"The Kid" is a born natural machinist. He began by making parts with a file
hacksaw and drill before kindergarten. Before he was a teen he could hold
tight tolerance on my clapped out Bridgeport. He took the post secondary
option and got a degree as a machinist and graduated high school at the same
time. From 16 on, he worked as a welder and machinist after school.

He took a job running a CNC mill at a local machine shop. After about 9
months he made a statement that shocked the hell out of me, "Those guys in
the office make more money and don't work as hard". So, he's back to school
for two years to get a CAD/CAM degree. Worked second shift the whole time
making tight tolerance medical parts.

He graduated this spring and took a job as cost estimator for a solid local
company known for their ability to manufacture extremely large items. If you
need a part the size of a rail car, they can make it if you can hold the
weight below 40,000 lbs. It was immediately apparent that there was a real
vacuum for CNC programming, fixture design and setup so he moved into that
job half time.

Over the last couple weeks he's been working with the company president
identifying what equipment they need to bring the parts currently being
farmed out back in house. They made a field trip together and are about to
finalize purchase of two new four axis machines and a very large lathe.

Last night's discussion was on man power. They will be hiring two new
machinists. The president ended the day by saying he needs a smart young man
to head up the new department.

Karl