Dan The Man

Absolutely! As a designer of electrical control panels, both schematically and mechanically, it’s my job to pass electrons from “Point A” to “Point B” without killing anyone in the process. However, that probably disqualifies me from working in an Electric Chair Factory. I like what I do, but I don’t always enjoy the monotonous amount of relay logic that so many designs still require. Come on people, if you need more than 10 relays to accomplish any task, you should have planned for at least a small PLC. I like to look up the information on the companies that we build our equipment for. I like to see what industry or people will benefit. When we have a job that is particularly notable, I’ll mention it in our production meetings. Oh, we build boiler feed systems. Deaerators, surge systems, blowdown units, high pressure condensate receivers, and a complete line of Critical Fuel Systems, proving that water and oil do mix quite well after all.

One particular job we did stands out. There is a firehouse in California where a single lightbulb over 100 years old has been continuously burning since its installation in 1901. It’s in the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department #6. Being a part of the team that ensured that light stays on has been a bright spot in my career. So, yes, I absolutely love my job. I started as a fabricator of control panels in 1999, and built them for 5 years. After 5 years our previous designer left the company and I enquired as to how that position might be filled. I told my boss I was wanting to design rather than build, and the rest is history. I’ll be picking up my 25 Year Service Award this year. I’m grateful to my company for putting up with me so long. I can be quite a tool, as you might imagine.