Employment in Phoenix AZ?

[tc-cad]

Hello All:

Well after living here all my life, we have had it with the weather here in Wisconsin. Finally have talked the (wife and kid 16 year old) into moving to the Phoenix AZ area, we do have some family there already.

Of course there is that little thing called getting a job. My Experience has been CAD Design and 5-Axis CNC C02 Laser Programming, and also FEA of Deep Drawn sheet metal parts. Here is the question. What is out there (Phoenix area) for tool and die shops for sheet metal stamping? I have sent in my resume to a head hunter, but trying to do some research on my own also.

Can any one help or advise?

Thanks
TC-CAD

 

[thehazmatguy]

I can't help with the job... but I would suggest moving out here in the late fall if you can control the date. Since you have a 16 year old, I'd suggest moving here over his/her Christmas break.

It's not a huge deal - but moving to the Phoenix area during the summer is brutal for somebody from the North. Moving during the winter will make the transition much easier.

Good luck!

 

[tc-cad]

Thanks for the tip. I know July and August are the hot months out there. Still better than 9 months of snow and cold.

 

[Steevo]

Thanks for the tip. I know July and August are the hot months out there. Still better than 9 months of snow and cold.

July and August are the blistering, burning, inhumanly extreme heat months in Phoenix. The rest of the year are the hot months.

 

[CNGsaves]

I'd sure line up Multiple job possibilities/offers BEFORE moving from industrial rich Wisconsin to Arizona.

Brother lives in Prescott and builds houses which has totally died the past several years. Phoenix is severely overbuilt even in commercial real estate as I went to vist and there was complete shopping mall just sitting idle couple years ago as economy tanked.

State of Arizona itself is in bad financial shape itself as forced to close national parks, rest stops on highways, etc.

Do all your research first before abandoning a paying job in Wisconsin!!

 

[tylernt]

Do all your research first before abandoning a paying job in Wisconsin!!

Agreed! I don't mean to squat on Phoenix, but after reading various threads on city-data.com, I would be a little hesitant. I've not been there myself but apparently, some people believe the city planners planned poorly.

Also, no winter is nice, but from what I can tell, some portions of AZ make up for it with brutal summers you may come to hate just as much as the cold. Also, I was surprised to learn about this thing called a "monsoon season" when parts of AZ/NM don't always have that famous "dry heat": they also get rather humid for a few weeks every summer. Anyway, my thought was that you might look into some of the more temperate regions of AZ if you still want to move there to be nearer family.

 

[PECVD2]

Can't help you with a job but I have family there and was visiting two weekends ago. Stopped at a garage sale, woman running the show (a teacher who had moved there from Wisconsin a year ago) had crate with some old rusty Stanley wood planes, saw sets and sharpeners, wood saws and other goodies. I bought them all from her. Anyway I asked her about adapting to the climate and she responded, I can handle a month or two of extreme heat but will never go back to months of extreme cold then the great thaw and the mud (something to that effect). She had teenage kids, dogs and OBTW a husband who I was told loved the weather as well.

Check out the local papers for employment there are several large aerospace companies there and a pretty large cottage industry of machine shops where a CAD (solid works or ProE) guy should be able to find work.

 

[WWIIjeep]

Still better than 9 months of snow and cold.

You mean 9 months of snow and cold, and 3 months of bad sledding.

July and August are the blistering, burning, inhumanly extreme heat months in Phoenix. The rest of the year are the hot months.

It's a dry heat.

You can laugh at that, but it really does make a difference. I'd rather be here when it's 100+ and dry than anywhere at any temperature on the gulf coast or eastern seaboard or midwest when it's humid. (edit) The monsoon season isn't bad. Yes, it gets a little humid while still at 100+ degrees at times, but it's still not anywhere near as bad as the humidity in other parts of the US.

July and August are hot, and so are June and September. But, unless you're working outside in the sun, it's bearable. The part many people have trouble dealing with is that there's rarely any relief at all on the valley floor for four-plus months straight. Find an excuse to travel during those 4 months. Even an hour's drive north will give you a little break.


The rest of the year is PARADISE.

Good luck with the move and the job search.

 

[brittmer]

My family and I moved to the Phoenix area from Iowa about 5 years ago and have not regretted the move once. We also grew tired of the snowy cold and gray days.

The "dry heat" does make a difference from the Midwest weather. 110 degrees feels like 90 degrees with 80% humidity in the Midwest and the funny thing is, 70 here can be a little cold. In the summer you go from your air conditioned house to air conditioned office and back. If you have a pool it is easy to keep cool at home with the beverage of your choice. The biggest thing is to drink a lot of water for the first few months to get used to the drier air.

Look on careerbuilder.com, indeed.com and some of the other websites for jobs.

Good luck with the move.

 

[ChevyEFI]

Working outside during 3 to 4 months of summer pretty well blows. Count on adding an evaporative cooler to a garage / work area.

Shorts / short sleeves sound brilliant but you'll burn. Learn to shade yourself well in clothes that breathe.

Due to a lack of foresight, much of the real estate has AC and no evaporative cooler in the house. What that leads to is a brutally dry condition unless you run a humidifier. Plan on "allergies" (your mucous system can't operate in an overly dry environment) which are helped again, by maintaining sensible humidity levels.

UV light from the sun beats the ever loving hell out of dashboards, wood, lawsn, roofs, paint, your skin, plastics, trees that aren't well-irrigated, and other things.

Jobs are here, but the rest of the state isn't heavily populated, so you can't just "get tired of Milwaukee and move to Kenosha" and find work, so to speak.

I'll keep from being negative any further.

 

[ears]

You mean 9 months of snow and cold, and 3 months of bad sledding.




It's a dry heat.

You can laugh at that, but it really does make a difference. I'd rather be here when it's 100+ and dry than anywhere at any temperature on the gulf coast or eastern seaboard or midwest when it's humid. (edit) The monsoon season isn't bad. Yes, it gets a little humid while still at 100+ degrees at times, but it's still not anywhere near as bad as the humidity in other parts of the .

Summers I spend more time in Phoenix than Virginia. Dry heat isn't that bad to me. It burns you more than smothers you like the east. It's a little strange working outside all day and being bone dry covered in powdered salt. In the east I wear swimming shorts and have to take everything out of my pockets. It doesn't take before long I'm completely drenched.

 

[AZXRider]

I'm not sure what deep drawn sheet metal is but there are a ton of aerospace companies here if that helps. It gets pretty hot in the summer but if you work indoors it wont be an issue.

 

[tc-cad]

Deep Drawn sheet-metal: Fenders, hoods Motorcycle fenders gas tanks etc. Almost everything that is metal and formed rather than bent on a brake press.

 

[pacmktg]

I would try getting in touch with Coxreels in Tempe. They have a brand new plant and are producing Hose Reels, Cord Reels. It is an impressive facility, I was just there 2 weeks ago and they are growing rapidly.

 

[sailcat]

July and August are the blistering, burning, inhumanly extreme heat months in Phoenix. The rest of the year are the hot months.

There are only 2 seasons in Phx. Hot and Hotter. Lived there 24 years after spending 30 years in the bitter cold of Nova Scotia. Finally could not stand the heat anymore. Moved to East Tennessee. 4 seasons, very mild winters, beautiful summers with cool evenings on even the hottest summer day. No mosguitoes

 

[Fedwrench]

I would not come here. I've lived here 12 years. Phoenix is like living in a third world country. Crime, traffic, it's dirty, it's not that cheap, snowbirds, etc. The toughest thing about the weather is when it's over 90 degrees at 2:00 am in the summer. It's just wrong to be that hot when it's dark outside. With all of the concrete, the absorbed heat has nowhere to go.
Good luck in your quest.

 

[judger101]

im not trying to sway you just telling my experience. i live in central ND and i cannot count the number of people both young and old who have left to live somewhere where the weather was better ect ect and they always end up coming back. from my experience it isnt so much the lack of work aspect, but more so the people, crime, ect... there are worst things out there to deal with than snow.

 

[melliott28]

When relocating to somewhere with a warm climate, there are some little things to consider that people who live there never warn you about. I'm from Pittsburgh and I relocated to the Dallas area for a job 9 years ago. I know it isn't hot here like it is in Phoenix, but I think a lot of what I have learned applies. Here are some things to think about:

- When you are not on vacation, temperatures warmer than 95 degrees are not all that enjoyable. I thought I liked hot weather, but it turns out, what I like is warm weather.

- In a place where there are a lot of rivers and natural lakes you take the taste and quality of the tap water for granted. In a place where water is not as abundant, the quality of the tap water can be pretty bad. During the summer months and drought conditions (which is more often than you think), the quality of the water can get really bad. Filtered water is a must.

- If you think your car is hot when it is 85 out, try getting in your car after it has been sitting in the 100 degree sun all day. You learn to appreciate covered parking.

- There are animals in warm climates that you don't see in a cold climate, such as scorpions, lizards & geckos. If your wife is squeamish about those things, there will be lots of freaking out when she finds them in the house. Also, with the warm climate in Phoenix, you probably see these little critters the entire year.

- If your air conditioning goes out during the hottest time of the year, it is hell. To make things worse, HVAC guys are so busy during this time, that they can't get to you sometimes for a day. One day isn't very long, but it seems like an eternity when it is 95 degrees at night, and your wife and kids are miserable.

All that said, not having to deal with cold winters and snow is awesome!

 

[1949 caddyman]

How much do you hate cold & how strong are your ties to family that you will be leaving. I left Buffalo NY 27 years ago & moved to Mesa AZ. I worked outside at a GM dealer. Yes it gets hot, just like it got cold where we came from. It also gets cold in the winter. 25*may not sound cold but all the tools you touch are 25*. People say there are no change of seasons here, if you work outside you know there are.
The desert is not for everyone but I like it.

 

[Tarheelgarage]

I got a wild hair in the early 80's and moved to Mesa, AZ with my then gf.
Back in those days, Motorola was a major employer in the area and I goy a job in one of their factories.

Busted up with the gf and moved back to NC a few years later without the *****....

I remember a few days of temps reaching 115F.....

A good place to visit, but if you like forrests and seasons, you will not be happy.

 

[PinkLinc]

I've lived in Phoenix my whole life and I like it here. Summers are no big deal if you work inside and the A/C in your vehicle works. I'm sure you've heard the saying "You don't have to shovel heat". Phoenix is the catch-all term for the whole Valley which is actually many different cities. Some are definitely better than others. Do you have any idea what part of Phoenix you'll be moving to?

 

[WWIIjeep]

I've lived in Phoenix my whole life and I like it here.

46 years for me. Not my whole life, but most of it. A lot of changes in that time, but it's still a great place in most respects.

Phoenix is the catch-all term for the whole Valley which is actually many different cities. Some are definitely better than others.

Exactly. Some parts of the Valley of the Sun (Phoenix Metropolitan Area) are as nice as any you'll find anywhere. Others can be a lot less than that, with the same negatives that affect most major US metropolitan areas.

 

[tc-cad]

Brother in law lives in Fountain Hills. So maybe there or somewhere close.
As long as I have a pool I think I can take the heat.

 

[sailcat]