What's new
What's new

Instrument Maker

Any of you guys near here … This is a great Job !!! I have done this type of work for over 25 years and you wake up and want to go to work , and you are always improving your skills and knowledge.
 
It looks like the job was filled (it's closed on several other sites, like LinkedIn).

My bet is that it was located on Busch campus (Piscataway).
 
Position is still open, but for some reason the ad is not up anymore. We are just starting interviews this week. Job is Busch campus Piscataway, NJ. Want to guess how many people applied? A grand total of five. Sad.
 
Assistant Instrument Maker does not give much on duties, skills needed, education or background, machines likely to be used, musical or industrial instruments, only the Shadow knows is not a good job posting IMHO.

Rutgers University should do better than that.

*Still it is great you are posting here where machine and tooling interest are high..

Someone step up to the plate , This looks looks a very good job.
 
I don't write the job descriptions and have ZERO input on what it says. Think we like that? It's a great job for the right person. Seems like most here think otherwise.
 
You know the job better than the school's HR department, and you're probably more likely to find someone here than they are, wherever they're advertising. So... Explain to us what the day to day work is like. What machines do you have? What types of parts do you make? Are you just making parts to print, or are you in on the designs?
Are you allowed to describe any of the projects you're supporting? It seems like it could be interesting work.

If it makes you feel any better, UC Santa Barbara isn't having any better luck. Just this past Wednesday, I was talking to some random guy on a bike ride. He turned out to be a software developer for UCSB. When I told him I was a machinist, he practically begged me to apply. (same job they posted here in March) They must be getting pretty desperate, if the computer science department is recruiting for them.
 
You couldn't ask for a nicer job. Pace is not frantic, the work is always different and interesting. There is a mix of make it to print and stuff we are very much into design wise. Remember most of the customers don't know much about making drawings, so we HAVE to get involved! One of my tasks tomorrow will be to take a slice off a 4.5 billion year old meteorite! We have an older Mori Seiki in great condition, 3 prototrak mills, one prototrak lathe, 2 HLVH's Clausing 15" that is near new, big old sliding gap Leblond, and more...oh and we are getting a Omax waterjet soon. It's a pretty even mix of CNC and manual.

I really thought me mentioning it here would bring out some people(just one that is actually interested) Maybe like someone said its NJ. Believe me I would rather be somewhere else myself, but my wife is a professor here and that is not going to change. And honestly it is not so bad where I live anyway, but then I have a 40 minute drive to get to work. As for pay its pretty darn good when you figure in the benefits. I feel pretty lucky to have the job. Oh and I just heard that the Princeton physics shop is going to be looking for a person too. I worked there briefly and it is a nice shop too.

Where is the guy like me but 20 years younger? I should say that a couple of the applicants seem like cnc only guys who I personally doubt have the skills to do some of the work we do, which can be very small, very close tolerance and more "exotic" materials, macor, Ti, pure copper and alum, etc...
 
New Jersey isn't the problem, it's Piscataway. That's right in the middle of a huge traffic nexus, for example it would take me two hours
one way to commute there from peeskill, during rush hour. It's almost always rush hour in that area. Also, don't discourage old folks
from applying. Aside from limiting your pool of applicants, you could run afoul of various regulations....
 
And honestly it is not so bad where I live anyway, but then I have a 40 minute drive to get to work. As for pay its pretty darn good when you figure in the benefits. I feel pretty lucky to have the job. Oh and I just heard that the Princeton physics shop is going to be looking for a person too. I worked there briefly and it is a nice shop too.

I live across Rt 1 from you (grew up in WW, live in Plainsboro) and spent the last few years commuting up to Somerset. Probably a better commute than going to Piscataway (I drove up the D&R canal), I always liked it. That said, I understand a lot of people on this board looking at the difference in salary, real estate prices (and property taxes), and congestion and thinking it isn't for them.

I couldn't say for sure, but likely if the Princeton physics shop is hiring it's to support PPPL. A few machinists split time between the the campus and PPPL, a few are at PPPL full time. I've heard that the campus shop moved a few years ago and that the new digs are not as nice, but I haven't been in it. That said, Princeton generally pays in line with the general market (as opposed to a lot of schools that make up for low pay with more flexibility, perks, etc.), has good benefits, and treats people well enough that they stay a long time (my dad's been there 39 years, and there are more than a few people at PPPL with similar longevity).

Also, don't discourage old folks from applying. Aside from limiting your pool of applicants, you could run afoul of various regulations....

I think in this case it's more being realistic, they're just not offering the pay that someone with that experience would want.
 
It could be worse. With good traffic, it would take me about 40 hours. EACH WAY. And you just know that once or twice a week, I'd get to about St. Louis before I realized I'd forgotten my lunch. Then I'd have to drive all the way back to Santa Barbara...

Have you considered asking the engineering professors if they have any smart kids who are getting sick of school? There are always a few. I think most of us here would have been train drivers, if the thought of sitting behind a desk hadn't bored us to tears. Of course, you'd have to train the guy. But if you end up with a pure CAM jockey, you'll have to train him, too. Unfortunately, there aren't a whole lot of us left out there who can use any machine in the shop. And if you want a young one, that might just be too much to ask. Making your own could be your best option.
 
Last edited:
I used to live in Ewing NJ. Right by I95 and 31 north of Trenton. Not far from princeton. I liked the area, lots of history for sure but the property taxes were just eye watering. I moved there from Minnesota in about 1991. For the same house as I had in Minnesota I paid 2.5x as much and property taxes were 5x as much. Nuts.
 
That was one of my dream jobs in college. I choose a different path that led here, else I would be on the list of 5. I have a hard time imagining a true maker not wanting to be challenged to frustration daily on something...
 
Jim Rozen: We are definitely NOT discouraging anyone from applying, but the two of us are older guys and we want to leave the place set up for the next generation, not have three people retire all at once.

Pariel: The Princeton job is not in support of PPPL actually. The campus shop is still in the same location, I was just there two weeks ago. It is a very nice facility and yes they do have good benes.

As for engineering students...my previous position was in the Mech Eng dept at Rutgers, we had one guy who is outstanding and loved the work. But alas he is off to a job at Eaton making way more than me.

Oh and taxes in NJ SUCK!
 
The Princeton job is not in support of PPPL actually. The campus shop is still in the same location, I was just there two weeks ago. It is a very nice facility and yes they do have good benes.

Oh and taxes in NJ SUCK!

IMO, not supporting PPPL is a perk. Unless you really love cutting inconel all day and doing paperwork, there's probably more interesting work to do supporting other research. Sounds like you've only been in the new shop then? There's a senior guy from that shop who's complained to me a few times about how he had to move equipment here when they closed the shop in I wanna say Frist? I'll have to ask him next time I see him.

NJ property taxes are pretty terrible, and the new federal limit on state tax write offs is absolutely killer. I would be very surprised if that doesn't get reverse by whoever replaces 45.
 
I think in this case it's more being realistic, they're just not offering the pay that someone with that experience would want.

At a certain point, pay is not the real issue, it often boils down to benefits, specifically health insurance. As one gets
older, the mortgage pays off, support for kids winds down, so money is no longer a huge issue. I've already got a job
like this one (research engineer) but am always on the look-out for sideways moves, with new challenges. I would apply for this
one except for it would realistically require a move. If I were willing to commute two hours, there are other places I
would go first!
 
If this is that same job you posted back in March, the school's listing seemed more like they wanted an engineer than a machinist. If I remember correctly, the pay topped out at a bit under $80,000 a year. Not bad for a machinist, but I think the school's ad required an ME. I'm not surprised that you didn't get much interest for an ME, with shop experience, at that pay. I remember you saying the degree was negotiable, but that probably didn't get much past this board.

Do you see all the resumes yourself? It could be that some computer algorithm is rejecting everyone who doesn't check every box that HR thought was important, and they likely don't have a clue what's important. It sounds like an interesting job, that you should have people fighting over. I've certainly considered applying for the same job here in Santa Barbara, (it's still open, too) but the idea of working for The Man again doesn't sit well with me.

Of course, the underlying problem is that we've gone almost 2 generations without training enough machinists. We're running out of skilled labor, while the job gets more complex by the day. That's why I tell anyone who'll listen that we need to find smart kids who don't like school, and train them in the shop. For my part, I have an apprentice right now. We need to go back to a time when almost every shop could say that.
 








 
Back
Top