DETERMINES EVERYTHING. WITH THE RIGHT ATTITUDE, NUCOR OFFERS UNLIMITED POSSIBILITIES." —RANDY HENDERSON

BLUEPRINT: Does working on heavy equipment run in your family? How did you get to work a crane?

JULIE PELTS: I originally set out to work in the office, but one day my manager encouraged me to get a feel for what is available at Nucor, so I rode in the crane for a bit and watched the guys run it. I thought, maybe I could do that.

BP: What’s the formal training like?

JP: Training runs between 60 and 90 days. You get in the crane, and you have a trainer in there with you to explain everything about how to operate the crane. They eventually let you run for a little while, but they are always in the crane with you.

Julie Pelts

Crane Operator, Nucor-Yamato Steel

Hometown: Cooter, Missouri

Age: 45

Years with the Company: 16

BP: What do you do during a typical shift? In the bloom yard we stack the steel. We cast it, we pick it up and put it in the yard and then we give it back to the roll mill for them to reheat and roll it.

BP: Have you had the opportunity to mentor other women in the same job?

JP: We have had a few other women come over here and I trained them. We also have Bloom Yard I and Bloom Yard II cranes and there have been women over there that I’ve helped train.

BP: Is it unusual for women to be crane operators? How were you accepted early on?

JP: Actually, at the time I started, we had quite a few women crane operators. And there’s another woman on our crew right now. In fact, I’ve been doing this for 13 years now. The guys were great and still are.

James Jones

BLUEPRINT: You have quite the connection to the Nucor plant, don’t you?

BP: What has been your experience working at Nucor?