MILLWOOD, W.Va. — Hiring at Timet in Jackson County is expected to ramp up very soon. The plant is to conduct its first pour by the end of the year. Officials say they have about 300 people ready to go to work for the time being. But some are already on board and trained up. They are excited about the opportunities the new facility brings to the area.
Nathan Curfman of Wirt County is the Manager of the Vacuum Arc Remelt unit. The VAR units are where titanium is produced in the new plant. Curfman left what he considered to be a good job at a nearby aluminum plant for the chance to work in a brand new facility.
“The opportunity to come over here and build something new that is going to be this big for the community, at this stage in my career was something I really wanted to be a part of,” Curfman explained during a tour of the new site.
He noted the process for making titanium is vastly different than making aluminum or any other metal products.
“The learning curve is very steep, but it is exciting. The team they’ve assembled here is all focused on one mission. It’s not a scary thing, it’s fun and exciting,” he explained.
Seth VanMeter is originally from Ravenswood and now lives in Parkersburg. He’s excited as well to get in on the ground floor of a brand new business with a promising future in West Virginia.
“It’s such a new plant, they don’t have another one. They had to send us to another company plant in Morgantown, Pennsylvania for about 16 weeks to train on the VARS there,” said VanMeter. “There’s a lot that goes into learning the VAR department itself.”
VanMeter is one of the first hired to be part of the production team in the VAR unit. He said along with the excitement of a new career and product, the team assembled is a strong group.
“All the VAR operators will be able to do all of the jobs that need to be done in the VAR unit,” he explained. “When you’ve got systems and devices and equipment that does a lot of work for you, you’re more watching the equipment than producing the product and it allows you to produce a more quality product.”