graduating hobart, shipyards, pipefitters, what else?

By loudnproud Date 06-21-2009 04:48

I'll be graduating from hobart institute of welding technology in ~3 months. i would like to work with pipe and I'm (wife/2 kids) willing to relocate anywhere i can start making some money asap and have some stability. i'm trying to decide on whether to go into the shipyards back home near the gulf coast or try a new part of the country we've never experienced before such as west coast or east coast. i've also considered the pipefitters union. When selecting a pipefitter apprenticeship to apply for, how would I go about finding out where the most work is happening and who is most likely to accept me in the near future? i would greatly appreciate some insight into either of these fields of work. northrup grumman has been accepting eligible students from our school lately so i may have a foot in the door there but i didn't want to jump right into it without shopping around a bit. thanks

By Tyler1970 (***)

Date 06-21-2009 06:53

well where exactly are you from? i am from louisiana, and i know alot of companies are hiring p/f in the new orleans and baton rouge area.

By loudnproud Date 06-21-2009 14:07

from louisiana. i have some property in shreveport and the in-laws have some in chalmette just outside new orleans that could be used to get on our feet. i'll tell ya, troy OH has been a breath of fresh air for me. It's been nice to be outta the "dirty south" for a while and was kinda leaning towards going out west somewhere. But, whatever it takes, you know..

By spgtti

Date 06-21-2009 16:26

If you want stability stay away from field work. Not to say that some people don't work steadily, their entire career, for one shop, but this is more an exception than a norm.

I have friends that enjoyed working in the shipyards, and know others that have spent many years working in pipe fab shops. The pay is a little lower, but these jobs are better layed out, safer, and more stable.

Union apprenticeship in most of your larger cities will have a fair amount of work (always for willing apprentices) and good compensation and benefits. Once you reach journeyman status you are more expensive and often times will be layed off or furloughed more frequently. There are opportunities to travel when work gets slow and if your willing to go you can normally find a paycheck somewhere, however it also creates big strains on a family.

By Tyler1970 (***)

Date 06-21-2009 17:18

performance, turner, bay limtied, s&b all got some jobs going on. they out of baton rouge

By alan domagala (**)

Date 06-21-2009 18:42

If you want to work with a bunch of drunks and addicts and do nothing but repair their unbelievable crappy work, the shipyard is the place for you! Sorry for the sarcasm and I really dont meen to stereotype but im my experience this is true at least here. (of course there is exceptions and Im sorry if I offended anybody, but if your on this website, your not one of the people I have described!) Id say find a good fab shop where you can learn alot and do different things.

By Fredspoppy (**)

Date 06-22-2009 12:33

I would take exception to your comments relating to shipyard welding. Of course there are differences in shipyards around the country, but I started my career at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton, WA and their apprenticeship program put out some of the best welders in the world. The government shipyards treat welding as a trade, not a tool of the trade like the rest of the country. We learned all phases of welding, from oxy-fuel welding of sewer piping to welding of nuclear piping systems. You couldn't go out into the shipyard to tack weld without qualifying SMAW on carbon steels, oxy-fuel cutting and arc gouging. When we put in a weld, we didn't have to call our grinder boy to come clean it up so it might pass NDE. Be careful when passing judgement on sections of Industry that you know little about.

By robgreg1978 (**)

Date 06-22-2009 02:13

hello, im from shreveport myself and its a hard decision to make. I have been doing turnarounds and shutdowns for 14 years making some killer money, but i now been married twice and only get to see family members every once in a while. Worked in Shreveport only once this whole time. Hard to have a family and chase turnarounds all year. But I have tried to stay around one spot but just not enough money since i was used to those big 84 hr checks plus per diem. If I had it to do over and knew one day i was going to have a family I would of found a permanet job and make due. its alot less stress in the long run. There is a steamfitters union on Industrial loop by west 70th in Shreveport that is where the pipefitters union is and there is a company called republic contractors that a buddy of mine owns he hires out of that local maybe start there if you want to stay in shreveport