What do you do here at Carter?
I’m a Recon Assembly Technician. We build engines. In Recon, the engines come to us as a short block – we rebuild them and take them to dyno.
Explain your path to your current job.
After attending Franklin County High School, I joined the Marines and served 8 years as a diesel technician. During that time, I did a tour in Afghanistan with a Marine expedition unit with the Navy. I was near my End of Active Service and needed to find a job – I knew I wanted to apply my knowledge of the skills I learned in the military. I saw a post on Facebook about Carter Machinery and decided to apply. I got out of the Marines on August 14. By the start of September, I started working here – first in disassembly and then moving to assembly and small engine dyno before coming to large engine assembly.
What skills have you acquired that help you perform effectively in your current position?
I am learning the inner workings of an engine, how to put them together, and get them to work like they’re supposed to. The training here from the senior technicians is great – if you have a question, they’ll help you along the way. I knew a lot coming into the job, but never had a chance to build engines. I’ve learned a lot more working here.
Were you always mechanically inclined?
Yes, I was always around cars and trucks growing up. I was always helping dad with stuff around the house, either working on farm equipment or cars – we were always working on something.
Do you feel like you need to have experience coming here to work?
I think having a basic knowledge is good, but even if you’re not an expert, Carter is going to teach you along the way. Especially with the Apprenticeship Program, they’ll teach you their way of doing things, and you learn from the senior techs here.
What do you like about where you work/what you do?
I like seeing the beginning and end results. Some things we get are torn apart and in bad shape. We take those parts, work on them, and put it all together to make it run. When we see that final product go out, along with the customer’s reaction, that’s really satisfying.
Do you feel like you are supported in your career path here?
Absolutely. If you build a relationship with your supervisor and coworkers and work to the best of your ability, they’re going to support you. We get yearly reviews, where we’re told the good things we’re doing and the areas in which we can improve. We’re asked, “Where do you want go in your career path?” If you work hard and apply yourself, Carter will help you achieve your goals.
Tell us about the work environment here – are people helpful in solving problems?
Here in my world, we work in teams of two – my partner and I are really good together. We also have several team members who work alongside us. We know we can rely on them if we have questions. The camaraderie here is great. We laugh and have a good time. I look forward to going to work here each day.
Tell us about what you enjoy doing when not at Carter.
I really enjoy spending time with my family. I have a daughter who is 10, a step-daughter who is 7, and a 6-month-old. I love just spending time with them. I love the outdoors, hunting and fishing. That’s another thing I like about Carter – it offers me a real work/life balance. I work four 10-hour days, so I get an extra day to spend with my family. I love the schedule.