Shop floor career evolution: Supply Chain & Logistics

The nature of work on the shop floor has evolved over the past 50 years, but the perception in the world at large of what our trade does has not kept pace. This is a disservice to bright, young talent.

Make no mistake, our trade takes talent and can reward it. When I was in high school (1962-1966), people who took shop class were the not so bright folks. If you had a brain, it was expected that you would take the college prep curriculum. At that time, before computer control, working at a machine shop meant being a human motor controller. The worker turned cranks and provided the control to guide the machining process. So I chose the college prep courses but took shop as an elective because I just liked to make things.

After high school, it was off to college for me to study mechanical engineering, but the Vietnam War intervened. When I was a junior, I quit school and went to war. After Nam, I banged around for a few years and then started a machine shop because I enjoyed getting my hands on things. I found that the shop world suited me, and I never returned to college. For me, designing a part or system is fun, but what I really like is making the actual parts.

Brandt Taylor stands with Machinist Olivia Porter, whom he describes as a “computer wiz.” Image courtesy of B. Taylor