I'm a Manufacturing Engineer, which translates into layman as overglorified mechanic, purchaser, and paperwork aficianado!
But, as in my other post, right now, I'm working for a division of FAG Bearings (go ahead, I've heard them all!!!), a German bearing plant based in Schweinfurt, Germany. What is EXTREMELY IRONIC and humorous about this, is that Barden (my division) in Danbury got their start by reworking normal bearings to be precise enough for use in the guidance and stabilizing mechanisms in the Norden Bombsight. Without these bearings, the Norden would have been an overengineered magnifying glass and telescope. For those of you who are not history buffs, what makes this ironic, is that FAG is one of the oldest and well-known of the Bearing companies, and was a KEY supplier in bearings for the NAZI war machine. Everything from Messerschmidt Bf109's, to PAK 88 Anti-aircraft/tank cannons, to trains to Tiger I and II, to U-boats and V1 and V2 Rockets had FAG bearings in it. Any of you old Hogans heros fans will probably remember that practically every air raid that Hogan was helping was targeting the Ball Bearing plant in Schweinfurt. Well, that Ball Bearing plant was FAG-Kugelfischer. In our lobby, we have an old Norden in a glass case, and so whenever visitors from Germany come to visit us, the first thing that they see is the Bombsight used on B-17, B-24's, etc... that were used to try and wipe our parent company right off of the map.
Funny, the animosity is still there too....
Well, anyhooooo, my specific project is a precision ball bearing line that is making bearings for CAT, Toyota Truck (HINO), and soon, maybe Ford F250 and F350 trucks with turbo-diesels. Just as is popular in racing, engine makers have seen that ball bearings make a WORLD of difference in turbo performance and durability, and so we are leading a project with one of the biggest turbo manufacturers in the world to get all turbodiesels switched over to meet new emissions standards and fuel efficiency as well. Obviously, the project hasn't been a trumpeting success because of the belly-up nature of the auto industry right now, and because some customers are just slow in adopting the new technology, but it is the trend you will see across the board in the next couple years (Europe is going full-bore to this concept being made by our sister plant in Plymouth England). SO, as usual, that's me job in a nutshell, delivered in a short, succinct fashion...
And of course, there is still my second job, which is, come ****** or highwater, moving to CO, but that's another sad story...
