're up front. There's one guitar and one bass as if there really was a
00:38:50
Speaker
fun because I had to keep, you know, fill that void where, you know, you know, rage recorded album. They did that in the studio. So they had backup guitars under that. Yeah. But that's what I did. I know Pete Klaus knew because I was playing when I started back in the day. I had long hair when I started working here.
00:39:06
Speaker
And Pete still makes comment about it. But yeah, that's about what I like to do. And still to this day, I still like strumming on my acoustic guitars. And I like to play and stuff. I don't play with a band. I'm too old for that. I can't stay up past like 9.30. Some of the shows we played, we didn't go on stage at like midnight, 1 o'clock. Oh my gosh. I can't even stay awake.
00:39:32
Speaker
But we did a couple of reunion shows like a few years back and stuff. It was pretty fun. That's really cool. Yeah. Oh yeah. Like I told you, my favorite era is probably like 1990 to 2004, which is exactly in line with Rage's Peak. So definitely one of the bands. That's why when you say that, I started with the Grunge era. Yeah. I love Grunge. Yeah. That's really cool. Yeah.
00:39:57
Speaker
Well, I guess I know why we get along now. Between it being outside of the music too. I mean, I could echo those thoughts. So we've talked a lot about the past, but looking forward, I guess more toward the future, what gets you excited? What's a dream of yours? And yeah, what are you passionate about?
Impact of Machining and Company Culture
00:40:19
Speaker
I'm passionate that something I've really been striving for lately is I'm looking for a house. I want to get a house with a little bit of land and stuff. I have a four wheeler and stuff that I haven't gone through a divorce not long ago and I just want to get my life back on track on that aspect. But that's been something like a dream of mine is to have a
00:40:49
Speaker
of the house with some land of my own that I can do my own hunting on my own property and that kind of thing and obviously to keep progressing in my career. As it stands right now, I plan to retire from here and that's how it goes. I just want to keep going.
00:41:12
Speaker
and help other people along. So you guys have a good crew. You know, when I retire, you know, I hate to think, wish my age, but yeah, I just, I just look forward to just keeping on moving and machining and staying healthy.
00:41:31
Speaker
That's great. I mean, that's, um, you saying that I think is, is the greatest compliment to HFW and makes us, I mean, I truly think that our, our great, uh, every, I think most businesses say something along the lines of our greatest asset is our people. Um, but we really, I know like, we really try to act on that and in, in, because it's true in our case, like, right. Our, our.
00:41:56
Speaker
Essentially, what we are is built on our knowledge and the skills of the great men and women here. I think what I've realized is the better we can treat our people and the happier our people are, ultimately, the happier our customers will be, which just becomes this fly with just everything. The more customers you have, the more money you can make in theory, and then the more you can
00:42:19
Speaker
keep your employees happy, which then keeps your customers happy. It just becomes this self-fulfilling prophecy that I think if we can do that, and that's what we're trying to do, I think the future is very bright. Yeah, I totally agree with that. And our customer base here, they're all heavy hitters. We got some really big customers here that are names that everybody knows.
00:42:46
Speaker
And it is important to keep that customer happy because when things are, you know, that work that we do can be taken away just as easily as we have it. And we have a very special, you know, we have a special shop here. We do stuff that people never even heard of, you know, like the heart facing and stuff. And people don't even know what it is.
00:43:08
Speaker
But we all rely on it too. Everything we're producing, we all rely on to live the lives we do. Yeah, everything comes right back. We have that poster with all the things that, hey, this is stuff you work on, which is pretty cool. Everybody can relate to that.
00:43:27
Speaker
That's something I always try to emphasize too is because I know so being that we do industrial work for big industrial clients, I think sometimes it can be hard to understand, okay, what is our work being used toward?
00:43:42
Speaker
What is we are looking at the companies we work for. Literally make the products in the sources of energy that we all rely on as a society to live on every day in our literally have to plug your phone and write in that.
00:44:00
Speaker
just the materials in the phone, what you're playing the phone, I mean, everything, your car, everything. And I think that's something we just try to emphasize. And, and then also, I think just the reputation HFW has, you're just visiting a customer last week. And almost every time a customer either comes in, or we go visit them, they rave about HFW, and particularly the employees and the high quality. And so I think that
00:44:27
Speaker
It's a testament. Like you just said, those are some of the largest companies in the world that are, HFW, this business at the end of Philadelphia Street in Buffalo has this really great reputation among some of the biggest and best firms in the world. I think that's all because of the high level of skill that guys like you have.
00:44:47
Speaker
I just want to emphasize that because it always blows me away every time we go visit customers. We don't even add. They bring it up. They're like, you guys are amazing. We love working with you. I'd say nine times out of 10, that's what we hear from them. That's just a testament to the great work that guys like you do. That's great to hear. That's positive for our future, right? Yeah.
00:45:14
Speaker
And I know, like, some guys, like, every, every job is for, you know, people have their, what they have an idea is of the perfect job. And, and so, you know, and I know some people, some people don't like to work at places and some people do like to work at places, but this place suits me well. Yeah. And, and that's why I really want, like, you know, I, I like this job and I like the people here.
00:45:40
Speaker
Yeah, everybody here is just decent people and I haven't had any bad experiences being back here with any individuals really. I just don't mind coming to work at all and I do my thing and the day goes by really quick. You're thinking all day and you're
00:46:02
Speaker
You're just busy and when you get done and you look at the clock, you're like, oh my gosh, it's almost time to go home already. I have that experience every day. I'm like, dang, I want to get this done. That's how I feel about it. That's awesome. We've covered so much today. This has been just a really great conversation. I've learned a lot.
00:46:24
Speaker
about who you are and I think what a really cool trajectory you've had in your career and I'm glad to hear you're happy now and we certainly want to keep it that way. Is there any last things you'd like to add? Any shout outs or anything like that? You made a couple already, but any last parting words? I really don't. I can't think of anything that I haven't covered, but like I said,
00:46:53
Speaker
Happy to be here and look forward to the future and the company growing and me growing with it. And that's about all, man. Awesome. Well, thank you so much, Peter. This has been a great episode. We're happy to have you and I would look forward to a bright future. Thank you. Thank you. Appreciate it.