Ashton Crone, Process Operator

Job created opportunities

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"This is a great place to start if you don’t mind working hard and if you don’t know exactly what you want to do.

"You think of labour as shovelling and wheel barrowing but I’m operating a plant. I make all the choices, and you wouldn’t think of that when you get hired on as a labourer.

"Anything can happen with any job."

Workplace images

Where I work

I'm one of 1400 employees at HudBay Mining and Smelting in Flin Flon. One other process operator and I have been there for just under a year. The rest have been there over 15 years.

The plant is a very clean environment. It's also very high tech and it takes some experience to learn how to use the equipment and computers.

Working together

As a process operator, I make decisions about production on the shift. My job is to improve the process of extracting zinc and to address any concerns or problems that come up. I work with assistant process operators, who do the manual work in the field like checking pHs* manually, and with other employees in the plant.

The engineers are hands-on so if I have a problem, they know all the places on the machine to check. The production foreman knows the plant inside out, so if I need help I ask him. He's been a shift boss for years.

*Note: The pH refers to the level of acid or base in a solution.

Continuing monitoring

I work with a Bailey DCS (distributed control system), a computer that monitors levels, flows, temperatures, pressures and the amps on pumps.

The DCS picks up on changes in these things and sends a signal to our electrical room so adjustments - like speeding up a pump or closing a valve - can be made. It's a series of about 90 different screens with seven to ten sub-screens that show each area.

I have to watch them but the alarm gives me a heads up so I know what is a priority.

I still have to do a manual check of the machines several times a day because the DCS can't detect everything.

Teamwork and talking

Working with people is a big part of my job. I'm part of a team of 12 people who work together to keep the plant running. I need to be able to communicate with each of them so we know what we're all I'm doing.

Occasionally we have a debrief session to talk about how everything is running.

Testing density

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"We use nuclear sources to measure density*. It's a tiny piece of a nuclear reactor that's in an encased shell. It's pressed right up against whatever pipe you want to get a density reading out of an it reads your flow going through there. How much time it takes to react back is how it measures your density."

*Note: The density testing measures the concentration of the mineral present.

Like Flin Flon

Flin Flon is a great place to live. There's no end to the things you can do outdoors here. Camping, cross-country skiing, baseball, golf, volleyball and football are some of the things l like to do.

It's a big hockey town so I enjoy playing hockey with my buddies twice a week. It's a younger adult team with more skating and not as much passing so it's more aggressive hockey. They also have an old-timers league here for people over 35.

Family business

After graduating my dad went to trade school and got his millwright ticket and then boilermaker welding training. He works in the surface shop at HudBay and my mom works down the hall in the main office. She's a supervisor in the mod shop. After she started here she worked her way up.

My parents were great. They encouraged me to do whatever I'm good at and wanted to do. Since I started working here as a labourer, I haven't stopped moving up.

Rewarding myself

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"I just bought myself a new truck in April. I had a skidoo and just sold that. It was a good year to sell it. I do plan on getting another one, but maybe this summer will be another sea-doo.

"I do go out of town lots. I go to concerts, and go skiing. I like downhill skiing. That's another thing I love to do. We just don't have that here so we have to travel to get there. Last year we went to Fernie BC and we have another plan in the works this year."

Fire fighter too

I'm also a fire fighter for the fire department in town. I love emergency services. I like the responsibility of taking over a scene and telling people what to do when there's an emergency.

I get paid for practising and when they call me out. They've steered away from calling it volunteering. If I want to go out and have a fun night, I just shut my pager off.

Last year I took an emergency medical technician course in Flin Flon that I almost finished, but doing that with my job training was too much so I had to stop. I plan to go back and finish it.

Fishing year round

One of the things I enjoy most about living in Manitoba is the fishing, with all the lakes and great scenery everywhere.

My family likes to go out once or twice a year for big lake trout. In the winter time we ice fish for walleye and pickerel.

Once in awhile we'll go to Saskatchewan for pickerel fishing in the winter but in the summer we fish for jacks, pike, pickerel and perch at our cabin out at Athapap in northern Manitoba.

Early shifts

If I could change one thing about my job it would be my start time. I wish I could start at 7:00 a.m. instead of 5:15. It's nice to get off early but it means I have to get up pretty early.

I work four days on, four days off. I often work two days overtime so I can learn more and still have two days to relax. I think that's a lot of time off so my work life balance is good.

The people who have been here longer have more holidays than I do. If something comes up and I need time off but don't have holidays, I can trade shifts with someone.

Research and troubleshooting

When a problem comes up that I can't figure out, I read the manual for that piece of equipment and do some troubleshooting.

I'm constantly taking numbers down and reporting what happens during my shift so the next shift knows what happened.

I do averages and titrations* but the science is pretty basic in my job because the engineers take care of the technical side of things. However, they're willing to share information if I want to learn.

*Note: Titration is a method of combining liquids for chemical analysis.

Sharing information

Most of the training here is hands on. I work closely with my partner. He's more involved and goes to meetings where they talk about what's coming up. He relays that information back to me and my shift. The shift boss also disperses information among the staff so everyone is on the same page.

Several years ago, some employees went away for training when they started at the plant to learn how to run it but since then, the people with the seniority and knowledge train us so we know how to keep things running smoothly.

Constant communication

We have a radio system we use to communicate with all the other plants - the mill, power house, cell house and maintenance.

The control room is the central plant for the zinc plant. That's where everything gets reported. The DCS tells us when there is a production problem.

We also have our own channel on the radio to communicate with other operators.

High stress

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"It can be very stressful. Things come up and you've got to think, in seconds, what you're going to do. When one problem happens there are usually a few other ones coming right behind it. There is lots of pressure. I'd say it is a really high stress job.

"But when you do the best you can for 12 hours, I don't have a problem leaving if it's still bad because I know I tried my best and there's nothing really to be stressing about."

Provide relief coverage

I'm still a relief process operator, filling in for people when they're on holidays or sick. Positions in the plant progress step-by-step so each level has more understanding about how things work. As first relief, I learn a lot of different aspects of the plant.

There are some days, too, when I'm working as an assistant process operator. Knowing about all of these different jobs can be a challenge, but it's a bonus for me as a process operator.

Important role

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"It's a very meaningful and important job because you control every variable about that plant. You can slow down production, you can lose production, all at the click of a button.

"If you make a mistake you can cost the company millions of dollars and you can put people in danger very quickly."

Creative, fun work

My job is creative because it's so hands on. I'm always making my own adjustments. I need to think ahead and try to make things work better.

When things don't run properly, I need to find a quick solution to get things working correctly. There's always something new happening too.

I work with a great bunch of guys and they've all got their own stories about the old ways of doing things. It's fun and interesting and it makes me want to come to work. I learn a lot from them.

Ideal process operator

To do this job you need to be mature, friendly, professional and able to communicate priorities to your co-workers.

You also need good mechanical understanding. Our plant is full of pumps, lines and valves so you need to have a good understanding of how flows work.

If I were hiring for my job, I'd look for someone with a good attendance record who is willing to work hard. I'd want someone with a calm personality who can deal with all kinds of people, takes things one step at a time and learns quickly.

Proud of my progress

I catch on quickly and I'm always willing to learn. If someone wants to show me something, I'm eager to learn it. If I'm going to learn something, I completely learn it. If I need to read it five times, I'll read it five times.

Being so young and moving up so quickly is something I'm proud of. It's hard to be young and take on responsibility. I still like to go out and party, but now I realize I need to settle down a bit and get to bed early because I have a job to do next day.

Chemistry helps

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"I took chemistry (in high school) which definitely helps. You get understand the technical side of how you're extracting zinc and how it all comes together. And you do need to know a little bit because you've got to change things that affect chemicals or the way the chemical reaction works.

"I took some mechanical courses that have helped and the rest is on the job. They teach you up to their standards."

Trades in high school

In high school I didn't like English. I couldn't sit down and read and didn't like writing poems or essays. I liked science because of the hands-on experiments, and gym.

I took trades-related courses like engine fundamentals for automotive and welding in high school to try to figure out what I wanted to do. I also took a pre-trade program for students going into the trades. I studied in the morning and in the afternoon I worked at Jackson's Air Service as an aircraft maintenance engineer trainee. But I learned I'd rather fly aircraft than fix them.

First job underground

I graduated early in 2006 and right out of high school I started mining underground. I was 18. I didn't enjoy the contracting. I also didn't enjoy not knowing when I'd be working because they switched me from days to nights, from one mine to the other mine. It was hard because I didn't know when I had time off, which made it difficult to plan things.

I then applied to HudBay as a labourer and got hired on. I started here working on the surface, not underground.

No career plan

I didn't have a career plan when I first started. I didn't know what the heck I wanted to do with my life. I've just been taking it one step at a time.

I really enjoy working here so for now, I'll keep trying to do the best I can and keep working up the ladder.

Doing it differently

If I were to do things differently, I wouldn't have gone underground first. I would have gone straight to community college and taken power engineering or a metallurgical technician course to better my skills.

That would give me an understanding of what the engineers are talking about and help me with my job. It would also help me move along more quickly.

Weighing options

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"I'm looking at going to school. I haven't figured out what I want to take yet. I've looked into a few options.

"A couple have to do with mining because I do enjoy that job and it has actually pushed me to want to go farther to more of an upper management job, possibly to be a production foreman.

"And I love emergency services and to be a cop, that is something I think I'd look into as well."

Power engineering

I'm interested in studying power engineering*. It would be a good course to have because I'm working with pressure vessels, all kinds of mechanicals, pumps and valves. That way I would understand the mathematics involved in my job, like how to figure out how much I'm filling up a tank in an hour, or the velocity of things.

*Note: Red River College offers a two-year diploma program in Power Engineering Technology.

In five years

My biggest priority is to be fulfilled and happy. If I'm happy doing what I'm doing then I don't need much more than that.

In five years, if I'm not in school, I hope to be the foreman in my plant.

I also like the idea of being a police officer and keeping the public safe by enforcing laws. If I could pick anything else, that's what I would like to do.

Travel plans

I'm heading to the United States for a wedding this summer. I'd like to go to Mexico in the next two years because I've never been there.

A Caribbean cruise is something I've always wanted to try. I've never been on a ship like that before.

Mining’s future

With the mining industry, it's up and down. The plant can be working one day and then the company can be down to nothing the next.

I got this job as a process operator in the plant because I thought it would be one of the more stable jobs that wouldn't be the first to go if layoffs were necessary.

Job Market Info

The links below take you to federal and regional government information on employment, education, salary ranges and long range prospects for this career.

The official title for Ashton's occupation is "Central Control and Process Operators, Mineral and Metal Processing" and its NOC* code is 9231.

Human Resources and Skills Development Canada

Working in Canada Career Research Tool

*Each occupation has an official name and unique number called the 'National Occupation Classification' code or 'NOC'.

Education

Useful High School subjects

- Mechanics
- Industrial Arts (Electronics)
- Computer-related courses
- Math
- English

*Source: JobFutures.ca

For those out of school, Adult Learning Centres can help you get or upgrade your high school diploma, including adding subjects that are required for work or further education. All Manitobans are normally entitled to four free courses.Colleges & Universities

Colleges & Universities

Red River College

Civil Engineering Technology
Instrumentation Engineering Technology
Mechanical Engineering Technology
Power Engineering Technology

University College of the North

Chemical Engineering Technology

Skills

The most important skills* for Process Operator and other related occupations are:

- Machinery
- Monitoring
- Attention to detail
- Computer literacy

* Source: Job Futures

Ashton also emphasizes teamwork and continuous learning.

There is not yet an Essential Skills* profile for this occupation.

*For more information on Essential Skills and their importance, go to: Essential Skills.

Professional Resources

Forward North (Northern Manitoba Sector Council)
Forward North works on behalf of the Northern Manitoba Sector Council, which includes seven mining, forestry and hydro companies that operate in northern Manitoba. Forward North helps match these companies' needs for skilled workers with trained people able to fill those jobs.

Mining Association of Manitoba
Represents all operating mines in the province as well as most firms conducting mineral exploration projects in Manitoba

Related Careers

Foundry Workers (NOC 9412)

Machine Operators, Mineral and Metal Processing (NOC 9411)

Supervisors, Mineral and Metal Processing (NOC 9211)