As a sketchman, Sean M. maintains ruled lines, but his journey to this career path was less straightforward.
Sean M. earned a bachelor’s degree in interior architecture from the University of Tennessee in 2017, looked at the career path ahead of him — and chose a new map.
“I realized that what I had gone to school for was not what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I didn’t regret going to college, but I definitely wanted a change,” he said.
He ultimately chose TCAT for the pipefitting and plumbing program. Although Sean traded sketch pencils for pipe wrenches early on in his career, now he puts both sets of tools and skills to work as a pipefitter “sketchman,” or a drafter, with the Y-12 Construction group.
“Some days, I may be inside the protected area to make a routing sketch or diagram; other days, I’m consulting prints to generate weld maps or consulting an ICR [Installation Change Request] for a change in work scope,” he said.
Like many other craft employees on-site, Sean came to Y-12 through the United Association, a labor union for welders, plumbers, and pipefitters.
“Not surprisingly, a large amount of the skilled trades work in East Tennessee revolves around TVA and DOE sites, so I found myself working at the UPF Project before being called out for a position ‘inside the fence’ with Y-12 Construction,” he said. “The work I do here is challenging in the best way, and it lets me indirectly contribute to the success of my union brothers and sisters in the field.”
What advice would you give others who are interested in pursuing a career at Y‐12?
Don’t limit yourself! Life is very rarely a straight line from Point A to Point B — don’t discount the value of unexpected opportunities. Facilities like Y‐12 need a wide variety of skills and backgrounds.
What is your favorite aspect about your work environment?
The variety of opportunities I’m afforded! Getting to work on a variety of systems and projects has been an excellent chance to learn new things, both about drafting and pipefitting. My work is engaging, and although there are always some basic tasks that remain the same, the day-to-day work changes frequently.
How do you improve on your skillset?
Truthfully, it’s not an exciting answer, but a lot of learning CAD (computer-assisted drafting) and drafting skills is repetition, repetition, repetition. The slightly more exciting part is absorbing knowledge from the large variety of skilled professionals at Y-12. Tradesmen, field engineers, and coworkers with decades of construction and fabrication experience have been an invaluable resource to me as I tackle new projects and work fronts. Half the battle at Y-12 is knowing the “who” of your question or problem, and there’s a good chance you’re working very close to the “who” you need answers from.
Who in your life has inspired you the most and why?
My mom, easily. Although I earned a bachelor’s degree, that doesn’t automatically mean school was “easy” for me. I had difficulty with particular core subjects, and passing certain classes required a lot of tutoring, meeting with school faculty, and building a network of support along the way. My mom was the first person to advocate for me as a student, and I would be in a much, much worse place in my life without her guidance and encouragement.