Posted on 10/04/2023 3:10:28 PM PDT by GunHoardingCapitalist
I am looking at relocating to Idaho, I do not have a preference on location, but I would like to be near the forest, rather than the plains. I am more concerned with finding work. By trade I do industrial automation/millwright in food plants. Any suggestions or leads would be appreciated
Yeah. We have the inversion in Salt Lake too.
Still it’s better than living in LA, SF, Seattle, Baltimore, Philadelphia, etc etc.
there is a automation plant in the Sandpoint area that makes bar scan readers. as far as food processing stuff, you would be better employed in CDA. It has some very nice areas around it to commute from.
Dunno. I just visit.
LOL...and house needs painting and got to totally rebuild the pergola and parts of the yard are swampy mess so we need regrading and new topsoil and rearrange the irrigation circuits and new gutters.
But don’t let that deter any interested applicants! All the Bud Light you can drink!
Nobody pulps anymore. They do that in Canada and Brazil. The pulp arrives in 500# bales in containers, usually by rail. That hydrogen sulfide smell is a thing of the past, unless you’re in Brazil or Canada.
since I live in grizzly territory, I carry a SBH 44 on my hip. a few times I actually forgot to take it off going into the bank. No one really gave a $hit. In fact it isnt even posted not to open carry at the banks here. There was a Lib doctor that posted it on his door when he was in business for a few years, but he’s gone now. CDA and north has a atmosphere (and weather) that seems to keep the Libs and gimmedats away.
Thank goodness for that!
Bay Valley Foods has been buying up food manufacturers like crazy. Try checking them out. Dry process foods, pickled stuff, salsa, all sorts of condiments, cereals, powdered milk, oatmeal, grits, coffee, SYSCO type bulk institutional foods mixes like pudding, jello, whipped toppings, drink mixes, etc.... They are everywhere now. All private label stuff.
“industrial automation/millwright in food plants”
Food production would be in the southern tier of Idaho. You still have a couple lumber mills in the panhandle.
Corporate Automation Engineer in Idaho Falls. Close to Tetons, Jackson, Yellowstone, Cassia City of Rocks
Hecla Mining, Lucky Friday Mine, Mullan, ID
Process Controls Engineer
https://www.hecla.com/job/process-controls-engineer
Food to Silver — you have transferrable skills
Hecla is headquartered in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. The Company’s common stock has been traded on the New York Stock Exchange for over 50 years.
Lucky Friday is a deep underground silver, lead, and zinc mine located in the Coeur d’Alene Mining District in northern Idaho. The mine began operating in 1942 and celebrated its 80th anniversary in 2022. Lucky Friday is located one mile east of Mullan, Idaho, and is adjacent to U.S. Interstate 90.
I wondered why that enticing aroma no longer wafts most pleasantly around the Wallula, WA paper mill. It used to be fun to watch little kids’ reactions. I didn’t mind it too much.
“if you don’t mind small land and dead animals from city people not slowing for deer, etc in road”
LOL...we get “turkey jams” all the time in Hayden. Dumb birds blithely walk into the road and stop. Cars stop and back up. Sometimes I have to get out and shoo them off the road.
“The stench is awful”
There are many different pulp digesting processes. You probably worked in a sulfite mill using Black Liquor. Worst stench in the world. Permeates your body, your clothes, your car upholstery. Everything. And there’s no more fun than burning that stuff in a recovery boiler.
Of course, my experiences in pulp mills were 50 years ago, so processes have no doubt improved.
Not sure if your millwright skills would be directly applicable, but the Kodiak Aircraft plant is in Sandpoint, and the last time I drove by they were hiring.
“garbage pickup, snow plowing, city water, city sewer, internet, natural gas”
You have to watch where you buy. Lots close to the city have all those services, but if you get to the more remote areas and the backside of our beautiful lakes, you will find spotty or non-existent services.
Depending on your age, you may want to be closer to health care services than way out.
We have friends on the back side of Hayden Lake in a gorgeous home they built. They also have a downtown condo in CdA for their winter retreat. It’s funny to own summer and winter homes just 15 miles apart in the same climate, but it makes things a lot more practical.
“That hydrogen sulfide smell is a thing of the past”
Dang, all those sulfite mills are gone now, too? I know the ones I worked at in Florence, Oregon and Snowflake, Arizona are shut down. We drove through Kamloops, BC a couple weeks ago and there was no black liquor “aroma” any more.
Yeah it was rural mill in the early 1970s. Ancient times. When you got off work your car was covered in a layer of stinky dust.
Apparently those kind of mills are no longer a factor
Maybe you’re thinking of Encoder Products Company on US-95 in Sagle? We drive by there all the time.
https://www.encoder.com/careers
Also, McCallister Technical Services on Sherman in the heart of CdA. They do custom controls & automation work. I stopped in and talked to them a month ago — it’s a fascinating company.
https://mcallister.com/product-category/controls-automation/
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