A lot can happen in two decades. While most people change jobs three or more times in 20 years, Director of Manufacturing Adam Kivett has held strong with his dedication and loyalty to ET Works, but if you ask him — he’s just “lucky”.
“I think I just kind of got lucky finding a job with ET,” Kivett said. “I was just out of college and I was looking for a job in agriculture because that’s what my background has been in my whole life. I heard ET Works was looking to hire from my college roommate, Jeremy Hurt.”
Hurt, is a Senior Application Specialist and has also been with the company for 20 years. In fact, he started just a couple weeks before Kivett back in 1997.
“When I first started there was maybe seven or eight guys on the team,” Kivett said. “There wasn’t really a title. I would just call what I did ‘general labor’ or a ‘mechanic’ working with the machinery. It was really cool, because I got to do a lot of different stuff. Since the team was so small I got exposed to all of the inner workings of the Apache Sprayer.”
But as the company grew, so did Kivett’s role. In the first few years Kivett was tackling various manufacturing processes (like assembling and welding) and then he eventually started helping with inventory management. In the last 15 years, Kivett says that although his title has changed several times, his job description hasn’t.
“I’ve been a Production Supervisor, and then I think I was a Manufacturing Manager for a while, and then I was a Plant Supervisor,” Kivett said. “Around four years ago, I became the Director of Manufacturing and started managing everything to do with our manufacturing process — things like quality, fabrication, safety, building maintenance and inventory. I’m not sure how relevant all those previous job titles were — to put it simply I’ve been in charge of the plant and the shop floor and everything to do with it for around the last 15 years.”
Even though he’s earned his stripes in the company, Kivett says he’s still learning every day and enjoys the variety that comes with his position.
“It’s a pretty interesting gig in that it’s never the same; no two days are alike,” Kivett said. “I work a lot with my team leaders and managers. I’ve never been the type of guy that likes to do a lot of office work, so I’m on the floor the majority of the day. If we’re shorthanded I’ll fill in and I might do some welding from time to time, or maybe I’ll be out in quality control working on some prototype stuff.”
Kivett says he likes being out in the plant, because that’s where you see things firsthand and get ideas.
“I like to stay hands on,” Kivett explained. “I want to continue to feel knowledgeable in all areas, so I can bring new ideas to the group.”
With his 20-year work anniversary behind him, Kivett is looking to the next 20 at ET to keep him on his toes.
“I’ve been here so long — this place is kind of like my second family,” Kivett said. “I really enjoy getting to help farmers try to do things in a better way with our equipment. From ’97 to now, Apache has done a lot of things to help do that. I really can’t see myself doing anything else.”
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