Vice President of Production

I was given the opportunity to travel to the mines and attend a lot of courses on things like maintenance practices and weigh scale blending.  I acquired a lot of knowledge in a very short span of time.

Why Algoma?

Our Process Controls are excellent here.  Right from the early days this has been one of our strong suits.  That kind of data facilitates problem solving and drives you to look for opportunities for continuous improvement.

This company makes it easy for people to take on leadership roles.  If you have the ability and the desire they will give you that chance.

I couldn’t imagine working in a company that could offer more.

Development Opportunities

As a student I got assigned to Quality Engineering where they asked me to develop a computer modeling program for the blending of coal.  The program worked very well and they used it for a long time!  After the coal modeling project they gave me a choice of three placements as engineering assistant.  I chose Cokemaking.  I worked really hard to learn the whole area and within six months they assigned me Acting Foreman for a number of areas. 

From there they put me on an expedited development path.  I was given the opportunity to travel to the mines and attend a lot of courses on things like maintenance practices and weigh scale blending.  I acquired a lot of knowledge in a very short span of time.

What differentiates a career in steel from other sectors?

When you are a chemical engineer like me your customary career choices are either in the processing of chemicals or in the heavy metals sector.  In steel everything you work with is on a large scale – large budgets, more people, greater scope of accountability, broader range and complexity of equipment, and many chemical aspects in the process.

Can you recall a project you found particularly interesting / satisfying?

When I was assigned the role of Superintendent of the Direct Strip Production Complex I was given the task of getting that mill to meet its plated production capacity and to meet defined safety targets.  It had been lagging on both fronts.  I dove in with my nose to the grind.  I was out at 4:30 am talking to the night shift crews and trying to really understand what the issues were.  I got strict on safety and held everyone accountable for ensuring safety was always top priority.  They were a pretty discouraged group so I established small incremental goals to show them they could be successful and we were.  It was hard work but extremely rewarding when we achieved our targets as a team.

How would you describe the work culture?

We have a very diverse set of personality types across this organization and it works.  When a team decides to be successful, they get there.  Never have I seen them fail.  There is a definite intensity.  The company engages you in opportunities fairly early on; we’re very effective at doing that here, and you get exposed to a very large scope of work.