Antonio Garcia, Warehouse Supervisor for Infra-Metals Petersburg, first started at the Marseilles, IL location in August 2005 as a crane operator. Although the environment can seem intimidating when you are first learning the job, all of my training was safe and very thorough. After a while, I became a Crane Trainer, training new hires when they started with the company. I worked hard as a Crane Operator, for about 11 years, and I was always willing to help everyone when they needed a hand.
Infra-Metals acquired the Atlanta location, and I was asked if I would be interested in being the Trainer for their team members. This required teaching the Atlanta associates our hand-held scanners and our ERP systems. Once the leadership team saw what I could do, they asked me if an opportunity to move up within the company presented itself, would I be interested in it, if it included relocating to another plant and I replied, “I’m in”.
As I continued training the Atlanta team members, I was also called upon to go to Texas and train the Delta team, our sister company. Shortly after returning from Texas, there were three positions for advancement mentioned to me and I was just waiting for the first one to become available. As soon as the training program ended for the Atlanta team members, a supervisor position came available in Virginia and I took the position.
Current Day-to-Day as Warehouse Supervisor
My current position as a Virginia Warehouse Supervisor is fast-moving and ever-changing. We rotate shifts every three months which allows us to adapt to situations that happen on both; inbound and outbound shifts as well as bond with the associates on the different shifts. Rotating shifts does have its own set of challenges however, approaching work with the right attitude, any challenge can be overcome with the right crew!
Infra-Metals is continuously growing and has been ever since I started here, each plant has gotten better and better over time. Most importantly, is our safety growth. We focus in on our safety record and continuously focusing in on our safety equipment and staying up to date with our equipment. We want this to be everyone’s home away from home and we want every team member to return home to their loved ones the same way they arrived that day, the only way to make that happen is to have the safest work environment possible.
Some of the things I enjoy best about working at Infra-Metals are the people that I work with and work for. The people here appreciate me, and I appreciate them. Working at Infra-Metals means that you work for a company that truly appreciates you, you are not just a number here, everyone knows who you are, who your family is and what your goals are! I enjoy motivating other employees to be better and do better, to see the best in themselves and find a life-long career at Infra-Metals just like I have.
My future goal is to work on day shift permanently and be a part of the management team. A quote I live by is “A thank you goes a long way”.