When opportunity knocked, WIN Energy Line Superintendent Matt Glomski listened.
It all started when Responsible Energy called about a project reclaiming some of their old surface mine area near Petersburg. There was a three-phase primary line running through the right of way that fed some of their pumps, and it needed to be disposed of sooner than later.
Glomski saw an opportunity for the apprentices at WIN Energy.
“I thought this would be a really good time to get all of them out there and let them tackle this retirement job on their own,” he said.
The circumstances were nearly ideal for the eight apprentices in the Vincennes and Princeton districts along with a meter tech apprentice from Vincennes who joined the operation.
The lines were de-energized, making it a safe project from the get-go. Under the direction of WIN’s newest journeyman lineman, Shawn Wolfe who graduated from the HEATS program last year, things came together quickly.
“Shawn got a gameplan together and got everybody on the same page,” Glomski said. “We all broke up into groups. Everybody knew what poles they’d be climbing or helping with.”
With some experienced linemen on hand to provide advice as needed, the aspiring linemen got the opportunity to showcase their own skills, including decision-making. Not to mention, the project also gave those in the HEATS program a chance to work toward their 8,000 hours of on-the-job training.
At the end of the day, the job was completed, lessons were learned and WIN Energy’s apprentices were one step closer to being confidently prepared for the future.
“Having a job like this for apprentices gives them real-world experience for when storms hit and they have to put those skills that they’ve learned into practice,” Glomski said. “We want to give them as much time doing the skills they need to be successful and safe as we can. When the lights go out, that’s (going to be) your guys right there.”