Aerospace Machinist
EJ Smith is a machinist at a local manufacturing company who is rising in the ranks with training in computer numerical control (CNC) operation at Oakton. EJ enjoys learning and working hard, but what truly motivates her is being part of a team who can transform a block of metal into a part that could end up in a plane or in space. It’s been a relief—and surprisingly enjoyable—to find a career where she can continuously learn and advance while providing a steady life for her two teenagers.
"As a kid, I was always building something if there was plywood around or a cardboard box. Or if somebody was installing something in their house, I was the tool caddy bringing the wrenches and the screwdrivers. Eventually I learned how to use things like reciprocating saws and all that fun stuff. I got into construction when I was in high school doing Habitat for Humanity. I knew I was probably never going to be the tallest or biggest person around—I'm not exactly the height for drywall or painting. But I was introduced to someone who did the drafting and they got me interested in layouts and spatial design. I figured that's something that doesn't take a whole lot of brawn, but it does take a whole lot of brains, so it would be a better fit for me. I did kitchen and bathroom layouts and then slowly I got myself into actual construction. But there's only so far you can go as a designer without getting more credentials, and at the time I just didn't have the funds for it. So I started taking classes at Oakton in mechanical design."
A layoff during Covid prompted EJ to start exploring her options. After hearing from a colleague who was working as a machinist, she learned about the stability of the manufacturing industry, and used her construction background to get her first job in the field.
"When I first started in CNC machining, I was looking at the mills and these two- and three- and five-axis lathes and/or mills where they're making entire engines out of this gigantic chunk of metal. There’s a linear pathway from somebody's imagination to a blueprint to a chunk of metal…to a piece that could go into a space shuttle. That’s the kind of stuff that fascinates me. After starting my job, I decided to get more training in CNC programming at Oakton. I took classes in SolidWorks and drafting so that I could see from both perspectives—not only as the machinist but as the engineer. I can read the blueprints, but knowing how to read the drawings and then how to apply them to the machine—that's the tricky part; where you've got to overlay one knowledge set with one slightly different knowledge set to make something within the specifications."
With every class she takes at Oakton, EJ is finding that she can move up the ladder at her current job. And beyond this potential for advancement, she sees the long-term benefit of gaining knowledge and skills that she can take anywhere in the future.
"With more training at Oakton, I'm actually opening up more opportunities at work because now I'm not only running a machine, I'm being told to set up the machines, and that increases my ability to make more money and learn new skills. It feels great as a single parent that I’m working and I've still got time for my kids, but I've also got time to learn for myself. And they see me working this job that makes me happy, that pays me well. I’m showing them that once I learn something, that skill is mine; nobody can take it from me. If something happens at my current company and it's not sustainable, I can take these skills and transfer them to a new job—I won't have to start from the beginning."