O&M Team Creates Mineville Welding Room

Picture a gigantic storage room filled with so many supplies that there is barely a path to even move around in.

Now picture that storage room evolving into a welding lab for CV-TEC young professionals in less than 5 months.

That is exactly the idea that members of the CVES O&M team turned into a reality.

Starting in the early spring of 2025, a storage room at the CVES Mineville Campus turned into a new welding lab by August.

“It’s a big brotherhood working with all these guys on projects like this,” Senior Building Maintenance Worker Jeff Coon said. “There are a lot of sleepless nights trying to make these things a reality, but it’s so worth it.”

THE PROCESS

Following initial discussions with members of the CVES Leadership Team and Purchasing Office, plans were in place to make the new welding room in Mineville a reality.

The quartet of Coon, HVAC Mechanic Devin LaPorte, Building Maintenance Mechanics Mike Clarke and Eric Roselli led the way through the revamp process.

They began cleaning out the storage room in March and then had to wait a bit for various supplies to come in.

“When we first walked in that room, you would have a hard time imagining just how full it was,” LaPorte said. “It was hard to even walk around and find a path, but we organized some storage boxes so we had a usable space for a canvas to make this happen. We really did work together well as a team.”

FINDING POWER AND SUPPLIES

One of the biggest challenges was finding enough power to supply to the welding room.

The O&M team had to get creative and move a few existing circuits from one part of the building to another to ensure there was enough power for the class.

“Luckily, the gym used to be a shop class, so the couple circuits that were in there ended up being relocated to the welding room and combined with power with that was already existing in there,” LaPorte said.

Meanwhile, the wait for supplies was expedited.

Coon took multiple trips to Malone and Potsdam to locate supplies they needed to cut down on wait time rather than slowing down the process due to materials on backorder.

“It’s easy to be motivated and do whatever is needed because it’s for the kids,” Coon said. “That’s why we are here.”

FIRST-YEAR SUCCESS

By August, the welding classroom was ready to welcome students and has created new opportunities for students in Mineville.

“I have enjoyed every minute with our young professionals so far,” said Andrea Paige, who teaches the students in Mineville. “They seem to love our shop just as much as I do. Coming into this new environment, everyone was so welcoming. I couldn’t have asked for a better team next to me.”

And every now and then, members of the O&M team walk by the room and see all their hard work that paid off and a classroom that is kept in pristine condition.

“When you walk into a space that you completely remodeled and have someone who respects the work you did and takes care of it like Andrea does, it means everything and sets the standards for the students.”