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jobs at B&B Welding go straight to Dave Mills. He's
the estimator, and nothing gets the man more fired up
than a thick, bulky book of engineering drawings with
architect's notations. In his office, with a little
music on, he cracks open the drawings and breaks them
down into man hours, pounds of weld wire and tons of
steel. "Estimating can be difficult," Dave
says. "It's an art, but it comes with experience.
You got to know steel."
Dave knows steel all right. He's been a certified welder
since 1972. Over the years, Dave worked with some of
the biggest fab shops in Maryland; in fact, he once
worked for the biggest fab shop on the East Coast. Though
he works mostly in the office now at B&B, he keeps
his hands in the middle of everything. He project manages
jobs, does purchasing, and in a pinch he'll weld, fit,
and even drive the delivery truck. A ten-year veteran
at B&B, Dave cherishes the democratic nature of
B&B: "The guys have more say in what they do
here," he says. As a result, "They take more
pride in what they do. I've worked for a lot of large
shops, but B&B has some of the best pride. I'd put
these guys up against any other guys I've ever worked
with."
Dave is straight shooter. Speaking of his work, he says,
"I get into it. What I like is to estimate a job,
buy the material for it, product manage it, go out in
the shop and build it." "Every day is different,"
he says. "Once I walk through the door and close
it, anything can happen. And it usually does."
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