KC Newman

 

What is the trade you do, and how does it appear in people’s everyday life?

I’m an ironworker.  We do things like put big girders, beams, and columns into place; ironwork is the skeleton of buildings, even schools, usually covered by drywall, but it’s there.  I’ve even worked on the Port Mann bridge; every time I walk across it I think, “I worked on that!”

 

How did you decide to pursue the trades?

An ironworker married into my family and said, “KC, try this out, see what you think”.  I learned about ironworking by watching videos on YouTube, seeing everybody climbing and walking the beam, and the cranes, and I thought, “this looks like fun”.  I drove out from Saskatchewan one June, and at the beginning of July I was in class at BCIT.

 

What 5 tools do you use the most?

I use my spud wrench, my sleever bar, a beater (sledgehammer), and I carry bolts in my bolt bag.  We also use cranes.  I consider them a tool because I can’t lift those beams myself!

 

What would you say are some of the highs and lows of your job?

For the most part, there are a lot more highs than lows.  In construction it can be a lot of “boom or bust”, sometimes you’re working 10 or 12 hours a day, 6 days a week, and you’re making lots of money and you’re learning new stuff, and then it’s going to bust, and you’re going to be sitting at home for a while before the next job starts.  But that can be fun, too, because that’s my vacation, that’s my time to chill out and do all the stuff I haven’t been able to do while I’ve been working.

 

What is one piece of advice you would give a person who is wondering if a career in ironworking might be for them?

Think about what you’re geared for: Do you like being outside?  Are you a rock climber?  Are you a skateboarder?  Do you like BMXing and jumping on your bike?  We (ironworkers) are outdoorsy, physical people.  Do a little bit of research about the trade.  If it looks interesting, then try it; you don’t know until you try.